By Christophe Rude
Knowing where to start can be tricky if you are looking for signature cents but don’t know much about perfumes. With our guide to fragrance families and choosing a perfume, you will be armed with all the knowledge you need to find your new favorite fragrance.
When shopping for perfumes, there are endless scents to choose from. Some smell light and fresh, others have attractive depth, and some aromas are so sweet that they smell like candy. Many people search for buy fragrances online and find the best perfume from the online store with discount fragrance sale offers.
Everyone has their own preferences and ultimately some scents are best suited to them, but where would you start if you’re a total beginner?
First, this fragrance will help families understand what can be expected from different perfume notes. Read on to learn more about the four major types of perfume cents on how to choose the scent that suits you.
What Are the Main Types of Perfume?
Fragrances are classified by different families, each shown on the modern fragrance cycle created by British perfumer Michael Edwards.
When you find the Coco Chanel fragrance you like, a great way to improve your perfume knowledge is to see which family the fragrance belongs to. This will help you know what type of perfume scent you like best and make it easier to find similar fragrances in the future.
Let’s take a look at the four main families of fragrances and the properties found in each.
Floral
These perfumes for women can include notes such as rose, lily, jasmine, and peony, while men’s floral fragrances often contain orange blossom or lavender. Many customers prefer to buy perfume from a store near me them.
Floral Subfamilies
- Fruity —Fragrance made with delicious notes of fruits and berries such as apple, peach pear, mandarin, and fig.
- Floral — Romantic smells like fresh cut flowers.
- Soft Floral — Soft, powdery aroma with a warm base that softens the intensity of a bouquet of flowers.
- Floral Oriental — Floral aroma with notes of subtle spice for an exotic twist.
Oriental
Oriental perfumes are warm and charming, made with spices such as pepper, cloves, and vanilla with hints of sandalwood, amber, and Musk. These scents are deep and deep, with a richness and sensuality that makes them one of the more luxurious fragrance families.
Oriental Subfamilies
- Soft Oriental — Oriental aroma with low intensity. Usually delicate, floral notes and a mixture of hot spices.
- Oriental — Sweet, rich and warm aroma characterized by spicy notes such as cinnamon, musk, vanilla, and Jasmine.
- Woody Oriental — These fragrances combine traditional oriental spicy notes and earthy notes such as sandalwood, rosewood, and patchouli for extra depth.
Woody
Woody colognes are often used as fragrances for men or evening perfumes for women, with light top notes and Musk middle notes. These perfumes are made from materials such as sandalwood, oakmoss, patchouli, cedar wood, and Amber to create soothing, earthy aromas with warmth in their hearts.
Woody Subfamilies
- Dry Woody — Aroma with crunchy, dry woody notes for a smoky, leathery scent.
- Mossy Woody — Aromas with smooth, earthy notes like oakmoss and Amber.
- Woody — Perfumes with deep, aromatic notes such as cedar, sandalwood, and poppy seeds. Some woody aromas may also include citrus or floral to reduce the warmth of woody notes.
Fresh
The fresh fragrance family includes green, watery, and citrus fragrances, with perfumes characterized by their refreshing, invigorating, and uplifting properties.
Fresh Subfamilies
- Green — The green scent has a distinctively crisp, refreshing feel, creating a freshly cut grass-like herbal and leafy aroma. These vibrant perfumes can include notes of Moss, foliage, green leaves, green tea, and aquatic plants.
- Water — Perfumes made with aquatic notes create a light, subtle and refreshing scent.
- Citrus — The aroma is characterized by its tart, peppery notes such as lemon, orange, bergamot, mandarin, and grapefruit.
- Aromatic — These fragrances contain clean, herbal notes such as sage, rosemary, cumin, and lavender, often mixed with woody notes in men’s fragrances.
How to Choose the Right Perfume
So, you have studied the aroma cycle and think that you have a good understanding of aroma families. How do you now put this knowledge into practice and find the perfume of your dreams? Here are some practical tips.
Think About the Scents You Already Like
You do not need to be a fragrance expert to determine what type of perfume aroma you will like. Take the time to get to know the scents you like, starting with the scents in other products that you attract. Think of your go-to American crew shampoo, your favorite smelling flowers, or that scented candle you can’t get enough of. Try to start with perfumes with similar notes. Fragrances are a great way to make personal statements. Whether you want to stand out in the office, wow someone special, or simply want irresistible fragrances, these best fragrances for women will help you do that.
Consider Your Body Chemistry
Individual body chemistry, diet, and hormone levels can all affect how a perfume will smell on a person’s skin, as can the wearer’s environment and skin type. If you are unsure about a new fragrance, it is worth sampling it first, give a few hours to see how the smell develops throughout the day on your skin.
Sample Fragrances Correctly
When trying a new perfume, sample it correctly by spraying it at a pulse point, where the natural warmth of your skin will help develop the fragrance to its full potential. Do not rub your wrists together when spraying perfume, as this will cause the fragrance to fade more quickly.
Follow Your Instincts
Looking at popular perfumes is a great way to explore possible options, but don’t let trends get in the way of finding the fragrance you really like. Perfume shopping should be based on your preference and style, not someone else’s.