Fragrance is like the cherry on top of a perfect outfit. It adds a sensorial layer to your look, conveys an attitude or mood, and reflects your unique personality.
Many people choose a “signature scent” and wear it all the time, hoping that the aroma will identify them as soon as they walk into a room. Sometimes people wear the same scent forever; sometimes they change it up as the mood takes them. Either way, it comes down to this: we all want to smell good.
Have you ever noticed that some of the fragrances you use seem to last a long time and others seem to dissipate almost immediately? You may think that you're just not using enough fragrance, but that's actually not the case.
There are several reasons why some fragrances last and others don't. You can experiment to find out what your problem may be and make changes:
Your skin. Believe it or not, your epidermis could be to blame. If you have dry skin, you probably don't have the necessary oils that the perfume needs to absorb into your skin. Therefore, the fragrance will evaporate faster. Try applying an unscented moisturizer before applying your fragrance. Or you can try “layering” multiple fragrances, if your favorite fragrance also comes in shower gel or body lotion.
Concentration. Perfumes come in different concentrations. The higher the concentration, the more fragrance it will have and the longer the scent will last. For example, an eau de parfum will always be more concentrated than an eau de toilette. A body spray will be much less concentrated than an eau de toilette. However, keep in mind that concentrations vary between different product lines. Generally, the more alcohol the scent contains, the faster it will lose its scent.
Grades. Notes are what make up a fragrance. Most fragrances have top, middle, and base notes. These notes are scents with different molecular weights that develop at different rates when applied to the skin. Top notes are the first ones you smell in a perfume. They evaporate faster than the rest of the scents. Middle notes are the “body” of the perfume and take longer to develop on the skin than the top notes. Base notes are the final scent to develop and last longer. They are also a fixative that slows down the evaporation of the top and middle notes, making the overall scent last longer. The stronger the base note, the longer the fragrance lasts. Some cheap fragrances don’t even bother with base notes and, unsurprisingly, they don’t last very long.
