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I am often deeply affected by perfumes. I find they can transport me, seduce me or refresh me. They can really set my mood from confident and businesslike to softly feminine, or wickedly sensuous. I don't have one bottle of perfume but many and I wear perfume every day. I wear it more for my own pleasure than for others.
My golden rule is that perfume should be used sparingly. I believe its beauty is in its subtlety and it should only be perceptible to others if they are very close to me. I find it extremely offensive when people reek of perfume so strongly that so you want to move away from them. Worse still, if they are sitting near you in a restaurant and their scent permeates the flavours of your food. Movie theatres are another place where one is often overwhelmed. Who hasn’t felt like getting up and moving on occasion!
My Mum taught me how and where to use perfume and, even if just for the sake of others, it is a pity that not everyone is as fortunate. Perfume is not deodorant there to mask other smells, but should be a like intimate secret to share with just a selected few (i.e. those close enough to hug you). For me it is magic to brush cheeks with a friend and discover her defining personal fragrance. It certainly becomes a very special link.
I recall a work colleague coming into the office one morning and standing by my desk. As she moved, the gentlest hint of perfume wafted over me and I immediately remembered my late Grandmother. “Je Reviens”? “Yes! In the round bottle!” Stranger still, for those reading this who don’t speak French, is that “je reviens’ means “I will return”!
Did you know the most concentrated, longest-lasting scents are called perfumes or parfums; eau de parfum comes next, then eau de toilette and finally eau de cologne. (Eau means 'water' in French). They are normally priced accordingly.
If you are buying, remember perfumes do smell different on different people so don't choose one just because you like it on someone else. Best advice is to buy a coffre of those little sample bottles if you can; or try a different perfume every time you visit your chemist. There is absolutely no point in trying a different one at the same time on each wrist - the scents will simply get confused. Also, don’t go for inexpensive over sweet lolly water either unless you really want to smell like a lolly. . Even though they seem expensive, a premium perfume always has more depth and complexity and endures longer on your skin. You will also need to use far less and I guarantee you will feel very special whenever you wear it.
I love a fresh, light, energising cologne during the day, especially in summer- perhaps Lancome's O d'Azur. If I am feeling in a particularly gentle, romantic mood, then Gucci in its delicate pink bottle reflects this. My favourite perfume - with a bit more personality - is Paloma Picasso. I always try to have a supply of both the eau de parfum for evenings and the eau de toilette, which being lighter, is more suitable during the day. I also prefer atomisers which are much easier to use and less wasteful.
“Joy” by Jean Patou was advertised as the most expensive perfume in the world in 1936. It was a shock when I stayed at a B & B in France a few years ago, to see a bottle had been left in the bathroom for my use!
Finally, I always think it is quite funny that men wear aftershaves that women are supposed to like. Isn’t it a bit of a dichotomy, assuming women enjoy these scents so much, that they don’t they wear them themselves? Instead women choose scents that men are supposed to like but wouldn’t be caught dead wearing themselves!
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