7 Tips to Collect & Build an Impressive Perfume Wardrobe

Let this be the year that you finally curate and create your very own fragrance wardrobe. You will not be betraying your signature fragrance, if you have one, by doing so. You are free to have a variety of scents to choose from and match your fragrance to how you are feeling every day. The most important thing to remember is that perfumes are powerfully sensorial and have an immediate influence – something that you can use to your advantage if you have an entire dedicated wardrobe.You can classify perfumes by time of day, season, occasion, and even the memories associated with them. Either way, your goal should be to create a versatile fragrance wardrobe that will never leave you empty-handed. You may find it difficult to carefully select and build a collection from scratch despite being knowledgeable about perfumes. Here are a few tips that will help you out.

1. Follow your heart

It may be tempting to get all technical when it comes to choosing perfumes for your collection, but the truth is that your instincts can help you almost as much. If a fragrance makes you feel happy, uplifted, and cheerful, that is half the battle won.Since perfumes have an innate effect on how we perceive ourselves, only those that make us feel good should be in our wardrobe. Yes, some perfumes are complex and can grow on you, but they are not the ones that you will instinctively reach for in the morning when you want to feel your best self.So listen to your inner self, and then from there, start your research.

2. Research fragrance families

It never hurts to have in-depth knowledge about your preferences when it comes to fragrance notes and families. There are a few broad categories that you can explore – fresh, floral, oriental, wood, fougere, gourmand, chypre, citrus, and aromatic.You will find yourself gravitating towards a few fragrance families in particular, which will help narrow down your search. There is a chance that you may be confused if your favorites fall somewhere in between these categories. In such a case, you can take a look at the notes and descriptions of the perfumes you already know you love to infer which fragrance family you lean towards the most.When choosing new fragrances, experimenting within these families will help you understand better your own preferences, and give you a higher success rate.

3. Consider perfume concentrations

Once you have narrowed down your favorite fragrance families, it is time to ensure that you are covered in terms of perfume concentration. Eau de Parfums, Eau de Toilettes, and Eau de Colognes serve different purposes, so you should have at least one of each in your collection. Creating a perfume wardrobe is a labor of love, so remember to take pride in your collection and enjoy every single spritz.

4. Match fragrances with your lifestyle

You don’t only enjoy perfumes at home. Take a look at your weekly and monthly planning. Where do you spend most of your time? If you’re often in the office, then you may need a professional and affordable scent for daily use. Long-lasting scents are the best because you’ll be many hours in the office. If you regularly go on dates or meet up with friends, you likely want perfume that makes you stand out. In conclusion, you need to build a perfume collection that matches your lifestyle!

3. Refrain from blind-buying, get perfume samples

Some of us just love experiencing new perfumes. The joy stems from not owning them but rather from our senses enjoying something unique. If you are in this boat but are sold on the idea of creating a personal fragrance wardrobe, try sampling before committing to any full bottles. That’s why we at Beautinow attach great importance to sampling. Thus, many of our fragrances have a perfume samples option. The benefit of getting samples is that you can take your time and test the samples at home instead of making rush decisions in-store. At the end of the day, your collection should not consist of thirty perfumes that you “kind of like,” but rather it should showcase the ones that you absolutely love.Sampler packs will give you the thrill of trying out new fragrances, after which you can buy a full bottle of the scent you adored the most. Moreover, they will give you the chance to step out of your comfort zone and explore fragrance families that do not hold a lot of appeal for you.

4. Slow and steady wins the race

This is not a case of “Go big or go home”; in fact, quite the opposite. If you hurriedly commit to a few bottles that you don’t love, you will be at a grave disadvantage. Not only will you miss out on perfumes that you may have cherished, but you will also create a sizeable dent in your budget after which you will no longer have the freedom to explore. So, you should begin slow and build up your collection over a year or more, putting a lot of thought into every full-sized bottle you acquire. There is no definite number that you should be aiming for. However, the consensus is that you should begin with three fragrances – one for the day, one for the night, and one that can seamlessly transition. Now, you can add one or two more to the collection every month after careful testing and sampling. Once you acquire ten perfumes, take a breather and reassess the collection as a whole before repeating the cycle.

5. Quality over quantity – Aim for greatness

You may have heard this one before, but it holds true. You will find yourself appreciating your high-quality fragrances the more you become familiar with the ins and outs of perfumery. Quality does not always mean an exorbitant price tag, but the logic here is that one perfume made with the best raw materials will be more precious to you than three average ones. Moreover, you should not fall into the trap of buying multiples of something you like. For example, if a particular fragrance you own made you realize that you love leather perfumes, there is no need to buy a second one that will only distract you from the one you already cherish.

6. Layering is the key

If you do not want a particularly large fragrance wardrobe, you have to harness the power of layering. For that, you need to ensure that the perfumes in your collection are largely compatible with each other in terms of notes and fragrance families. There are several ways you can experiment with layering, but they will not be very effective unless you have chosen your perfumes carefully to align with each other. In case you are hesitant about layering perfumes, you can begin by layering a fragrance with scented shower gels and moisturizers.