How to Combine Fragrances like an Expert
Here are my tips to help you discover your favorite fragrance’s and combinations!
As I’ve gotten older some of the things I have come to realize about myself is that I am definitely one of those people that enjoys -what I consider- the Holy Trios of Life: Looking Good, Eating Good, and Smelling Good.
For me I was naturally drawn to the first at a young age. The second I have always been a foodie and a foodie who thoroughly loves cookin it up in the kitchen too. Now the third I grew into shortly after my fashion internship.
Since then, I have been working in beauty for the last 5 years and I have learned a thing or two when it comes to making fragrances your own. I consider fragrance’s as your aromatic accessory that sets off the vibe of any outfit and how you want to surround yourself in the day.
And if you are like me your social feeds have been flooding you with fragrance inspiration and what combinations people have been into. But I’ve also noticed many people still are confused on where to start for themselves when it comes to fragrances.
So I thought I would create this guide to give you the foundations of fragrances and how to start combining them.
Understanding Fragrance Families
When it comes to the foundations of fragrance’s one thing to get down first is what family a scent belongs to. The most notable families that fragrances are categorized by are:
Woody
Fresh (also Citrusy or Aquatic)
Floral
Gourmand
Spicy
Earthy
Fruity
Now I would consider these as the staple or typical family houses when it comes to fragrances. There are some more nuanced families not listed for example like Smokey and Tropical.
Tropical family scents in the western world I would say are a bit more seasonal then the rest of the world. And the scent profile Smokey, I would consider to be a micro family fragrance based on my experience. Smoky scents have also become more popular in the last 2 or 3 years from a western world perspective.
Another thing to note if you are beginning to get into fragrances, is that there are many fragrances that are not just under one family. Many fragrances especially in todays fragrance creations are combined family fragrances. Some of the more popular combinations are:
Clean Floral
Woody Gourmand
Earthy Sweet
Spicey Floral
Fruity Earthy
Smokey Fruity
Sweet Spicy
These are just some of the more used combinations but I could really get carried away with all the combination that exist!
This is also a great way to see what fragrance family you are drawn to. Depending on how it is blended you may enjoy multiple others that may catch you by surprise. The amount of times a client has told me they hate a certain note or fragrance family but then wind up buying a fragrance with those notes in it attests to the power of a quality balanced blended fragrance.
The way a fragrance blends their ingredients, the alcohol ratio, and oil concentration can make you interpret a fragrance different every time.
Difference Between Eau de Toilette, Parfum, & Elixir vs. Essence
Speaking of oil concentration, let’s talk about these small words that usually follow the “Eau de…” label at the bottom of the fragrance box. This label is going to indicate the strength and oil concentration of your fragrance. Which will also determine how long your fragrance lasts too.
Eau de Fraîche vs. Toilette
These labeled fragrances are going to be considered the lightest oil concentration. Fragrances considered Eau Fraîche or Eau de Fraîche will have only 1-3% oil concentration while Eau de Toilette’s concentration level is 5-15%. They also can last between 2-4 hours depending on the blend.
If you like lighter, clean, and just overall soft scents this is the fragrance category to go for. These fragrances typically are not long lasting. However, I do find that sometimes the ingredient quality and blend can make your fragrances last longer. Plus these fragrances are typically on the affordable side when it comes to designer or niche fragrances.
In my experience I like my Eau de Toilettes to be blended with more woodier or earthier notes. The more depth or heavier the ingredients are make the scent naturally heavier. So on my skin even if it’s oil concentration is under 15% I notice I can still get wafts of my fragrance throughout my day. Even with a lesser oil concentration.
Another tip to make your Eau Fraiche’s and Eau de Toilette’s last longer is to blend them with another fragrance that has a higher oil concentration but is still compatible!
This also applies L’eau’s or L’eau Privée titled fragrances which are just considered softer or fresher but not as light as a fragrance mist.
Eau de Parfum
One of the more popular fragrance categories is an Eau de Parfum with a higher oil concentration of 15-20% and a fragrance wear of 4-5 hours. Many fragrances are considered an Eau de Parfum and are the go-to’s when it comes to lasting scents.
I also notice when it comes to trying a fragrance that’s an Eau de Toilette or an Eau de Parfum sometimes the scent difference is very minimal. This can be for many reasons.
It may be the way it is blended is exactly the same as each other, or the ingredients and oil concentration in an Eau de Toilette is close or the same for the Eau de Parfum. Now this tip is in reference to fragrances part of the same line. For example, Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel or Sauvage by Dior.
If an Eau de Parfum smells more stronger to you then it is more than likely on the higher oil concentrated end.
If you want a lasting scent, that has more depth, or a warmer projection (i.e. how far the scent stands out or envelopes away from your skin), I would go with these scents to start out with. For the most part, Eau de Parfums stick to your skin well due to the oil concentration and can have a good level of fragrance complexity.
In my experience. the only downside to in Eau de Parfum is that the level of alcohol ia similar to an Eau de Toilette. Due to this it makes the scent not as smooth as a Parfum or an Elixir.
Parfum
Speaking of smooth, a Parfum is where we get more expensive designer fragrances and deeper quality scent profiles. Typically Parfum labeled fragrances have an oil concentration of 20-30% and give you a 6-8 hour fragrance wear.
A lot of fragrances that are considered by the industry as higher designer quality, incorporate high levels of oil. Whenever I encounter Parfums, regardless of the scent family, is smoother and overall has a heightened edge to their note profiles.
Everything is just warmer, sweeter, earthier, and just overall more! Now a Parfum scent can stand beautifully alone but I also love amping it up with an Eau de Parfum scent or even bringing out more of the note profiles with an Eau de Toilette too!
Elixir vs. An Essence
The highest concentration that are offered in fragrance is going to be an Elixir and an Essence. And although similar in sound the definition and blend between an Elixir and in an Essence are different.
Elixir
Elixir has a high oil concentration between 20-40% and can have a fragrance longevity of over 8 hours. I’ve personally noticed with my elixirs if I spray it at the beginning of a shift by the time I’m going to bed 10+ hours later I will still smell it!
Essence
An Essence is more aromatic and emphasizes the base of a fragrance with essential oils, natural extracts, and other potent natural or synthetic ingredients. In most cases you can find variations of this that have no alcohol and at such high concentrations can last 6-24 hours!
Rather an Elixir or an Essence your longevity is going to be the longest and the most expensive. If you are into heavier scents, scents that envelop you, or leave a soft or prominent cloud as you walk by then an Elixir or Essence may be for you.
One thing about me is I love me a good oil and a fragrance that can envelop me in a couple of sprays and I can forgot about it. And that is what this category is great for. Just spray and let the chemistry work its magic.
Tips to Creating Fire Scent Combinations
When it comes to combining fragrances really it’s a combination of knowing what smells the best on you and which scents you already gravitate towards. Some of my core scent memories has to be the original scent of Tease by Victoria’s Secret body mist and Bath & Body Works Brown Sugar Vanilla and Sweet Pea (anybody remember those?).
Those scents correlate to a lot of the family scents that translate to the designer scents I have bought and been gifted in my collection today. Which is very interesting because as I’ve gotten older I tend to go for sexier, darker, or unisex fresh scents. For example scents like Black Opium (EDP) is my ultimate forever staples which I can relate to my OG love Tease by Victoria’s Secret.
I’m mentioning all of this because knowing what you already like makes the foundation for scent combining super easy.
Here are some of my quick tips to start thinking of what will become your scent combination go-to’s.
Quick Fragrance Combo Tips
Look at Your Body Wash, Hand soap, and current Body Spray.
This may sounds weird but when I’m helping clients discover new scents I begin with this question. Because it doesn’t matter where you buy a scent they always belong to a family. Rather it’s fron Target, Walmart, or a Body Spray random boutique you can relate those scents to a designer scent based on that family profile alone. And you know you will gravitate towards that scent because you use and buy that body wash or hand soap consistently.
2. Consider What Notes are Missing.
These days even your body wash or mist have a list of notes on websites so use those as clues to guide you nose to the right designer scent for you. You can also use this list to see what a scent doesn’t have and can pair a scent profile that contrasts that for a powerhouse scent combination.
3. Combine Fragrance Families that Contrast & Compliment Each Other
Combinations are like pairing you favorite outfit together or coffee flavoring even. It’s all about emphasizing scents with opposite profiles or scents that will compliment each other. This tip correlates to the combined fragrance families mentioned earlier.
For example two scent profiles that are usually sweet like gourmand and floral are a great complimentary combination. Both sweet but with an edible twist. And a good contrasting combination would be like smoky and fruity with be a great combination because they are polar opposite scent families that can bring at a balance in each other.
Try smelling Tom Ford’s Smoky Cherry and Lancôme’s La Vie Est Belle L’Elixir or Sol De Janeiro #71 Cheirosa to get the vibes of complimentary and contrasting combinations.
4. Layer with Body Butters or Lotions
This is how I love amping up my scents and combinations with a foundation of moisturizing. Your body lotions but especially body butters have a nice level of oils that you scents will cling to once you spray it. This means as it blend into the body from your lotions or creams and then into your skin the scent itself extends itself over time and sticks to your body like nobody's business!
You can use non-scented lotion or body butter but if you choose a scented one use the previous tips to create a nice balanced combination with your fragrances.
Bonus Tip: Try before you buy! Always see if the fragrance counter will give your a sample to try out throughout the day or spray a tester in in the store on no fragranced skin while shopping. You have to see how a fragrance works with your chemistry before even attempting to try and mix it up!
Those are my tips and tricks I’ve learned from working in fragrances that I hope help you. I wanted to equip you with a quick education rundown just to get you started.
Let me know how your experience goes.
Happy smelling!
Xo,
Sierra
