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The latest trends, techniques, and insider secrets—revealed.

Greatest Spritz
Fall fragrance is bringing sexy back and letting it linger in the cool, crisp air.
By Janelle Harris

Shorter days, longer nights, mad dashes to the store through blustery winds. For most of us, cold weather conjures more hectic visions than the carefree days of spring and summer. But as you pile on the layers and let your toes glimpse their last light of day, there are a few cold-weather treats to look forward to (besides celebrating the return of the skinny jean and anticipating the fate of Girlfriends minus Toni Childs). This fall’s olfactory lineup, for one, is packed with rich fragrances made for sexier, more grown-up women than the syrupy scents of seasons past. But with so many classics and new releases to choose from, picking the perfect aroma can be a challenge. To get a better understanding of the principles behind selecting a fragrance, we spoke with a team of experts.

Scents and Sensibility
Whether you’re an aficionada or a newbie, choosing a scent is highly individual. In addition to personal taste, because of variances in body chemistry, environment, hair type, and diet, the same perfume smells differently on each person. So “just because you like a scent on your friend doesn’t mean you’re going to like it on yourself,” says Mary Ellen Lapsansky, executive director of the New York–based Fragrance Foundation. For that reason, finding the perfect fragrance usually requires some trial and error. However, that doesn’t mean you should be a serial spritzer—spraying and sniffing your way through dozens of perfumes in a single outing. On the contrary, fragrance shopping should be as informed and methodical as shopping for a car (or at least a new pair of stilettos).

The best way to begin? Identify your favorite scent family: floral, chypre, Oriental, marine, green, or fruity. “Women tend to be attracted to one family that interacts well with their skin and chemistry,” says Lapsansky. If you’re concerned your options will be too limited, don’t despair—within each family, there’s a wide range of accords to choose from. “If you like florals, you can pick a lighter floral, an Oriental floral, or a fruity floral,” Lapsansky explains. And if you want to narrow the options further, “tell the salesperson what you’ve been wearing so he or she can recommend similar fragrances.” From there, spritz each scent on a blotter, and sample it, stopping in between to sniff coffee beans (they’ll refresh your sense of smell).

Once you’ve whittled down the field to your final choices, spray each scent your skin, giving it at least a half hour so the topnotes and middle notes can develop. If you think you’ve found a winner, you’re probably in luck, as long as the fragrance works its magic for more than an hour at a time. To gauge an aroma’s staying power, it’s best to wear it for as long as possible, but if the scent doesn’t last as long as you’d like, there are things you can do to extend its life. In addition to switching to a mild, nonscented soap, Franco Wright, cofounder of LuckyScent.com, recommends layering your perfume over a scented lotion or cream—an approach that will keep you smelling pretty without repeatedly sneaking off to the ladies’ room to douse yourself throughout the day.

Making a Splash
Personal taste, body chemistry, and staying power should always be paramount when selecting a fragrance, but there are some seasonal trends you may want to indulge in. “The mood this fall is sexy and a bit dark,” Wright explains. “Women are gravitating toward amber, sandalwood, and Oriental scents that seem to correspond with this season’s more somber fashions.” Here, our top-ten picks.
Jo Malone Blue Agava & Cacao ($90; neimanmarcus.com): Packed with citrus, spice, and everything nice, Jo Malone’s latest offering is wonderfully lush and sensual. After a crisp opening, it reveals an exotic floral heart that’s underscored by delicious hints of cinnamon, vanilla, vetiver, and musk.
With Love...Hilary Duff ($45; sephora.com): Those who think of Duff as the quintessential teen queen will be pleasantly surprised by this rich, distinctive, and womanly fragrance. Mangosteen fruit, cocobolo wood, amber musk, and a host of spices give the scent seasonal appeal.
Geisha Marron by Aroma M ($40; luckyscent.com): This musky Japanese accord gives “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” a new twist. Grapefruit, mandarin, and bergamot infuse the chestnut note with succulence, while muguet and Japanese magnolia give the scent its depth.
Live Luxe by Jennifer Lopez ($33.50; perfumania.com): Brimming with intoxicating florals, fresh fruits, sexy musk, and warm woods, J.Lo’s newest release is anything but weak or watered down. Even the bottle is dynamic—a swirly, colorful objet d’art that catches the light like a grown-up kaleidoscope.
Bond No. 9 West Side ($125; bondno9.com): This luminous ode to Manhattan’s musical district hits all the right notes—from an exuberant floral opening to a woodsy crescendo down to a sweet, musky base. Equally appealing is the brand’s new Perfumista Custom Blending Box ($240), which allows you to mix your own melodic blends.
Baby Phat Golden Goddess ($42; babyphat.com): Kimora Lee Simmons captures her signature fabulosity in a glamorous aroma laced with caramel, seringa, blue lilies, vanilla, night orchid, and patchouli. It’s like indulging in Kimora’s opulent lifestyle, minus the rich ex, photo shoots, and multi-comma fortune.
The OC for Her ($22.50; select retailers): Unlike most fruity-florals, this all-season aroma is every bit as dramatic as its namesake suggests. After sumptuous fruits like mandarin, white peach, guava, and nectarine intermingle with sultry hibiscus, tuberose, jasmine, and freesia, a sweet vanilla-musk base is revealed.
Ferragamo F by Salvatore Ferragamo ($72; bloomingdales.com): With its seductive rose-and-jasmine heart, F is the olfactory equivalent of the designer’s lustworthy couture. A sprinkling of luscious fruity notes throughout infuses the scent with both rich and luminous undertones.
Badgley Mischka Parfum ($225; saks.com): Inspired by the screen sirens of the 1940s, this romantic floral blend combines wild red berries, peach, and creme de cassis with osmanthus flower, white peony, and jasmine and a warm amber-and-patchouli base.
Vanille Givree des Antilles by La Maison de la Vanille ($36; luckyscent.com): Unlike many vanilla scents, this sophisticated blend is never cloying. Notes of patchouli, rose, tuberose, oppoponax, and tonka bean offer the perfect foil for the sweet vanilla. The result? Spicy, rich, and exotic.

Photo credit: Kateryna Govorushchenko

Take Note

The science of smelling good starts with identifying the three parts of a scent’s aromatic harmony: the topnotes, middle notes, and basenotes.
Topnotes: Is it love at first sniff? Although you may be tempted to angle the nozzle under your nose for the initial test, you won’t know for sure until you smell the fragrance on your skin. At that point, the topnotes will give you a glimpse of what the scent is all about. “When you put a fragrance on, the topnotes give you an instant burst,” says Mary Ellen Lapsansky, executive director of the New York–based Fragrance Foundation. Also called the “head notes” or “opening,” topnotes can last anywhere from a few minutes to an hour and are usually fresh, light, and zesty.
Middle notes: Also known as the “heart notes,” middle notes emerge after the topnotes have settled to create the olfactory core of a fragrance. Middle notes generally consist of a more complex combination of rich and subtle ingredients, allowing the wearer to enjoy an intermingling of multiple elements (rose, vanilla, orange blossom, lavender, and jasmine are some of the most common examples).
Basenotes: Rounding out the aromatic package are the basenotes. Also known as “bottom notes” or “endnotes,” they’re “heavier, earthier elements that give a fragrance its depth,” Wright explains. “Basenotes are usually woods, resins, and spices, and they’re prominent during the drydown stage.” Drydown, you ask? That’s the process in which the topnotes and middle notes evaporate to reveal the basenotes. After the fragrance has undergone this transition, what’s left is the (last vocabulary word, I promise) sillage—the aromatic trail that remains on the skin.

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