Choose a perfume by notes

When choosing a perfume, many factors come into play. Some people buy a fragrance based on the advertising that has been done for it, others for the beautiful product's bottle, and the others choose the fragrance depending on its brand.

It is also possible to choose a perfume according to its olfactive notes (a well-informed and knowledgeable customer is able to buy a fragrance according to this criteria, taking into account the tastes, and will thus be able to develop his knowledge of perfumery).

 

Know your olfactive family

In general, expert customers will be able to identify which olfactive family they belong to. Knowing your olfactive family will help you choose a of perfume based on its notes.

Here are the different olfactive families grouping perfumes: 

 

 

How to choose a perfume by notes?

A curious customer can also be more precise in their perfume search, and orient themselves towards defined dominant notes, such as:

Some enthusiasts will also be able to do an even more in-depth research, for example by looking for:

  • Fragrances with fresh notes, such as bergamot or other citrus notes (cf. Citrus Notes).
  • Lavender in aromatic notes.
  • A perfume having the rose as main theme, or another precise flower like the iris, the orange blossom, or the jasmine, or even solar flowers.
  • A fragrance with an overdose of patchouli (cf. Woody facet), for people who appreciate this scent.
  • A woody fragrance: you can head for the fragrances in which the highlighted vetiver note.
  • Depending on your affinities and your olfactive family, you can also choose perfumes with more gourmand notes, such as vanilla (cf. Gourmand facet) or with amber notes (cf. Oriental or amber family), or even fragrances with leather notes.

 

Where to buy a perfume by notes?

Regarding passionate or demanding customers: if they go to a boutique or to a classic department store, they will be looking for an adviser who can direct them to a perfume corresponding to their expectations.

However, be aware that they do not always have sufficient technical background and product knowledge necessary to guide you correctly in your purchase. In a perfumery, there is such a large choice of brands and perfumes that it will be difficult, if not impossible, to know the pyramids and the main notes of each of the perfumes present on the shelves.

These knowledgeable customers will then be able to move towards niche perfumeries, also called "confidential perfumeries", or "alternative perfumeries". In these shops, the owners or advisers are, as a rule, true experts and enthusiasts. They know very well the brands they have chosen and usually have a more limited choice of fragrances. It will certainly be easier to find a specific perfume containing the desired notes.

 

 

How to get informed when choosing a perfume by notes?

In order to choose your perfume by notes, you can regularly consult professional sites. This way, you can learn more about the notes contained in each of the fragrances. The following sites list is the latest news in perfumery, and display reviews of each fragrance (keep in mind that each review is subjective and therefore questionable):

Do not forget to check out the brands' websites, where each perfume and its notes are described in detail (cf. To buy a perfume online).

In addition, on the Sylvaine Delacourte website, you will find complete information about the fragrances, their raw materials and note with a text description as well as videos retracing the notes and ingredients of each perfume. You can also buy discovery sets allowing you to test the fragrances at home at a modest price. The Sylvaine Delacourte brand offers several collections, all are created around one main note (the first collection is built around the musk note, the second around vanilla, and the third around orange blossom).

Finally, if you want to increase your knowledge and learn about your own taste in perfumery, you can take part in perfume workshops with Sylvaine Delacourte, which will allow you to discover the different accords, the notes in perfumery, as well as the main raw materials present on the perfumer's organ. You will thus be able to be advised, and have your own custom made perfume.

You can also follow perfume workshops in professional training centers, such as Cinquième sens in Paris.

By informing yourself and enriching your knowledge of perfumery in its depth, you will have more certainty about your taste for a particular olfactive family, or for a particular note.

Once you have found the fragrance that suits you, it is important to test it on your skin (cf. Testing a perfume).


Choose a perfume by notes: be careful with the “a priori”

In perfumery, each of us can be surprised by our own perceptions. For example, someone who thinks they do not like roses may finally be seduced by the scent, if they are not aware that the perfume contains them. Indeed, the rose may be so well dressed and orchestrated in this particular fragrance that even experts will have difficulty perceiving it, even though its presence is undeniable.

Some perfumes are veritable works of art: they are so well orchestrated and the components are so well linked that it is difficult to detect the main notes.

In the end, a beautiful perfume is above all one that gives you a pleasant "olfactory shock". So sometimes it is not very important to look for the presence of a particular note.

 

Sylvaine Delacourte fragrances

Discover Sylvaine Delacourte's brand with her Orange Blossom, Musks and Vanilla Collections. You can try them thanks to the Discovery Boxes (5 Eaux de Parfum x 2 ml) and rediscover these raw materials as you have never smelled them before.