Know Your Perfume: Fragrance Classification and Categories

Every perfume-conscious woman on this planet knows that fragrances are like shoes. There are days when you scowl on the very mention of heels, yet sometimes you just cannot imagine not being a few inches taller, looking at the world from an elevated state of mind. The perfumes are just the same. There are days when you want to showcase your femininity, yet there are also days when you want to be a fashionable daredevil, flaunting a juicy perfume in the snow blizzard.

The quest for your fragrance category

Experimenting with perfumes is always a good thing because perfumes were meant for play. But just as you can spend many years wearing the wrong bra, you can go terribly wrong with perfume and thus never experience a full set of advantages that come from wearing your signature fragrance. The perfume trail behind you is speaking loudly, but it is yelling all the wrong words?

If you want to be sure that your perfume is the perfect match to your personality, then you wouldn’t mind taking a very fun quiz. And do not worry, there are no wrong answers. If you are honest, then the perfume experts will get your fragrance diagnosis right.

Once you know which fragrant category you belong to, come back here and read up on it.

Woody Perfume Category

The woody perfume compositions that dominate the perfume are warm, dry and distinctively sharp. These fragrances are based on scented notes of tree’s resin tears, moss, bark and fresh green pine cones, conjuring images of winding paths in a forest after a heavy autumn rain. Unrightfully claimed to be predominantly masculine scents, sandalwood and vetiver are merely synonyms for strong-minded women with a no-nonsense attitude.

Woody perfumes are great when you feel rebellious and do not want to play by the rules imposed by others. These perfumes are perfect for the Bond, Jane Bond in you.

One of the most popular woody fragrances with a gender-bending appeal on Scentbird is White Woods by Clean. The base notes of sandalwood, praline, musk, amber and woody notes mix perfectly with the chemistry of the wearer, creating together a blend of unbearable lightness of style and sophistication.

Citrus Perfume Category

The perfumes that are heavily infused with energetic and vibrant notes of citrus fruits evoke the tangy spirit of summer lemonade stands or the popular lemon tarts. The domination of lemon, grapefruit, orange, mandarin or bergamot warrants a sensation of liveliness, like riding a bike without clinging your hands on the handlebars during the summer sunset. Sometimes the citrusy over-indulgence can take a bitter turn, especially if the citrus notes take all the credit for perfume’s radiating energy.

This kind of perfume will wake you up the morning after a night of hard partying. Citrusy perfumes are the perfect antidote to grey weather. You can wear them when you are going to gossip-infused gatherings or simply when you want to feel carefree.

One of the most popular citrusy perfume on Scentbird is Soleil de Capri by Montale. This is the Montale’s idea of revolutionizing the industry by mixing the bitter scent of grapefruit with mellow notes of white flowers.

Floral Perfume Category

Floral perfumes are the most versatile of all. The floral notes are charming, charismatic, sophisticated, mild, romantic, subtle, and mellow, all at the same time. Perfume designers tend to combine a few flowers in one fragrance so as to capture the essence of the fragile yet omnipotent feminine appeal. Floral perfumes showcase the mellowness and sweetness of the lily-of-the-valley, the stylish prominent resilience of the Bulgarian rose, the sophistication of the blossoming iris or out-of-this-world beauty of orchids. Floral perfumes smell like the most romantic innocent kiss, like hope, like the first crush.

The florals are perfect when you find yourself in the ‘meet the parents’ situation, when you want to wake up your dormant femininity or when you are feeling romantic.

One of the more popular floral perfumes on Scentbird is Midnight Fleur by Nest Fragrances. Blooming jasmine and vanilla orchid dominate its composition, making the scent extremely and exquisitely romantic.

Fruity Perfume Category

The fruity notes are vibrant, light and inviting. Imagine the smell of fruit on a fruit stand, the tingly sensation of fruit pieces that slide down your throat on a heated summer day or the juiciness of your favourite cocktail. The fruit notes are show stealers. They are loud, pretentious but never overwhelming. These scents are like a downpour of happiness on your skin. The flamboyant coconut, the vibrant cherries, exotic mango, the hypnotic kiwi, blackberries, gooseberries, nectarines, peaches – all inhabit fruit-based perfumes.

These are your ideal scents when you want to be merry: wear them to a party or when you are consumed by wanderlust. Or by adventure.

One of the most popular fruity perfumes on Scentbird is Be Delicious by DKNY. It is fresh and tantalizing, sticky sweet and utterly sensational, like the juicy waterfall that runs after the first bite of watermelon.

Spicy/Oriental Perfume Category

The spicy notes of perfumes are fiery, bold, strong and perplexingly bitter-sweet at their core. You can sense them in the spice isles of your mother’s kitchen. Oriental spices have vivid colours and very sharp distinct scents. Each spice hides a story of its own. When combined together, these tongue-tingling creatures tell the best balmy effluvial story.

To imagine their essence, take a whiff of Black Opium by Yves Saint Laurent and imagine the spice-filled wooden ships being hijacked by pirates on the sea of jade movie playing right before your eyes. Wear this perfume on a hot date, combined with a red curvaceous dress and vertigo-inducing heels.

Aquatic Perfume Category

The aquatic notes are very ethereal, light and crispy fresh. They are reminiscent of a fresh ocean breeze or the morning mountain dew that veils the forest. You can discern them in the freshness of air-dried linens, the smell of upcoming snow or the scent of ozone radiating from the much-awaited summer storm. You can sense them in the ineffable beauty of the salted residues that linger on your beach sandals, the perfect reminder of the sea romance, the carefree spirit of ice that melts in your drink or under the sun.

You should go with an aquatic perfume when you are making a stylish entrance on a baby shower or when you are hunting for a job. These perfumes make perfect office-appropriate fragrance choices.

Currently, the most popular aquatic perfume is Armani’s Aqua di Gioia. This is a perfume that depicts the love story of the ocean that wants to be forever united with the sparkling pieces of sand that are washed upon the shore. Yet, every time they are together, the forces separate them. The ocean feels like these pieces of sand are the ones that got away. This perfume tells this story over and over again, just like the ocean waves strike upon the shore, over and over again.

Gourmand Perfume Category

The mouth-watering gourmand category of scents can be easily captured in the warm, sensual airborne fragrant notes of your favourite vanilla and chocolate cake, the smell of soufflé and scorched sugar or the comforting nutmeg latte. These sweet scents give every perfume a distinct depth and unquestionable powdery complexity. When you think of these notes, just close your eyes and remember the smells of the candy store around the corner. Gourmand notes are the smell of your childhood.

Sweet gourmand perfumes are ideal for the women who are able to find a reason for happiness even amidst the grey clouds. The warmth of vanilla, chocolate and sugar is almost as comforting as the sweet motherly embrace.

The king of sweet gourmand perfumes on Scentbird is La Vie Est Belle by Lancome. La Vie Est Belle is a perfume with a devilish indication of a belief in serendipity. This is a scent for your happy ever after and is a perfect fit for a woman who never judges dessert by the amount of calories, but rather by the number of pleasurable seconds.

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