The sweet smell of success: how to gift the perfect bottle of perfume

Smell is our most sensitive and personal sense. It has immense power to stimulate, seduce and uplift our spirits, so can be an amazing gift. Creating a beautiful scent requires sensitivity, creativity, originality and audacity, and so does selecting the perfect perfume for your loved one. Perfumes embody moods and ideas, textures, tones and even contradictions. Like people, they have different personalities — some are simple, some are complicated, some are layered with multiple notes; others are seemingly simple yet evolve to surprise.

Today, fragrance is a multi-billion-euro business and the financial backbone of the luxury goods industry. In 2019, RTÉ reported that we spent €350k daily on fragrances, and studies show that more than 50pc of all annual perfume sales occur in the months of November and December. More than 500 scents are launched annually, so how do you pick the right scent this Christmas — one that reflects your ability to distil your beloved’s personality into a perfect perfume? How do you pick an honestly beautiful scent amid the hype and hysteria? Giving a bottle of Thierry Mugler’s Angel to a muted minimalist is akin to gifting her a bright pink frock with bows. Similarly, giving a dramatic femme fatale a bottle of 01 from Escentric Molecules would be misguided. Not only do you need to match the scent to the personality, you also need to ensure that they will love it so they will wear it.

The art of purchasing perfume successfully depends on research and a little subtle detective work. It is, like many things in life, all about preparation and education. First, it is vital to look at the personality of the person you are buying for. Before entering a physical shop or going online, you need to know what you are looking for and focus on the recipient and not on the gobbledygook of glossy advertising campaigns.

Have a peek in your giftee’s bathroom to see what they are currently wearing for a start. “Try to find out what perfume the recipient already wears. Most good perfume stores will be able to advise based on this information. If you can’t find out which scent the recipient wears, come armed with as much information about the person as possible. What colours do they wear? Are they shy or gregarious? All of this information gives sales assistants clues,” advises Margaret Mangan of Cloon Keen, whose scents have won international acclaim. “You really need to know the person and their personality. I have found, in our stores, that certain types of personalities like particular types of perfume. It’s very odd, but true!” she adds.

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Margaret Mangan of Cloon Keen perfumery. Photo: Andrew Downes

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Sadie Chowen of the Burren Perfumery, whose natural scents are inspired by the beautiful Burren landscape, recommends pausing before you purchase. “Buying a perfume for a friend or loved one is an opportunity to spend time thinking about that person. What sort of things do they like. What colours do they wear? The secret of a successful gift is that you have given time and care thinking about what the recipient would like, rather than following your own preferences. Experiences are a sustainable and personal gift. A lovely option is to gift your loved one a perfume discovery gift set, which offers a full selection of trial-sized perfumes from their favourite brand with an accompanying gift card. They can then have the fun of exploration as well as the pleasure of a new perfume that they really love and makes them think of you.”

Erin Quinn of EQ Factories is a visual artist who has diversified into producing conceptual perfumes with unique sources of inspiration. Her latest perfume, Páis, commissioned by the National Gallery of Ireland, is inspired by the watercolour Hellelil and Hildebrand, the Meeting on the Turret Stairs and is infused with romantic notes evocative of medieval perfumery. She believes that looking at the notes a loved one gravitates to is a good tip.

“Research what types of smells they enjoy in candles and other perfumes and try to find perfumes with similar notes. The Fragrantica website (fragrantica.com) is a great resource for researching,” she explains. She also favours discovery kits. “Buy a discovery kit and/or offer to buy them a bigger bottle of the one they choose.”

Sticking to favourite types of fragrances or remaining within the same family of scents is a good suggestion from Joan Wood of Waters+Wild, who creates natural perfumes in West Cork. “If you know their preferences, ie a perfume with a hint of spice or classic rose, go with a similar one from the range. If you are familiar with their scents, choose one that you would love. Gift giving is for the giver as well as the receiver,” she says.

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Erin Quinn of EQ Factories

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People do tend to be drawn to the same types of scents repeatedly, and as fragrances are classified into families for simplicity, it’s wise to be aware of them. There are four families of scents as defined by fragrance expert Michael Edwards, who created the modern fragrance wheel. These are woody, floral, amber (previously called oriental) and fresh. Their characteristics are:

Woody family: smells warm, opulent and powdery and has sub-families, including mossy woods, woods and dry woods. Popular notes are patchouli, vetiver and sandalwood.

Floral family: smells like fresh-cut flowers with feminine, powdery characteristics. Sub families include fruity, floral and soft floral, with common notes of rose, jasmine and orange blossom.

Amber family: smells like herbal, spicy or dry resin notes. Sub families include woody amber, amber or soft amber, and popular notes include vanilla, myrrh and anise.

Fresh family: smells bright, herby, citrusy, clean and oceanic. Sub families are water, aromatic, green and citrus. Favourite notes include citrus, white flowers and bergamot.

Once you have identified your loved one’s favourite fragrance family, you can then focus on scents from within it, re-assured they will like your choice. When trying perfumes, it is best to limit yourself to smelling a few at a time or your sense of smell will become overloaded. “Try only a couple of fragrances on your skin in one session, otherwise your nose will become overwhelmed. Olfactory fatigue sets in after trying three to four scents, but you can reactivate your sense of smell by stepping outside for a couple of minutes or by simply smelling something that you’re wearing, like a scarf or a sleeve,” Mangan explains.

Giving a scent time to evolve to reveal all the layers of its composition is key. “It’s really important to see how the fragrance develops on your skin over time. Never purchase a fragrance without wearing it for at least a couple of hours,” she advises. See if it vanishes abruptly, becomes annoying after a time or remains true to its initial promise before deciding.

It is also important to be aware of the potency of different types of scent. Fragrances come in varying concentrations, so ensure that you are buying a formula with longevity. Briefly, the typical concentrations of perfume are: solid perfume, 20-30pc; parfum, 15-25pc; eau de parfum, 8-15pc; eau de toilette, 4-8pc; cologne, 2-4pc; and aftershave, 1-3pc.

“Eau de parfum will last longer than colognes or eau de toilette. Naturals will be more subtle and won’t last as long on the skin,” says Quinn. “Moisturising the skin is quite important to increasing the longevity, but you need to look at the strength of the fragrance too. For instance, an eau de cologne isn’t supposed to last very long on the skin, so if the longevity is important to you, try an eau de parfum or parfum strength,” adds Mangan.

Perfume is an affordable luxury — you don’t have to splurge to find a beautiful fragrance with staying power. There are truly beautiful scents that offer tremendous ‘bang for your buck’ which are not extortionately expensive, such as Narciso by Narciso Rodriguez, Tommy Girl by Tommy Hilfiger, Cool Water by Davidoff and White Linen by Estée Lauder. For the lucky ones for whom expense is no object, incredible scents to spoil a special someone include Dior’s Joy parfum, Chanel No 5, Frederic Malle’s Portrait Of A Lady, and Cloon Keen’s Castaña and Amouage Gold.

Don’t be afraid to explore and consider options from new niche and Irish brands that are perhaps not as recognisable but which are distinctive and original. Burren Perfumery’s Wild Rose and Winter Woods, EQ Factory’s Salomé and Can’t Do Without You, Waters+Wild’s Rose+Oud and Sweet Basil+Bergamot, and Cloon Keen’s Róisín Dubh are all genuinely beautiful.

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Sadie Chowen of the Burren Perfumery. Photo: Michael Koenigshofer

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Perfume is ephemeral but also enduring — we can recall the scent of a loved one years, even decades, after they are gone. It is also the perfect pandemic gift, as it restores our sense of hope and beauty. Chowen captures its magic when she says, “Perfume still holds mystery, a capacity to evoke pleasure, to trigger emotions, memories and experiences. Scent enhances moods and personality traits and can boost a sense of aliveness. It brings dreams, memories and reflections to our otherwise practical day-to-day lives.”

Glossary of perfume terms

Absolutes: a solvent-extracted fragrance material from natural substances such as jasmine. Traditional absolutes are derived using alcohol.
Accords: several notes combined to create an effect (related to the idea of a musical chord).
Aldehydes: organic compounds that perfumers use in their olfactory palette. Used prominently in Chanel No 5.
Chypre: a type of perfume with a structure made famous by Coty’s Chypre from 1917 based on oakmoss, cistus labdanum and bergamot. There can be floral, fruity and leather chypres.
Dry-down: the late stage of a fragrance that develops after the top and heart notes subside.
Fougère: a masculine genre based on a blend of lavender, oakmoss and the tobacco-hay notes of coumarin.
Gourmand: a subset of amber fragrances designed to smell dessert-like.
Musk: traditionally an extract of the pods of the Himalayan musk deer now largely replaced by synthetics.
Oriental: a fragrance genre with an emphasis on amber. There are floral, spicy-woody and gourmand orientals. Now increasingly called ambers.
Sillage: the scent trail left by a perfume at a distance from the wearer.

Fabulous Irish fragrance websites

arnotts.ie — An extensive range of favourite brands including Jo Malone London, Rituals and more from this Irish beauty institution.

beautybuys.com — An Irish site with an international offering of more than 4,000 products from brands including Burberry, Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, Hugo Boss, Lancôme, Estée Lauder and more.
brownthomas.com — Ireland’s premier luxury store has an opulent collection of exquisite perfumes and luxurious colognes created by the world’s most sought-after brands.

burrenperfumery.com — Sadie Chowen’s small boutique perfumery makes perfumes and certified organic cosmetics inspired by the beautiful Burren landscape.

cloonkeen.com — Margaret Mangan’s Cloon Keen collection of award-winning perfumes capture the poetic spirit of Ireland. Distinctive perfumes, home fragrances and body care.
eqfactories.com — Gender-neutral and limited-edition evocative perfumes by artist Erin Quinn. Each scent is handmade, with essential oils blended with the finest perfumer’s ingredients. Unusual and addictive.

parfumarija.com — Dublin’s niche perfume shop is home to many rare and special scents. Marija Aslimoska curates a hand-picked collection of some of the world’s finest niche perfumes from brands including Frederic Malle, Ormonde Jayne and Roja Parfums.

watersandwild.com — Using only the finest natural ingredients, Joan Woods creates a gorgeous certified organic range of scents that are inspired by the pristine nature and beauty of her West Cork location on the Irish Atlantic coast.