Give me your best tips please...

[noahlingwall]

Hello basenotes community,

I'm just now entering the cologne community, and would appreciate any tips you think would benefit a beginner -- i.e. - what's a good price, how much to apply and where, how to choose the best cologne for your body type?

Thanks much,

Noah

[cacio]

Welcome!

One tip I can think about is to be patient and smell a lot first. Tastes change pretty quickly at the beginning. Typically, people like fresher and lighter stuff first, and are scared of more intense smells. Also, one may find something ok, only to realize later that there are other perfumes that smell similar and are much better.

I also found it worthwhile to read some books - my favorite is Turin Sanchez guide to perfumes. As with all books, opinions are personal (though I agree with most of them), but it's good information.

It is difficult to smell niche or nonstandard perfumes if one lives outside of big cities, so one can make the most of trips. Paper strips keep the scent for a long time, so one can go back home and smell at ease - remember to write the name on the strip with a pencil, or you'll forget what is what.

There were discussions in the past about whether there is a relation btw skin type, frag etc., but no conclusion. Really, one has to try and see whether one likes it.

cacio

[calilove]

a good price can range depending on your taste. spots to spray are your pulse points. and its doesnt matter about the body type its whatever is appealing to your nose.

WELCOME hope you enjoy this amazing site

[fit&frag'd]

Cacio & calilove both already provided great insight & advice. I'd also say that the best thing you can do starting out is a lot of sampling. You can get them my asking at most places, or order them online or get them from some of the threads here on BN in the for sale section. Take your time & don't rush into any purchases (unless you really have the money to blow). Be sure to test frags out on your skin as much as possible. Many smell completely different on the strips vs. how they actually develop on your skin. Judge a frag in it's entirety as much as possibly. When I first started getting into it, I didn't look much past the opening of frags. If it smelled nice out of the bottle, I wanted it. I quickly found, however, that it's all about how the frag develops & dries down on my skin, & how much I enjoy that...because that's the part that lasts the longest. Also, some frags have very poor longevity, so by skin testing you can be sure to figure out if it's worth it to you.

I'd also add to give some frags a chance by wearing them more than once (if you have enough of a sample) if you're a little unsure of them at first. I don't do it with ones I absolutely can't stand at first testing, but ones that I'm not 100% sold on, but think have potential, I'll make sure to give a couple more full wearings. I've found some of my absolute favorite frags quickly or suddenly grew on me 2, 3 or 4 wearings in, but if I never gave them that chance, I wouldn't have known and would be missing out. Well, best of luck and welcome to this great site & community!

[MikeJ]

Welcome!

What's a good price?
This really depends. Fragrances range from bargain bin (100ml/$10+) to niche (100ml/$150+). Try not to follow the oh-so-wonderful "If it costs more, it's better rule." I have a ton of bargain bin fragrances that I love.

How much to spray? Where?
It depends on the fragrance and the weather. Colder weather allows you to be more lenient (cold weather generally "Weakens" a fragrance while hotter weather forces them to project more). Aquatics and fresh scents are usually a bit weaker, or softer, while gourmands tend to be strong and sometimes cloying if over applied.
Pulse points are the best places to spray. Dab a bit behind your ears. Spray on the chest and neck. Do not spray on clothes, you may stain them.

Best fragrance based on body type (chemistry)?
Simple, you take a shower (so the fragrance doesn't mix with other odors) and you spray. If you like it, consider purchasing it. If not, move on. Just because it has 100+ positive reviews and 10- negative reviews, doesn't mean it's right for you.

[noahlingwall]

Thanks for the thorough help basenotes community. I really appreciate it!

Noah

[senore01]

Yes. Do not do as I did. No not purchase your fragrance as blind buys. Be patient and sample first. It will save your so much money. Many hyped up fragrances are crap and many persons purchase them solely based on the hype. Don't fall into that.

[Kagey]

What Cacio said. Be patient, smell a lot, read, discuss. Wear what you like and don't worry about "body type," as that's nonsense. And be considerate of those around you.

[OctaVariuM]

I'm relatively new as well, and I have taken the above advice and it's working out excellently. I've ordered something like 11 samples (all creed, TF, and Amouage samples) and have had a lot of fun trying them out, discovering my tastes, and figuring out what's worth purchasing from a split (*cough* Aventus *cough*).

As for where to spray and how much, that largely depends on your preferences. I've found that spraying on my wrists is kind of a waste, since I wash my hands a lot and it ends up going down the drain. Heck, I even tried spraying it higher up on my arm, but it's just not worth it. I usually spray on my chest and neck for my own pleasure, and occasionally (if I'm feeling bold), one on the back of my neck so I leave behind a wake.

How much also depends on the fragrance. Some weaker fragrances need 5 or 6 sprays just to be noticed, whereas some only need one or two to get the job done. My best advice here is to underestimate a frag until you know how it projects, then adjust as necessary.

Hope I could help, and welcome to your new obsession!

[Kaern]

Yeah -- I wouldn't start with Luca Turin's guide -- you might plump for the '5 star' Secretions Magnifique' -- it will put you off for life.
Visit as many big stores as you can and blag plenty of samples -- it's a good time to do it as everyone is skint -- the SAs will be generous.

[Diamondflame]

My best tip: stick around Basenotes and do look up the stickied threads. Welcome to Basenotes!

[noirdrakkar]

you are better off getting $90 fragrance you really love than 3 $30 fragrances that are just okay. buy on fragrancenet - dont buy from amazon.

[dollars&scents]

Trust YOUR nose and nobody else's.

&

[katesonskates]

I've discovered that I prefer applying to the creases of my elbows rather than wrists. I work in an office, and every time I move away from my desk to straighten my arms, I get a nice little bit of scent. I've also taken to spraying scarves.

[SpicyPepper]

Scour the threads and do research, A good price is how much your willing to pay for sometihng after you have sampled it, And there are a lot of scents that are steals,

[Oscroft]

There's been lots of good advice already, and I'd really just reinforce the suggestion to sample, sample, sample - if you live near any big department stores, the chances are they'll have plenty of sample bottles you can try.

What is good? The only thing that determines that is your own taste - if you like it, it's good, and that's all there is to it.

Good price? Nobody can tell you. I have fragrances that cost me $15 that I love, and I've sampled some costing $200+ that I wouldn't wear if given free.

[Jack Hunter]

When you want to try out a new fragrance at work, subtlety is the order of the day by spraying less than you usually do to calibrate application. As no one wants to be known as that "cologne guy".

[MikeJ]

I typically won't spray a lot for work. Offices (or a warehouse in my case) tend to be warm. Fragrances get cloying fast...