Tips on choosing your perfect scent

When I walk into a shop selling perfume, the first thing that attracts my attention is the bottle design. As much as men can complain about us shopping, perfume selection can be confusing when there are so many different options out there. I always feel that one should select a fragrance family that matches your unique personality.

Basically most women's perfumes fit into one of six fragrance families:

fresh, fruity, floral, foody, oriental, or woody (also known as chypre). There are also subcategories within each of the main categories, but the differences among them are meant for professionals or seasoned perfume hunters, so the general mass (like me) shouldn't concern ourselves with them.

Women's Perfume Choices

Fresh fragrances are clean, youthful, and energetic. They usually feature marine notes so as to simulate the smell of the ocean, or other water-based scents. Wordings such as "water","ice","rain" or "cool" are found in their name and are often colored blue or packaged in blue bottles. This fragrance family is ideal for sporty, active women. Some popular fresh perfumes are Issey Miyake L'Eau de Issey, Bulgari Blu Notte, Marc Jacobs Rain, Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio, and Davidoff Cool Water.

Fruity fragrances are similar to fresh fragrances except that they add sweetness to the mix. Fruity fragrances have citrus notes such as lemon, lime, orange or grapefruit, although apple, grape, cherry, peach and raspberry are also popular choices for fruity women's perfume. Fruity fragrances attracts the outgoing optimists women who exude a sweet charm. Some of the most popular fruity fragrances on the market today are Fresh Sugar, Acqua di Parma Colonia, L.A.M.B. by Gwen Stefani, and Cartier Eau de Cartier.

Floral fragrances are mixed with one or more flowers dominant notes. Popular fragrances are rose, jasmine, gardenia, and tuberose. Floral fragrances expose a woman's feminine and romantic side. Popular fragrances include Dior J'Adore, Stella McCartney Stella, Yves Saint Laurent Baby Doll and Salvatore Ferragamo Incanto Charms.

Foody fragrances are designed to appeal to a woman's sweet tooth. Most features foody favors such as chocolate or vanilla. The scent reflects a women's nurturing and affectionate side. Some currently popular foody fragrances are Aquolina Chocolovers, Thierry Mugler Angel, Britney Spears Fantasy, and Comptoir Sud Pacifique Vanille Abricot.

Oriental fragrances mixes cinnamon, amber and musk to produce warm, spicy top notes. Women who aren't afraid to be the centre of attention carries such fragrances with ease and poise. Some well-known classic oriental fragrances are Yves Saint Laurent Opium, Guerlain Shalimar and Calvin Klein Obsession.

Woody or chypre perfumes are spicy like orientals, but more mellow and natural. They feature wood and moss notes such as cedar, sandalwood, patchouli and vetiver, and are the most unisex of the six fragrance families. Women who prefer woody scents are likely to be free-spirited and earthy. Some currently popular woody fragrances are Gucci Rush, Fendi Palazzo and Miss Boucheron.