Make Your Perfume Last Longer With These 5 Tips |ADDICTED

If you find that you pleasantly smelling perfume doesn’t last long enough, even up to lunchtime, you may not be doing something right. Sure, there’s no formula on how to wear your perfume, however, there are principles that if followed right, ensure that the perfume will take longer to evaporate from your skin. Don’t believe it – check out these 5 key tips below to learn how to make your perfume last longer.

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Apply It On Clean, Moisturized Pulse Points

The number one approach to ensure that your perfume is effective to its optimal capacity and lasts longer is by applying it on moisturized skin. It is a fact that perfume will last longer and smell stronger on moisturized skin rather than dry skin. This is because the moisture on the skin helps to seal in the fragrance thus, delaying the evaporation process; allowing the fragrance to smell better for longer.

On the other end, if you apply perfume on dry skin, it will dissipate almost immediately because there is no moisture to seal in the fragrance. In addition to moisturized skin, perfume behaves better on clean skin. Thus, if you shower, moisturize, and then, apply perfume immediately, it will smell better and last longer, as the skin is free of dirt and other microorganisms that may affect its performance.

Heat plays a factor in retaining the perfume on your skin as well and that is why it is a good idea to apply perfume on pulse points. The skin on top of the pulse points tends to be closer to your blood vessels thus, it enjoys more heat which traps in the fragrance and prevents it from dissipating quickly.

When you are applying perfume, apply it on areas such as your neck, the inside of your elbows, the knees, the ankles, the calves, and the back of your wrists. Adding petroleum jelly such as Vaseline helps to further moisturize the pulse points for better fragrance retention.

Complement Your Primary Fragrance

Sometimes, the answer to ensuring your perfume lasts longer is by applying more. But, don’t translate this into actually applying more perfume – because that doesn’t guarantee longevity. Instead, complement your perfume with similarly fragranced toiletries such as your bath wash, body lotion, and body mist.

Many designed and body care houses such as Versace, Carolina Herrera, Michael Kors, and even Bath and Body Works carry toiletry collections. In these packages, you will find body wash, body lotion, body mist, and perfume. When you apply all these products on your body, their fragrance will last longer as opposed to just perfume with unscented body lotion and shower gel.

If applying similarly scented products is not an option for you, there’s an alternative route to take. For example, you can fragrance your hair using your perfume to further accentuate the scent. But, don’t directly spritz perfume on your hair because this may cause damage to it.

Instead, spritz your hairbrush with perfume and let it dry for a few seconds. Then, run the brush over your hair to leave that lingering fragrance. This helps to accentuate the fragrance and leaves a lingering smell to the hair. Alternatively, you can opt for perfumed hair spray.

Additionally, if you plan to leave the house, lightly soak several cotton balls with the fragrance, and seal them in a Ziploc bag. When you want to refresh the fragrance on your skin, simply dab the fragranced cotton balls on your skin.

Storage Matters

The storage of your perfume matters. This is because storing perfume in unsuitable conditions can easily lead to breaking down its fragrance molecules and destroying the scent strength. For example, if you store perfume in a humid and damp space, it will break down and weaken the fragrance.

Weakened fragrance means that the perfume will not last long – both in its bottle and on your skin. Instead, your perfume should be stored in a cool, dark, and dry place. Generally, avoid places that are damp, humid, warm, and brightly lit (including direct sunlight). Instead of storing it on your bathroom shelf, store it in a cool cabinet in a room in your home.

If you want that fancy perfume display on your dresser, leave the perfume in its original box. In fact, the original box offers the perfect environment needed to store the perfume. Some people even store it in a cool refrigerator, if there’s ample space. And when its time to use your perfume – never shake the bottle – doing so may break down the fragrance molecules!

Know The Perfume Types

Knowing the different perfume types helps you to choose the right perfume. Generally, there are 5 types of perfumes, i.e. parfum, eau de parfum, eau de toilette, eau de cologne, and eau de fraiche/ fragrance water. Parfum has the highest fragrance oil concentration of up to 25% thus when applied on your skin, it can last for as long as 24 hours.

Eau de fraiche/ fragrance water has the lowest fragrance oil concentration of between 3% and 5% and will last you within an hour of its application. A good example of fragrance water is fragrance or body mist. Eau de parfum lasts up to 8 hours, eau de toilette and eau de cologne last anywhere between 4 to 6 hours.

Choose The Right Scent Profiles

In addition to knowing the perfume types, it is also important to learn the different scent profiles or the body of your perfume. Scent profiles are normally characterized as oriental, musk, floral, fruity, citrusy, aqua, earthy, woody, and many more.

For example, perfumes that combine scents such as rose, and carnations are known as floral perfumes whilst scents such as sandalwood and cedarwood are woody scents. Different scents have different profiles thus; they also affect how the overall fragrance behaves.

For example, subtle scents such as sandalwood and musk are used as base notes as they tend to last longer. Citrus scents such as lemon and mandarin as normally used as top notes because they are unstable and dissipate faster. Thus, if you opt for a citrusy perfume, it will dissipate faster than an oriental one. So whether you go for eau de parfum or eau de toilette, opt for a more subtle and stable scent profile to ensure longevity.