What to Do When You Love a Perfume But it Doesn’t Like You + Unrequited Love Draw

 

 

Introduction:

"Scrubber"; the dreaded word of every die hard perfumista . We want to love you  Guerlain's Vol A Nuit, but you can be a swamp thing on our our skin, Carnal Flower by Dominique Ropion can be a venus flytrap, Chanel No 5 is an adehydlic nightmare and Fairchild by Anya McCoy is an unloved-child.  So what do you, if you love the fragrance  but not on you? You ask a perfumer who created a difficult scent to wear…(Disclaimer: On Editor's skin all of the above people have been known to run away in fear).

Anya McCoy of  Anya's Garden:  When you go to a department store, perfume boutique, or buy a perfume sample online, the first thing you should do, after smelling the perfume out of the bottle or on a scent strip, is conduct a skin test. Most of us just dab or spritz on our wrist and pulse points, then wait an hour or so to see how the perfume intermingles with our personal skin chemistry.  The more careful among us do a "patch test" on our inner elbow, cover the perfume with a band aid, and wait 24 hours to see if there is redness or irritation.

One possible outcome is that disappointment will roll over you, like a dark cloud on a sunny day, when a perfume your nose loves, hates your skin. Maybe it has a musty, urinous, or just plain horrible scent that develops on your wrist.  These are commonly called "scrubbers" – you can't wait to scrub them off your skin.  The dilemma is that your nose craves the scent from the bottle!

Or, in another scenario, you love vintage perfumes, perhaps have a leaning towards Chypres, but are cautious because of the dire warnings of the International Fragrance Association (IFRA)about the bergamot and oakmoss in Chypres (and other alleged allergens in most vintage perfumes) IFRA is a nanny-state doom and gloom organization that has forced the reformulation of most vintage perfumes into pale ghosts of their former selves. You've consigned your vintage bottles to a back closet, and are afraid to wear them. What can you do?

Although many classic perfumes have been ruined when they were formulated to comply with IFRA standards, classic perfumes in the chypre family have been especially hard-hit due to two of their most-glorious aromatics being drastically restricted by IFRA (only members of IFRA are required to submit to their restrictions, but that includes all the big houses – small indie perfumers need not comply). Bergamot, that luscious citrus top note made from the rinds of the Bergamot orange, is limited to 0.4% in skin-contact cosmetics.(Index of IFRA Standards 46th Amendment) Oakmoss, that deep, delicious base note, is now limited to .02 to .5%, depending upon the cosmetic. (Index of IFRA Standards Î 46th Amendment). Bergaptene-free bergamot is not available, since the "offending" chemical constituent was discovered, but it smells flat compared to the true bergamot. An anthrole-free (or lowered anthrole) oakmoss is also available.  But what if you own vintage chypres, or other perfumes that contain these or other "offending" aromatics?

Bergamot can be a real problem on the skin, and a disfiguring scar, known as Berloque dermatitis, can result.  (photo attached, used by permission). Bergamot oil on the skin, when the skin is exposed to sunlight, can cause this.  The scar lasts for years, so you don't want bergamot on your skin, unless you're wearing the perfume under clothes, or at night.  Not to worry, there are sunlight and daytime solutions that are available to overcome this problem.

There's another way your skin can hate your perfume: it can cause the perfume to evaporate off prematurely, leaving you scentless an hour or so after application.  This may be a problem related to skin chemistry and body heat. This article will show you ways to overcome these three problems that you may have wearing perfume.

So, when the perfume smells wonderful on you, and there is no rash, it's a great outcome, but there are two possible negative outcomes, and we've all been there: the perfume our nose loves hates our skin and becomes rank smelling on some level, or, we get a rash where the perfume was applied. Disclaimer: I'm sensitized to oakmoss. I love oakmoss, so what to do?  I love my Temple perfume, but it smells awful on my skin.  What can we do?

—-> Keep the perfume near, but off your skin.

There are some simple, and sometimes aesthetically beautiful ways to do this.

One important point to emphasize is that the perfume, especially natural perfume doesn't "evolve" so much when you use these methods.  Yes, the topnotes evaporate off first, but you may find they last longer then with conventional skin application of the perfume.  The great news – the middle and base notes go on f.o.r.e.v.e.r. – without the heat of your skin volatilizing them, they last very, very long. 

Disclaimer: during a summer heatwave, all promises of longevity are off. 100F temps plus high humidity will even wilt the flowers growing in your garden, so don't expect any perfume to survive, despite any efforts to prolong the scent.

Tactics to beat the skin love/hate relationship:

Wear your perfume in your hair

My hair is long, and sometimes I dab a drop or two on the tips of the curls framing my face.  Every time I move, a waft of the pure scent of the perfume fills the air. This works well with short hair, too.  Don't worry about a drop or two of alcohol, it won't be enough to dry your hair out.

Wear your perfume on your clothes

For this method, you have to do a test on an unseen, inconspicuous part of the garment or scarf.  If it doesn't stain, you may like to apply some perfume on the collar or cuff or scarf. Wearing long pants?  Take a tip from Greek philosopher Diogenes, who preferred to anoint his feet. He said “When you anoint your head with perfume, it flies away in the air and birds only get the benefit of it, whilst if I rub it on my lower limbs it envelopes my whole body and gratefully ascends to my nose." From Book of Perfume by Eugene Rimmel

 

In his glorious painting  Fumée d'Ambre Gris, artist John Singer Sargeant portrays a North African woman standing in front of an incense pot that is giving off scented smoke from chunks of ambergris being burned.  The  history of fragrancing clothes is not new, and a spritz inside of a sweater or jacket may give you pleasure for hours as the perfume gently wafts off the fabric as you move.

 

Wear your perfume in jewelry…

Lockets, earrings, pins, bracelets and rings with "pierced" metal designs, or woven metal openings can allow you to spray or dab your perfume onto a cotton or felt piece of material and place the material inside the jewelry, allowing the scent to be released over time.  History is rich with gorgeous aromatic jewelry made to adorn the wearer, and the aroma fills the "Scent Circle" around them. For the purposes of this article, we won't focus on perfume lockets that have caps and hold small amounts of precious liquid or solid perfume.  After all, those are made for the wearer to open, and apply the perfume, and we're looking at jewelry that will give off the scent without any action on the part of the wearer; the scent is always wafting.  This method also allows the wearer to avoid putting the liquid on their skin for the issues of perfumes that "hate" your skin (turn rank or horrible smelling due to your skin chemistry), or may cause a rash.

There are vintage and modern pieces available that can suit any aesthetic you wish to adorn your body with. In the 1800s, "viniagrettes" became popular for ladies to wear.

The point is – you can wear a perfume that might not agree with your skin chemistry, or one that you're afraid may cause an irritation on your skin, or one you definitely know irritates your skin because of previous episodes of rash or discomfort. You can look on eBay, or google "aroma jewelry", "aromatherapy jewelry" or "perfume jewelry", and start testing on your clothing, and spraying or dabbing fine fragrance in your hair.  Welcome to the world of long-lasting, easy-on-the-nose, easy-on-the skin creative perfume alternatives.

MC: A very modern way  is through the personal diffuser jewelry of Cathy Gins of Aromawear, an award winning Professor at Fashion Institute of Technology (FI.T)  that I first discovered when I was single. I carried two sets of business cards; one set of cards were for professional contacts and  the second set was in her beautiful business card case when I hoped for close ecounters. Lately, I am wearing my husband's fragrance close to my heart (yes he called after taking my business card).

 

 

Thanks to Cathy Gins we have a draw for two winners. In order to be eligible, watch the video and tell us  something you learned and the favorite way you wear a perfume that doesn't love you and what perfume that may be. 

Draw ends December 9, 2011 (specifiy gold or silvertone)

-Michelyn Camen, Editor-In-Chief  and Art Director (who is learning to love Mitsouku)

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilt perfume

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36 comments

  • donna s kopenhaver says:

    SILVERTONE: What I learned is a unique and beautiful way to wear perfumes/oils in a subtle way. Most important I think is.. the pendant and the card case can be left in your car or purse “if needed” in case someone in your office is sensitive to smells or going to a meeting or a social dinner… or anywhere that the possibility to offend someone with a scent that “you” may think “hung the moon” but someone else may think you need to be “hung” for wearing a certain scent/smell.. lol I love the concept..and your clothes won’t get stained by oils.

  • donna s kopenhaver says:

    sorry i was so excited by the pendant..I forgot the last part..
    I sometimes will spray a cologne on my long hair.

  • This was a fun article to write: I got to put all of my ideas in one place, and share my experiences with “scrubbers” – yes, even my Fair/ unloved child. If I can help the perfumistas that read CFB pull their unused perfumes out of the drawer or closet, I will be pleased that I could help them learn alternative ways to wear perfumes that for whatever reason, they couldn’t wear on their skin.

  • Goldtone:
    Wicks and essential oils in a diffuser sound like a great way to wear any scent. And its no commitment long term. Yes, I break out in rashes frequently and I can almost never narrow down the offender. It of course makes no diffference to me if I have a rash I will still wear the scent.
    I am all to familliar with scrubbers lol.
    I love lockets so this is something that interests me greatly.
    I love the small level of commitment. You put it on and if you want to change into something else simply switch your wick and scent….brilliant.
    Another idea was born to me in reading this. My daughter who I experiment with calming oils for her autism may benefit from waring one of these types of necklaces. She adores jewelry and she has responded to lavendar and cocoa oils in a very positive way. She would wear the gold or silver tone either way and be the happiest little girl ever. She has “treasures” and she collects objects of “beauty” this would be the crown jewel of her collection for sure:).
    I have also learned that if I ever needed business cards again, I’d love to scent them:) I believe in the power of scent as memory trigger and a comfort.
    Thanks for the inforamtive video:)
    Thanks to Cafelurebon and to Cathy Gins. Happy holidays. Siver and Gold reminds me of the famous Christmas song.

  • Huh, I didn’t realize Aromawear made card holders with the scent diffuser wick inside. That’s a great idea to have gently scented cards, like when people still wrote letters. I just bought a necklace with terra cotta beads that I plan to apply scent to the unsealed beads themselves. Then when the beads warm against bare skin the scent is supposed to diffuse subtly.

  • i was dumb founded i never thought of scenting business cards before… let alone with such elegant presentation! needless to say it made my libran heart race <3

    the pomander brought forth into high art; glorious.

    the scenting of clothing and hair has always been a ritual of mine to experience natural perfumes- anya's absolutely spot on about the longevity of those applications methods.

    …i also use them in diffusers or as room sprays. the point is the aroma is what is pleasing and i don't necessarily need the juice to be ON me to get IN me… if that makes sense.

    the silvertone is perfection.

  • Cathy recommends aromatherapy oils too. grounding include vetiver, dieters try vanilla, if you are ill try eucalyptus, etc.. oh and if you are stressed by it all lavender is the cure.

  • Thanks Anya for the interesting article.

    I often spritz perfume that I love that doesn’t love me around my apartment, on the curtains or sofa especially. I always thought the alcohol in perfume would damage my hair so it’s good to know a little won’t hurt.

    Part of the magic of perfume is the way it changes on our skin. But I love the idea of wearing our perfume as jewelry! Spraying it onto a wick is a good way to use perfumes we can’t otherwise!

    I love the goldtone. 🙂

  • Z. Boudreaux says:

    Another alternative you forgot to mention would be to send those scrubbers to me. 🙂

    I love the card cases! What a treat to meet someone and have a fragranced welcome card. I remember having bookmarked that site before but so many aroma related sites so little time. Silvertone!

  • I usually gravitate towards scents that smell good on me-I think it’s perhaps an intuitive thing? However almost anything herbal ends up smelling rank and musty on me, i seem to only respond well to spices, woods, resins, and flowers. Citrus, animalic scents(which suprisingly do NOT end up smelling musty on me) and oakmoss I’m good with too!
    Since I’ve grown a beard, I’ve been putting scent on it and I love how long it lasts and how it surrounds my nose without being overpowering.

  • Lovely article, there are so many ways to wear perfume! My personal scrubber is Chanel No.5 it just doesn’t agree with me!! I will try to wear it on my hair next time though, they are long ang you gave me a grat idea!! The prefume cards and the pendant are amazing too. Gold is lovely!

  • I learned a very unique and innovative way to fragrance my day! Love the silvertone. Vintage scents have always been much loved by me as they are the scents I owned and wore in my youth. Unfortunately I never had the foresight to save any juice from my vintage perfume bottles and the re-formulations are now pale comparisions to the old masterpieces that I owned. My skin never reacted negatively to any IFRA restricted essential oils. My only dilemma is that some of my favorites (like Reglisse Noire) dissipate quickly on my very dry skin. I have also had to give away (to a very appreciative friend 🙂 ) my beloved bottle of Mitsouko as both my family and my perfume hating co-worker did not like the way it smelled. I can’t say that I have ever had to scrub any perfume off of my skin (except one time when I made an unholy essential oil concoction that was way too overpowering 🙂 ). I have utilized natural solid perfumes in my hair to tame flyaways, sprayed perfume in the air and walked through it to scent my clothes, sprayed scarves, underwear, the tops of my feet and even the inside of my leather Coach handbags so that I am always surrounded by fragrance!!

  • I really love several Tauer perfumes, but they are too strong for my skin, and I find that spraying a little on a scarf works beautifully. I get the full effect of the perfume without being knocked over by it!

  • Silvertone, please! Honestly, I would never have thought of those clever card cases. What a lovely and subtle idea. And I also wouldn’t have considered wearing a perfume that doesn’t work on my skin in another way. Tuberose seems to hate me, Fracas in particular, which I think smells so gorgeous & sexy and turns to cheap Wizard air freshener on my skin. Perhaps time to try her again in my hair?

  • Wonderful article! I very rarely put perfume on my skin anymore. The perfume jewelry is fantastic both for the skin sensitivity issue as well as if one had to remove the fragrance swiftly (i.e. a nursing mother).

  • What fantastic ideas for scent. I have a natural perfume that just does not agree with me. I will try some of these ideas now, as Iwas ready to give it away. Silvertone.

  • I never knew I wanted a scented silver card case before now. Très chic.

    Since childhood I’ve written letters on paper stored wrapped in a scented scarf.

  • What I learned is that there are more ways to use and diffuse perfumes than I had ever imagined. The card case is a brilliant idea. I would love to win a gold-tone locket.

    What I usually do with perfumes I love but which don’t love me is to give them to someone whose skin chemistry shows them off better than mine does. My sister-in-law smells divine in the Vero Kern Onda which I gave her when it didn’t suit me. She sometimes wears it when we’re together and then I get to smell Onda on her in its full glory. I like her a lot anyway, but I think I like her even more wearing Onda!

  • I really loved those pendants! Both are lovely but specially the first one seems like something I could have in my jewel box. Pendats are very useful when there is a perfume which doesn’t work with our skin or an essential oil we don’t dare to dab on skin.

    I loved the music chosen for the video (Blackbird) 🙂

    When I don’t want to wear a perfume on my skin for whatever reason, I apply it on my hair and/or on my clothes. Sometimes I use them to scent the bathroom or the sheets. I don’t feel very comfortable wearing a pinneaple perfume I was given, but I like smelling it in the air or towels.

    I’d love the silvertone. Thank you!

  • Great article, Anya. Oh yuck, “scrubbers”! Just the mention makes me feel nauseas! Must say, this experience is usually associated with the department store or pharmacy for me. Hence, another reason to avoid commercial fragrance!

  • I’ve known about perfume pendants, at least the kind you can fill with a bit of perfume, but not these that have a wick arrangement. I also like that there are two versions – one with open edges and one that you have to open to expose the filigree heart and scent — like carrying a hidden restorative.

    I’ve had the bergamot burn, fortunately without the scar. I only made that sun exposure mistake once, but it did take me a bit to realize why I had one (dab-sized) painful burn mark on either side of my otherwise mildly pinkened neck.

    My favourite non-skin way way to wear scents is on scarves — easy to change about as whim dictates. Most recent scent to do better on fabric: Bottega Veneta, which just doesn’t develop the suede note on my skin.

    Silvertone please, if I’m lucky.

  • Great piece! I love the idea of a fragrance gently emanating from a pendant. And unlike spraying a fragrance, you could actually remove the fragrance without washing. I found it interesting to see how easily and quickly you could apply and change a fragrance.

    When I find a fragrance that doesn’t work for me, I do one of two things, either give it to my daughter or hold on to it, as I believe both tastes and skin chemistry can change over time. Gold-tone please.

  • Jumping on the bandwagon, I love that card holder!
    Also, the historical reference to vinaigrettes, reinterpreted in a modern way, is very cool. The secret heart locket is quite interesting because it has two ‘settings’– you can diffuse, or not. Seems like it would be great for the office or other settings where fragrance might not be appropriate at all times/ in all company but one still wants to bring a gentle bit of scent along, for breaks, before/after, etc. Of course the regular locket is lovely as well!
    I would like silvertone if I lucked out!

    On me, Chergui does not wear well, neither does Nuit de Noel, most things with aldehydes, and many florals also, especially tuberose, jasmine, ylang ylang, and neroli.
    I’ve sprayed some scents on sachets, furniture, pillows, etc, done the hair thing, and considered trying the cotton-ball-in-bra thing but this necklace seems waaaay classier 🙂

  • Great Job on a wonderful article! I have a collection of aroma pendants that I have had for years. Some of them one of a kind hand made Raku, by a dear friend. I would love the silvertone business card holder from Aromawear. Would make scenting my cards a breeze.

  • loved the silverstone
    did not know somebody thought of fragrant cards and such a smart way- the cases are great
    sometimes I prefere to wear my perfumes on scarfs -I’m not alergic but I suffer of headaches and perfume can be difficult for me to wear for too long
    thank you for the great info and for the draw

  • I learned there is a card holder that scents business cards..That would be fun to own in gold…

    I have worn crystal pendants that had a perfume vial and with certain stones for the chakras. I wore it around my neck to smell a fragrance during the day. I sold these years ago and created synergies to put in them. I also had made custom fragrances for people to put in them..I made those in the early 90’s so I have been wearing fragrance like this a long time.

    Fun article Anya.

  • Generally I buy only those fragrances that stay good on me. If I don’t know if they are good or bad, depending on who knows what, I try not to buy them, and if I do, I exchange them.

    I will spray my legs to keep a strong perfume from being too close to my face.

    I have heard of scented business cards, but not like this. I’d love a gold case. Tova had a necklace with a saturated little clay-ish disk. The idea is the same, and I think it could be re-fragranced by spritzing it.

    I think her lockets are lovely.

  • Great article! Anya ~ Relieved to learn I’m not the only one who has trouble wearing perfumes. Never liked Chanel No.5 for that reason. Most conventional perfumes become overwhelmingly strong making me want to escape my own skin or making me smell like a low class street walker…YIKES!
    But this has led to creating my own line of all natural oil perfumes, so that’s a GOOD outcome.

    Love the idea of wearing perfumes in my short hair or on my clothes. And especially think perfumed cards are a WONDERFUL idea! Like the gold case best. All perfumers and aromatherapists should leave scented cards as remembrances!

  • I’m loving everyone’s responses! I’m also very happy to turn everyone on to the beauty of Aromawear’s products, wearing your perfume in your hair or on your clothing, and just thinking outside the box.

  • Very interesting article. In my complete ignorance i wasn’t aware of the practice of wearing fragrance in a locket and it seems such a lovely idea. With fragrances I find too strong or not right on my skin I tend to scent a scarf and occasionally a handkerchief so that I can just smell it when I wish.

  • There are several perfumes I want to love and just cannot wear and I appreciate thinking about options. I especially liked the lockets with a scent disk(wick) to gently waft the scent around. Shalimar often smells like burning charcoal when it hits my skin but it’s a lovely scent on so many other people. I need one of those lockets!

  • Brilliant article! I’m going to retry some scents I love but disagree with my chemistry. And next summer I’m going to experiment with hair, clothing, and jewelry wearing perfume. I’d love to win the gold colored locket.

  • I would be careful with the hair idea. I’ve had scented shampoos “turn” on me just like perfume does. I think that if your body chemistry doesn’t work with a scent, that includes the hair.