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Choosing the Right Scent for Your Special Someone

Choosing that perfect fragrance as a gift for that perfect lady in your life may seem like a Pandora's box that is better left lidded, but with just a little advice the task may not seem as daunting.

The right fragrance will make her happy and make her feel as beautiful as you know she is, but with the thousands of perfumes on the market how can you possibly find the “right” one? There are two keys, one is fairly obvious and the other more obscure. To use these keys you'll need to ask yourself two questions: What does she like? What is her skin type?

What does she like? To begin with, if the lady in question has a favorite perfume and she's perfectly happy with it; problem solved! Her choice of that perfume was, you can be certain, a choice made only after trying a myriad of fragrances that were touted by movie stars, fashion consultants, designers and other fragrance gurus and after spending countless hours cleansing unwanted scents from her body. In the end, she found the one that had the desired effect on her: it made her happy and made her feel beautiful. Don't mess with her success! There are some times and places in life where creativity is not rewarded, this is one of those times. Purchase her favorite perfume, a nice card and perhaps some flowers; or you can supplement her current supply of her favorite perfume with a purse-sized version or a soap, powder, lotion or body wash of the same fragrance; virtually no well-known perfume on the market is without its companion products.

If, on the other hand, you have reason to believe that the lady is not happy with her current perfume this is your chance to rush to her rescue. Warning! You are rushing through uncharted terrain. A perfume that, to your senses, is delicate and sensual may be less than that . . . or worse . . . to the one who wears it. Now is the time to revisit the question: What does she like? Is it the scent of vanilla or cinnamon? Does she have a favorite flower? You may not know much about choosing perfumes or what is available to chose from but you do know her . . . and the sales consultant that you find behind the perfume counter in a major department store or perfumery will makeup for what you don't know about choosing a scent.

Start by telling the sales consultant what fragrance she is currently using and why she is unhappy with it; did she complain that it was too strong? Too musky? Too flowery? While flower scents are traditional favorites, some people just don't like spending their day smelling like a bouquet of roses. What kind of scent does she surround herself with at home? Does she use scented candles or perhaps a scented oil heater?

What is her skin type? This is something you must be sure to discuss with the sales consultant. People with fair complexions usually have dryer skin; if your fair maiden has a fair complexion she may require a bit of a stronger scent, perfume does not last long on dry skin. The opposite is true of darker skinned ladies, a little goes a long way on darker or oilier skin.

Your own reality show! As you can tell, selecting a new fragrance as a gift for a special someone can be as exciting and as treacherous as a TV reality show, and whatever choice you and an experienced sales consultant finally make, it's a choice that will be subject to uncompromising scrutiny. This is, after all, a scent that the intended recipient will either adore, dislike or even despise. The upside, however, is that she will certainly appreciate your thoughtfulness and even if she doesn't like your choice of perfume there will be no harm done . . . if you do it properly.

When you purchase the perfume:

Make sure it is returnable if necessary (you may be spending anywhere from $15.00 to $100.00 for the perfume and, if it doesn't please the recipient, you should be able to return it for a refund or at least a store credit so you can replace it with one that will make her happy.)

Also purchase a small accessory item of the same scent; this will give your friend a chance to sample the scent without unwrapping the perfume. (If the perfume is unwrapped you may not be able to return it to most stores.)

Have your gift professionally wrapped.

Keep the receipts.

Good luck! And, if she doesn't like the scent you chose, tell her how pleased you would be to take her to back to the store and allow her to pick out one she likes better.

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