EDEN NEWS
20 August 2025
Having worked at Eden Perfumes, I’ve seen all kinds of perfume shoppers: the overwhelmed, the indecisive, the “I just want the prettiest bottle,” and the ones who know exactly what they want. If you’ve ever felt lost in the sea of scents, this guide is for you.
Let me walk you through the steps I personally swear by, the ones that helped me go from sniffing everything in sight to confidently picking perfumes that I genuinely loved (and so can you).
The absolute first step, and this is key, is to come perfume-free. No lotions, no sprays, no scented deodorants. Your skin needs to be a blank canvas. While working as a sales assistant at our stores, we’d often offer fragrance-free wipes to customers who arrived already wearing scents, because you really want to smell the perfume as it is, not mixed with other aromas.
Your nose can get overwhelmed really quickly, so starting fresh helps you experience every perfume in its purest form.
2. Don’t Judge a Perfume by the First Sniff
The first spray isn’t the full story. Perfumes open with top notes that fade quickly, then settle into heart and base notes over time, that’s when you’ll really know if it’s a match.
I can’t count how many people sprayed, sniffed, and passed on a scent that ended up being perfect 10 minutes later. ALWAYS GIVE IT TIME!
Scent strips are useful for a first impression, but every perfume reacts differently with body chemistry. Always try your top 2–3 picks directly on your skin.
I used to recommend wrists and inner elbows, one scent per spot. Then give it a few minutes to evolve.
I know it’s tempting to test 10 perfumes at once (been there!), but after a few sprays, your nose gives up. Everything starts smelling the same, and you lose all sense of judgment. Stick to 3–5 max per visit. Sniff some coffee beans (or your shirt sleeve) in between to reset your senses.
You don’t need to know every note or fragrance family. You just need to know how it makes you feel. Confident? Soft? Clean? Mysterious? That’s your compass. I've always said “don’t buy what’s popular”, Buy what makes you want to hug yourself when you wear it.
Once you’ve tested, go live your life. Grab a coffee. Run errands. If you keep sniffing your wrist like a weirdo (it’s okay, we all do it), then you’ve found a winner. Perfume should grow on you, not wear off by lunch. Longevity matters.
