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Everyone knows someone — a friend, cousin, or colleague — who always smells amazing. It could be the height of summer, when everyone else has melted into a sweaty puddle, but they somehow still smell fresh, like they’ve just emerged from a pile of clean laundry. You can't quite put your finger on it. Is it their perfume? Their hair? Their clothes? Or all of the above?

We couldn't figure it out either, so we asked the people who know a thing or two about smelling good: scent experts and enthusiasts, fragrance content creators, and esteemed perfumers.

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Ahead, they share the habits and tricks they swear by to smell incredible — and none of them involve spending a small fortune on a niche fragrance that's impossible to track down.

Aamna Lone, a fragrance expert and content creator behind @perfumeconnoisseurz on Instagram, swears by using Paula's Choice 6% Mandelic + 2% Lactic Acid AHA Liquid Exfoliant under her arms three times a week to help keep body odor at bay — alongside wearing an antiperspirant and choosing lightweight, 100% cotton shirts. “It sounds odd, but the toner lowers the pH of the skin in the underarm area, so the bacteria that feed on compounds in sweat are reduced,” says Lone. “I find that my body odor is noticeably less when I do this.”

Hair perfume has its place, but Lush fragrance category lead Lee Howes makes a case for solid perfume — especially those containing moisturizing jojoba oil, candelilla wax, and castor oil, which Howes says are suitable for the ends of the hair. These are ingredients commonly found in hair oils and split-end serums, too. “Take your Lush solid perfume, apply a small amount of product onto your fingertips and gently massage into the ends of your hair to get wafts of scent every time your hair moves around you,” says Howes. Our favorite is Chelsea Morning, an equally zingy and buttery caramel citrus.

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Fragrance content creator Habiba Suleiman-Adejoh, aka @femmescents on Instagram, is convinced that it’s the year of the body mist, which she says is an “easy way to create an effortless all-round scent cloud that follows you throughout the day.” But the key to maximizing its power is choosing a shower oil with similar notes. “Layering your scent in the shower, and then applying it on your skin, really helps it linger, so when you hug someone, they think, She smells really nice, without it even seeming like you are trying; it’s just effortless. Suleiman-Adejoh loves Glossier Sandstone Body & Hair Fragrance Mist layered with Sandstone Daily Oil Wash. “Together, they smell super chic and clean — a memorable your-skin-but-better type of scent,” she says.

“Besides my wrists, décolletage, and collarbone, I apply fragrance behind my ears, on the back of my neck, and even my inner thighs,” says Cherry Cheng, perfumer and founder of Jouissance Parfums. “These are places where the scent feels intimate and only available by invitation,” she adds. In fact, Cheng believes there's a connection between scent, mood, and the body. “When you associate fragrance with pleasure and self-care, you naturally become more aware of how you move through the world,” she says. “To me, that's what makes someone smell amazing — not just the perfume itself, but the habit of consistent self-care, as well as confidence and ease that come with wearing scents for your own enjoyment,” Cheng continues.

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Lone loves to spray her trousers or skirts, so that when she walks, the movement of the fabric wafts a delicate plume of scent into the air. But what if you’re wearing something shorter? “To create a trail of scent in warmer weather, a couple of spritzes of your favorite perfume behind your knees can be really effective,” says Howes. “That’s because the skin is often warmer here and can help leave a trail of fragrance behind you.” He adds that if you’re sitting in a bar or restaurant, your fragrance will gently rise up, rather than creating a cloud of scent around you — and everyone else.

“Because I work in fragrance, I rarely wear perfume during the day anymore,” says Cheng, “so by the evening, I want to wear perfume purely for myself.” One of her favorite rituals is spraying either side of her collarbones before she gets into bed. “I catch little wafts of it as I'm falling asleep, and the quiet promise of romance and pleasure, whether rooted in memories or imagination, brings me so much joy,” she says. “When fragrance becomes part of your daily rituals, you start to carry yourself differently.”

If you thought solid perfume was cool, you’ll love scented powders, says Howes, who sees them as an inexpensive way to fragrance the skin post-shower — especially if body lotions feel sticky or overwhelming. “Dusting powders offer a subtle yet beautiful way of bringing more scent into your routine,” says Howes. “After a shower or bath, dry the skin before gently dusting your powder onto arms, legs, or anywhere the skin will be bare for a soft scent cloud around you all day.” Try the Dusting Powder in Super Milk, a musky fragrance with hints of vanilla and coconut.

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“My greatest tip for smelling great naturally — and feeling great, too — is to start with a fragranced body wash in the shower,” says Linda G. Levy, president of The Fragrance Foundation, who currently loves Aesop Geranium Leaf Body Cleanser and Body Balm. But the real secret to making the scent last is layering. “For staying power, fragrance is best applied to moist skin, so I smooth the matching body lotion or cream all over as soon as I've towel-dried,” says Levy. To top it off, she always carries a portable body oil or travel-sized fragrance for touch-ups on her pulse points throughout the day. “This allows you to refresh with the same fragrance or layer on another.” Her current favorite is Costa Brazil Aroma in Oil, which blends green leaves, woody notes, and lush tropical florals.

My beauty editor peers who are fragrance enthusiasts swear by one particular note for making them smell effortlessly amazing all day: Iso E Super. This fragrance molecule adapts to your own scent chemistry, smelling unique on everyone, but it always remains clean and musky — like your favorite sweater. It’s best worn on skin, especially pulse points, where your body heat helps amplify the scent as the day goes on. Escentric Molecules built its entire line around Iso E Super, but now other brands like Commodity are embracing the molecule, too.

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This article explores fragrance, aromatherapy, home fragrance, reed diffuser, scented candle, essential oil, perfume, natural fragrance, room scent, car fragrance, sharing the latest industry insights and offering practical references for enthusiasts.

Source: Refinery29 - Fragrance (https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/fragrance)

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