FragranceAdvice – Make your life more fragrance.

Deciding whether to spray perfume onto your clothes or skin isn’t as cut as dry as it seems. Where you choose to spray your perfume can actually impact how the fragrance smells. There are benefits and drawbacks to either approach. Spraying onto your skin can change how the fragrance unfolds. Spraying perfume onto your clothes could potentially damage your clothes fibers. But spraying perfume onto either location can also enhance your scent experience. Keep reading to understand which choice might be the best decision for you. Does It Really Matter Where You Spray Perfume? There’s a reason why you might spray on a fragrance and fall in love with it, but others can smell the same scent and cringe. According to Duke researcher, Dr. Hiroaki Matsunami, no two people experience the same fragrance in the exact same way. Based on his study, not only can two people have a different reaction to the same smell, the way each person processes the smell is also different. The same scent can activate a different set of odor receptors in individuals. There are also environmental factors that can contribute to a shift in how we identify smells. This is why a fragrance can smell one way in the department store, and then a different way once you’re at home. In addition to the air around you, fragrance concentration, skin type, and body chemistry can all influence the smell of your perfume. So you’re not overreacting by investigating whether you should spray your perfume onto your clothes or skin. Read more: Should You Shake Perfume & Cologne Before Use Spraying Perfume Onto Your Skin: Benefits & Drawbacks Skin is the external organ of the human body. It is living bodily tissue, our largest organ, and protective shield. Layers of skin are constantly growing and shedding. The lower layers of skin work with glands to make adjustments to body temperature and even individuals’ unique body odor. Your sweat glands excrete odors from some of the foods you eat, alcoholic beverages you drink, and even if you smoke. These odors can alter the way that your perfume smells. Skin has its own acidic levels as well. Known as Potential Hydrogen (pH), these levels vary from person to person, but the healthiest skin has a pH that ranges between 4 and 7 on a scale of 1 to 14, with 7 being neutral. Different parts of the body can have different pH levels, as well. This is one reason why a perfume might smell slightly off when sprayed on different areas of your body. How well your skin is moisturized and even your hormone levels are additional factors. Fragrances are more pronounced on oily skin than on dryer skin. Another related factor is body temperature. When your body temperature is higher, that intensifies the scent, but it also causes it to be released more quickly. This might mean that you’ll have to reapply the fragrance more often. When your body temperature is lower, your perfume will be more subtle, but it will also last longer, reducing the need for reapplication. Benefits of Spraying Perfume on Your Skin Considering all of this, it’s possible that the same fragrance can smell different on your body during different seasons, lifestyle shifts, and changes to the surface of your skin. But here are some potential benefits to applying perfume to your skin. Uniqueness. The primary benefit of spraying perfume in your skin is that even the most popular fragrance will always be unique to you. Masking Odor. If you are in a situation where you need to quickly suppress your body odor, spraying perfume on your skin offers a temporary solution. Mood Boost. Fragrances can lift your mood and shift you into a different mindset. If you need to relax, rejuvenate, or feel calmer, there’s a perfume fragrance that can offer a subtle mood shift in a short period of time. Drawbacks to Spraying Perfume on Your Skin Depending on circumstances, you might end up stuck for a few hours smelling a fragrance you dislike. Scent Variance. Due to the fickleness of fragrance in response to the environment, your body chemistry, temperature, and other factors, you never truly know how the fragrance will smell once you spray it onto your body. Negative Skin Reaction. Your skin may dislike the chemical structure of the fragrance that your oral receptors find to be pleasing. Just because a fragrance smells nice, that doesn’t mean that your skin will be able to tolerate the formula. It’s possible for your skin to be irritated by a fragrance without that fragrance causing an allergic reaction. In this case you might see a rash forming on your skin, almost immediately. Skin allergies on the other hand are typically a delayed reaction. Allergic reactions usually occur in more sensitive areas of the body a day or two after coming in contact with the ingredients. Allergens ignite an immune response, and not simply surface level irritation. If this is something you’ve never dealt with before, then it’s best to seek professional medical treatment. Refrain from spraying the perfume on your skin until after you know what you’re dealing with. Tips for Spraying Perfume onto Your Skin If you want to experience a more potent fragrance, make sure your skin is moisturized well before spraying on the perfume. The scent molecules will adhere to the oil molecules, making the fragrance more pronounced. Chanel suggests rubbing a small amount of vaseline on your pulse points before spraying on your perfume. Avoid spraying perfume near your eyes or on your face at all. These are more sensitive areas and spraying perfume in these places will lead to irritation. Avoid private areas, like armpits, and the groin. Your pH levels in these areas may not tolerate the fragrance oils, alcohol, and other ingredients from your perfume. You may notice itching, irritation, and outright discomfort if you spray perfume in these sensitive areas. Spray the perfume in areas where your body generates more heat. Also referred to as pulse points, your scent will be more intense with a boost from your body temperature. Common pulse points are located at the back of your knees, your neck, inner elbow, wrists, and behind your ears. When spraying perfume in these areas, your personal body temperature acts like a heat diffuser, helping to amplify the fragrance. Know your limits. If you feel tingling or irritation when applying perfume to your skin, you should refrain from using it and remove it from your skin altogether. One way to do that is by pouring rubbing alcohol onto a cotton swab, and then dabbing the areas where you sprayed the perfume. Combining vinegar and baking soda, or non-irritating soap and water can help as an alternative. Spraying Perfume on Your Clothes: Benefits & Drawbacks Some people caution you against spraying perfume on your clothes and others swear by it. I think it can be a nice alternative for those who prefer not to spray perfume directly onto their skin. Benefits to Spraying Perfume Onto Your Clothes It’s been said that spraying perfume onto your clothes offers the most authentic scent. To get your perfume to smell as accurate as when you first encountered it, spray it on your clothes instead of your body. If you are a person who experiences skin irritation or allergies when wearing perfume on the body, then the clothes might be one of the best alternatives for you. It’s also possible that the scent will last longer throughout the day because there are fewer competing factors. Drawbacks to Spraying Perfume Onto Your Clothes As with any alternative method, you have to consider that this approach isn’t for everyone. Less Potent. Similar to dry skin, your perfume scent won’t be as intense when sprayed on textiles. Possible Staining. Some fabrics are more delicate than others, and the perfume may stain your clothes. Light colored fabrics might be more susceptible to staining. You may not even notice the stains right away. They might develop over time. Tips for Spraying Perfume Onto Your Clothes Firstly, it might be best to spray the lining of your clothes in order to avoid staining. You can also spray your perfume into the air first, and then walk into the fragrance cloud for an even distribution over your apparel. The fragrance will fall on your clothes like a gentle mist, and the scent last throughout the day. If your clothes are stained, you might be able to remove the stain by soaking the apparel item in cold, soapy water, and then gently hand washing it. Spot cleaning it with rubbing alcohol or vinegar and water might also help. Either way, avoid using hot water because it’ll likely set the stain. Always defer to the cleaning instructions on your apparel care tag and test the approach in an inconspicuous area first. Whether you spray perfume directly on your skin or on your clothes instead, it’s a matter of personal choice, clothes fabric, and the tolerance level of your skin.

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