If you’re unsure of what type of fragrances you’re into, it’s so difficult to know where to start. If you’re not sure about what you’re looking for, we’ve compiled an easy list of recommendations for all ages, budgets, and personalities, so read on and conquer your perfume anxiety!
Top Notes, Base Notes, and Heart Notes
Before we start exploring what fragrances are right for you, it’s good to know your perfume terminology. You don’t need to become a top expert, but knowing some useful terms will really help you navigate the perfume world, particularly if you’re shopping online, so start brushing up!
Top Notes – These are the first elements of a fragrance that hit you when you sample a perfume. Normally impactful scents like bergamot or citrus are top notes. They will normally fade to a gentler scent after a few minutes.
Heart Notes – These adorably named notes are also known as the ‘middle notes’ of a fragrance; once the top notes have faded slightly, you will be left with these. Often floral or fruity elements are heart notes. They will last on the skin for a few hours.
Base Notes – These are the deepest scents within a fragrance that last the longest on the skin. Vanilla or cedarwood are examples of base notes that will stay on your skin all day, even after the top and heart notes have faded.
Carolina Herrera – Good Girl (£40.80)
Perfect for: The Indecisive Shopper
Are you a commitment-phobe when it comes to perfume? Scared to tie yourself down to just one signature scent? We understand, and we’re here to help. As much as we’d all love to chop and change between 100 different perfumes, most of us simply do not have the budget for that. As a result, you may need to compromise and accept that one perfume will have to do. In this case, Carolina Herrera’s Good Girl is the perfect versatile fragrance for you. With light top notes of almond alongside base notes of seductive vanilla, this perfume unites dark and light elements to make it suitable for any occasion. For the ideal day-to-night perfume, look no further than this complex scent.
Marc Jacobs – Daisy (£60)
Perfect for: The Mum Friend
This is the perfect scent for anyone who really has it together. You know that friend who throws on a pair of jeans and a plain white top, but it looks chic rather than boring? Or that friend who always has a portable charger on a night out in case you need one? Well, this fragrance is for her. With berry top notes, a heart of jasmine, and a base of sandalwood, this stunning fragrance is simple but so radiant and full. You’ll feel like a ray of sunshine with this optimistic scent, so even if you’re not the mum friend yet, there’s no reason you can’t act like her!
Chloé (£77)
Perfect for: The Girlboss
It can be really hard to figure out what fragrances are appropriate for the office. You don’t want something too young and girly, but you also want to avoid sultry and strong fragrances that will overwhelm anyone within a six-foot radius of your office. An ideal compromise is Chloé, an Eau de perfume with rose and peony notes that give off a light, airy vibe. But base notes of amber reveal some hidden depths to this fragrance that prevent it from becoming overly sweet or girly. This gentle fragrance will be perfect for any office and will imbue you with a calming, floral vibe that your coworkers will love.
Dolce and Gabbana – Pour Femme Intense (£29.95)
Perfect for: The Sultry Siren
This perfume is the ultimate sexy scent. With top notes of mandarin and neroli, opening up to heart notes tuberose, and a base note of deep sandalwood, this scent is the equivalent of a red slip dress and heels – you’ll feel like an irresistible goddess after a spritz of this enchanting fragrance. But remember – with great power, comes great responsibility, so don’t waste this fragrance on a day at the office; save it for your most seductive evenings to ensure maximum effectiveness.
The Body Shop – Japanese Cherry Blossom (£15)
Perfect for: The Vacation Queen
When buying a summer holiday fragrance, it can be easy to make some bad calls. A holiday perfume should be light, fun, and simple, just like this easy cherry blossom fragrance from The Body Shop. With traces of magnolia and hinoki wood, this perfume will simmer down into a gentle, sweet scent after the initial floral hit. Even better, this fragrance is cheap and cheerful, meaning you can toss it in your suitcase, use liberally while vacationing, and not spend your whole trip worrying about losing or breaking your most expensive perfume.
Dolce and Gabbana – The Only One (£55)
Perfect for: The Busy Bee
If you’re a busy mum always on the go, you don’t exactly have time to re-spritz yourself every few hours to refresh your gorgeous scent. If so, Dolce and Gabbana’s The Only One is perfect for you. With citrus and coffee notes, this scent is charming and sophisticated, with a slightly sensual edge. This perfume has serious staying power, so it will last you for a long time and you won’t need to refresh every few hours, meaning you can stay busy and smell gorgeous all day.
]]>Sign up to these, and you could be testing and keeping full-size products from luxury brands – some of them which won’t even be available to the public yet! All they ask for in return is your feedback, it really is as simple as that.
Here are the top 10 beauty product testing sites:
1) Elemis Review Panel
If you’re one of the lucky ones to get chosen to be a part of Elemis’s review panel, you’re in for an absolute treat. They’re one of the most sought after beauty brands with a price tag to match, so if you can get their products for free – why not?
2) Boots Volunteer Panel
Have you always wanted to try Boot’s best products, but for free? Then sign up to become a volunteer on their product testing panel. They open up testing every 3-4 months and we managed to get in when they opened it. Once you are in you’ll get access to lots of amazing free product testing opportunities.
3) Debenhams Beauty Club
Sign up to be a Debenhams Beauty Club Cardholder and you will be able to join their product testing community by heading to the ‘New on You’ section. Here, you find posts advertising product tests for exciting new products as well as old favourites
4) Home Tester Club
While not a product testing website just for beauty, Home Tester Club offer products from Tefal frying pans to Nivea gift sets and more for you to try and review. Just sign up for an account then register for the products that you’re interested in.
5) First Beauty
One of the newest beauty websites to join the game, First Beauty offer exciting beauty trials where you can test and keep their new products.
6) Savvy Circle
SuperSavvyMe have their own product testing community, called the Savvy Circle. Sign up and you could try all sorts of things, beauty or otherwise. You’ll see from the photo below what kind of products will arrive. They normally send quite big bundles so you will like this free beauty product testing panel.
7) Life Points
Head over to LifePoints for the chance to test all kinds of products and get rewarded in vouchers to spend at your favourite retailers, such as ASOS, Amazon, Starbucks and more. We’ve received lots of free products over the years.
8) Mingle Beauty Product Testing
Register for free with Mingle and you could answer surveys or test products in return for rewards! This means you could not only get products for free in return for feedback, but you would also get rewarded for doing so, for example we’ve received £5 vouchers with our tests.
9) Pinecone Research – Free Beauty Product Testing
Sign up for free today to Pinecone Research and they’ll send you free products to test directly to your home. They have lots of regular beauty brands who ask their members to test for free. Plus they’ll even pay you up to £3 for each beauty product testing that you complete! So make sure you join this one today!
10) Glamour Beauty Club
Glamour Beauty Club are a new site where you join and set up a profile and they will send you beauty products to test and review based on your profile. They will hand pick products depending on what products you are looking to try. We’ve received lots of products in the last year so it’s definitely worth signing up to it!
]]>
Beyonce Heat Rush Eau de Toilette Perfume: £9.99, Amazon
Famous singer Beyonce has launched her new fragrance, Heat Rush, as a successor to last year’s edition, Heat. Her first fragrance was a success and thrilled Beyonce’s fans. Heat Rush is another edition created in collaboration with Coty Beauty. The fragrance is poured in an orange, glass flacon shaped like the original edition.
Grab this wonderful perfume for just £9.99 here
Marc Jacobs Dot Eau de Parfum: £29.99, The Perfume Shop
With its distinctive polka dot and butterfly wing bottle, this feminine scent from American fashion brand Marc Jacobs will look fantastic on your dressing table. However, it’s not just a pretty face, as the top notes of red berries, dragonfruit and honeysuckle, mid notes of jasmine, coconut water and orange blossom and base notes of vanilla, driftwood and musk, all combine to form a gorgeously addictive floral scent.
Roger&Gallet Rose Eau Fraiche Fragrance 30ml: £19.50, LookFantastic
With beautifully girly packaging and a sleek, simple bottle, this is a perfume that seems miles more expensive than it really is. Created by French perfume company Roger&Gallet, the feminine scent is created using top notes of Nepalese rose, mandarin and white floral accords, mid notes of fresh roses, peony and rosebud, and base notes of amber and almond milk: perfect for those who love a delicate floral smell.
Moschino So Real Eau de Toilette 30ml Vapo: £29.50, LookFantastic
To really make a splash on your bathroom shelf, opt for this eye-catching perfume from Italian fashion house, Moschino. Its top notes of orange, mandarin and raspberry, mid notes of magnolia, jasmine and peony and base notes of oakmoss, cedarwood and ambroxan make for a vibrant fragrance with both woody and fruity notes, while the bottle will make a great ornament, even after the scent’s all finished.
Mugler Alien Eau de Parfum 15ml: £28, The Perfume Shop
For an intoxicating, heady scent, look no further than French brand Mugler and its beloved Alien eau de parfum. With top notes of jasmine sambac, mid notes of cashmeran wood and base notes of white amber, this scent is sensual and addictive and will garner you compliment after compliment when you wear it.
HUGO Deep Red Eau de Parfum 90ml: £29, Superdrug
For a really long-lasting scent, opt for Deep Red from German fashion brand Hugo Boss. Its top notes of clementine, blood orange and blackcurrant, mid notes of freesia, pittosporum and ginger flower and base notes of sandalwood, cedarwood and vanilla are addictive – plus, it’s great value for the amount of perfume you get.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
]]>1. Cath Kidston Christmas Advent Calendar
Coming in at just £30, this Cath Kidston advent calendar is an absolute steal. It includes all your favourites: Cath Kidston hand creams, bath bombs, body scrubs, lip balms, scented soaps and so much more. The calendar itself is beautifully designed, making this the perfect gift for a loved one (or yourself!).
2. Debenhams Advent Calendar
For the love of all things beauty, this is one hell of an advent calendar. It’s filled to the brim with all your favourite brands, including MAC, NARS, Elemis and Benefit products – I’m practically salivating at the mouth at this one. Everything in this magnificent beast equates to £190, but you can get it for just £90, or £45 with another purchase. We just bought a small mirror for £2 and got it for £45 – what a deal, eh?
3. L’Occitane Beauty Advent Calendar
All hail the classic beauty calendar by L’Occitane – within its beautifully designed walls you will find a whole host of exciting treats. Expect luxurious hand creams, lips balms, shower creams and oils, soaps, hair products and just so much more! Yes, a little pricey, but just like the Debenham’s Advent Calendar, the amount that you get for the price is incredible value.
4. Harry Potter Advent Calendar
Treat yourself or a loved one to 24 days of Harry Potter beauty products! Lotions and potions include themed lipsticks, bath bombs, nail varnish, bath essence and more. Whether you’re a Griffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, this is the ultimate Christmas calendar for any Harry Potter fan, i.e. anyone.
5. Soap and Glory Advent Calendar
Smell glorious with a Soap and Glory advent calendar. Priced at only £28, you can’t go wrong with this one. Inside, you’ll find their signature body scrub and moisturisers as well as shampoos, body wash, lip gloss, and just so much more.
]]>