How to Shop for the Right Perfume or Cologne as a Gift

The challenge with buying another person perfume or cologne as a gift is you may not know what fragrance they like. The perfume or cologne that you find appealing may be one that another person will find too strong or not befitting his or her character. Or maybe this person has two types of fragrances that don't smell anything alike and you have no idea what his or her fragrance preferences. So how you do you figure out which ones are a hit and which ones are a miss?

Tip One: Check out what's already in her fragrance line. If you see that this person is constantly buying one person's fragrance or has a collection of a brand name or celebrity fragrances, try to find one perfume or cologne that person doesn't already own. The only downside to this is that the person may not have bought this perfume or cologne because she didn't like that particular one, but at least you're showing you did take interest in her collection.

Tip Two: Pay attention to the pattern in the fragrances this person chooses. If you see that this person is more apt to buy fruity fragrances over flowery fragrances or natural scent fragrances (ex. water or mountain fresh smells), purchase something with those ingredients or at least fitting that aroma pattern.

Tip Three: Take the person with you to find someone else's favorite perfume or cologne. Pay attention to where that person goes and what fragrances he or she likes. Going out on a limb and buying whatever you feel like fits that person doesn't mean he'll necessarily want to buy it so go for the obvious.

Tip Four: Purchase a department store gift card, and let that person choose her own perfume or his own cologne. You can never fail with a gift card.

Tip Five: Don't reject buying a fragrance that you don't care for. You aren't the one who has to wear the cologne or perfume. There are some scents that you may not enjoy, but remember you don't have to inhale it all day. If he or she likes the fragrance, that's what counts most.

Tip Six: Create a fragrance gift package. Get ten of each of your favorite fragrances or colognes and put them in a decorative package. If you just have no clue what type of aroma this person likes, then you're giving them multiple ones to choose from. Chances are he may like at least one of the ten. For an added treat, buy neutral lotions or shampoos to make it a full beauty gift.
Additional Notes: This entry was published by the Chicago Fragrance Examiner. To check out her fragrance reviews, visit the Examiner link.