Your beginner’s guide to fragrance

Published: 05/10/2026 | Author: Oriflame

Fragrance can scent the mood of a moment, but choosing your first perfume can feel less instinctive when unfamiliar names enter the picture. This fragrance guide will help you understand perfume types, notes and scent families, then put that knowledge to use. Whether you prefer something fresh for every day or a richer scent for evenings, start with what you enjoy smelling. Your preferences are the best place to begin.

How to choose your first fragrance

Think about the scents you already love: freshly peeled orange, flowers after rain, warm spices or the dry scent of wood can all offer clues to your fragrance taste. Next, picture when you’ll wear it. You might want something airy for busy mornings, a soft scent for everyday company or a fuller fragrance for an evening out. Choose two or three possibilities, then try them on your skin before deciding.

Give each fragrance time. The first spritz is only the opening; what lingers later may be quite different. A perfume sample lets you experience that change over a normal day and discover whether you still enjoy the scent hours after applying it. You don’t need to find a lifelong signature straight away. Start by exploring which Oriflame fragrance you look forward to wearing.

Types of fragrance: Eau de Toilette, Eau de Parfum and more

The name on the bottle gives you a clue to a fragrance’s concentration: how much perfume compound it contains. That influences how it wears, although the ingredients and your skin matter too. But the most useful question is how you want your fragrance to feel. A light, refreshing presence? A richer scent that stays with you? Here’s where to start.

• Eau de Cologne: a fresh, fleeting touch
An Eau de Cologne usually offers a light, airy scent experience. It’s a lovely choice when you want a quick refresh or a subtle touch of fragrance, particularly in warm weather. Expect to reapply more often.

• Eau de Toilette: an easy everyday starting point
An Eau de Toilette, often shortened to EDT, generally feels lighter than an Eau de Parfum. Many have a fresh, lively character that makes them easy to wear for work, relaxed weekends or warmer days.

• Eau de Parfum: a fuller fragrance experience
An Eau de Parfum, or EDP, generally offers more concentration and longer wear than an EDT. It can be a good choice when you want your fragrance to accompany you through the day or bring more presence to an evening. EDP doesn’t always mean heavy. The composition might be fresh and floral, smooth and woody, or warm and ambery.

• Parfum: depth that lingers
Parfum, sometimes called extrait de parfum, is typically the most concentrated format. It often has a rich, lasting character, so a small amount can be enough. Choose it when you enjoy depth and want to spend time with a scent as it develops. A concentrated fragrance can also stay close to the skin rather than filling the room.

Best fragrance types for beginners

For your first perfume, we recommend starting with an Eau de Toilette. Its generally lighter character makes it an easy way to discover how much scent you enjoy wearing. Here are two starting points, depending on your taste.

• For fresh florals: Eclat Femme Weekend Eau de Toilette
White freesia, peach and soft woods make this our pick if you enjoy airy flowers with a little fruity brightness.
• For citrus sparkle: Eclat Femme Weekend Riviera Eau de Toilette
Grapefruit, mandarin and bergamot meet white gardenia. Try it if you like a bright, refreshing opening with a floral heart.

Understanding fragrance notes: top, heart and base

Fragrance notes describe the smells you recognise within a perfume, such as bergamot, jasmine or sandalwood. They help you imagine its character before trying it. Many fragrances are described in three layers. These overlap as the perfume develops, rather than switching from one to another at an exact moment.

• Top notes: the first impression
These are the notes you notice on the first spritz. Often bright or lively, they introduce the fragrance before gradually softening. Citrus, fresh fruits and aromatic notes frequently appear here.

• Heart notes: the character of the scent
Also called middle notes, these become more apparent as the opening settles. They help shape the fragrance’s main character and can include flowers, spices, herbs or fruit.

• Base notes: what stays with you
Base notes give a fragrance depth and help form the scent that lingers. Woods, musks, vanilla and ambery notes are common examples. This is why it’s worth waiting before choosing a perfume. You may love its sparkling opening, but the softer scent left on your skin is just as important.

• And what is an accord?
An accord is a blend of ingredients that creates a recognisable scent impression. For example, the exclusive Nordic Waters Accord in Nordic Waters for Him Eau de Parfum evokes crisp water, while the signature You Accord sits at the heart of Infinita You Eau de Parfum, a luminous floral fragrance with fruity facets. A note or accord describes what you smell; it doesn’t necessarily mean that the named material is an ingredient.

Fragrance families: find the scents you enjoy

A fragrance family groups perfumes with a similar overall character. Think of it as a useful starting point for exploring your taste. Many perfumes combine several families: a floral scent might have fruity brightness or a woody base, so you don’t need to choose just one.

• Floral: from delicate petals to rich bouquets
Rose, jasmine, freesia and orange blossom can feel soft and airy or full and sensual. Start here if you love the scent of flowers.
Our pick: Miss Giordani Eau de Parfum

• Citrus: bright, zesty and refreshing
Bergamot, lemon, grapefruit and mandarin bring the lively freshness of just-peeled fruit. Look for these notes if you prefer a crisp, sparkling opening.
Our pick: [Top Scents La La Lime Niche Perfume]products/product?code=47724)

• Fruity and gourmand: juicy or deliciously sweet
Fruity scents capture the character of peach, pear or cherry, while gourmand notes evoke vanilla, chocolate and other sweet treats. Together, they can feel playful, comforting or richly indulgent.
Our pick: Love Potion Cherry on Top Eau de Parfum

• Ambery: warm and enveloping
Ambery fragrances often combine vanilla, resins and spices for a softly comforting or more sensual scent. Blended with flowers, they bring warmth and depth to a floral heart.
Our pick: Possess Intense Eau de Parfum

• Woody and aromatic: smooth depth and herbal freshness
Cedarwood and sandalwood can bring dry or creamy depth, while aromatic notes such as sage add a fresh herbal character. If you enjoy a bright opening with mossy, earthy depth, explore chypre fragrances too, pronounced “sheep-ruh”.
Our pick: Possess Intense Man Eau de Parfum

Explore a bolder scent with Possess Intense

Curious about a fragrance with more depth? Possess Intense offers two different ways to explore a fuller Eau de Parfum. Choose which kind of intensity draws you in.

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