Perfume Fragrances – How Strong Should It Be?

I’ve always found the subject of how strong a perfume should be an interesting one.
It’s one of those topics that often creep up during perfume making conversations with friends.
Personally, I like my perfumes to be just strong enough to be noticed by others without them gagging or fainting from the impact of it when I go past them.  
Some people believe that the effect of a perfume should only be felt by the person wearing it; within their own personal space alone, without others noticing it.
Others say that it’s okay to get a light whiff of someone else’s perfume as long as it’s all down to it being carried over by the breeze and not because the wearer had been marinating in a bath full of perfume beforehand.
So which of these two scenarios is right?
All I can say is that the wearing of perfumes is a personal thing and anyone should be able to wear their scents however they want it as long as it doesn’t make everyone else around them ill or irritated.
However, in my experience as a perfume maker, I’ve come to realize that most customers prefer stronger smelling perfumes to the lighter ones.
On the whole, they believe that the stronger it is the better it is.
If they want a light effect a squirt or two is enough and when they want a more obvious effect, they can apply some extra squirts.
This way they have the option to wear it the way they like it, strong or weak.
I’ve also noticed that women tend to like their perfume fragrances to be moderately strong so that it can last as long as possible. Men on the other hand generally to opt for lighter blends.  

The thing a lot of people don’t seem to understand is this, the fact that you love the scent you’ve got on doesn’t mean everyone else does.
Nor are they looking forward to the migraine it’s likely to induce if you choose to douse yourself in scents that are extra strong, even when going to work.
There’s nothing worse than working in a confined space with someone who smells like they bathe in a tub full of strong perfume everyday!
If someone can smell you long before you get to them and long after you’ve left the room, it’s more than likely that the perfume you have on is way too strong or over applied.

I once had a terrible experience with a designer perfume type I blended for my personal use.      
It had always been one of my favorites until that particular day. When I applied it before I left home for an important meeting it smelled quite fresh and moderate. Thirty minutes later, it had become so overpowering that I felt really ill. Things got so bad that I would have gladly jumped into any pond, river or lake right there and then just to wash it off. 

The meeting was a total disaster because I had developed a killer headache and bad nausea. I reeked of strong perfume and felt so awful that I had to reschedule my meeting for another day.
Now how unprofessional was that?
From that day on I can’t bear to smell that perfume and hate it with a passion.
I suppose I must have been over generous with my perfume ingredients when composing that particular blend, but it was a lesson well learnt.

Now I mostly stick to wearing light, but long lasting scents, especially if I’ve got a meeting or if I’m going to be in an enclosed space with other people.
Being considerate of the people in our surroundings is a good thing, particularly in the case of those who might have allergies and those who are sensitive to strong perfumes.
For such people, there can be nothing worse than smelling someone from a mile away and having their perfume induce a migraine or sneezing attack when such a person is close by.

Ultimately, if you are making perfumes to sell, the customer is always right and their need comes first.
This means you have to consider who your customers are and what their perfume preferences are so you can craft the right blends to meet them.