The notes of a fragrance are like the instruments in an orchestra, they all play their part. Here’s how they come together to create the score:

Top or head notes

The first smell when you apply a fragrance. Top notes contain ingredients that evaporate quicky: delicate florals, bergamot and other light citruses and herbs such as coriander and basil.

Mid or heart notes

The smell that kicks in a few minutes after the top notes. It usually contains rich florals – even in a fragrance that isn’t considered part of the floral family – because these compounds tend to be less volatile. The heart notes are important because they weave all the notes together to define the personality of the fragrance as a whole.

Base or bottom notes

The longest lasting ingredients that stabilise the fragrance and extend its staying power. They contain thick, heavy oils, such as those derived from plants (including vanilla, oakmoss, sandalwood and patchouli), or those that are synthesized to smell like animal-based ingredients (including musk, civet and ambergris)

Dry-down

The notes that stand out and linger after the fragrance ha dried on your skin. The dry-down scent varies from person to person, since it mixes w your skin’s natural scent.

*Extracted from a very old (forgotten) issue of Allure

Most limited edition summer scents tend to be pretty and effervescence floral or fruity perfumes, and packaged to reflect the “lightness” of summer. But Diesel decided to do the complete opposite with its Fuel For Life Summer Limited Editions (for men and women)

For starters, the colour of the bottle – wow. 

The neon pink and day-glo blue … “put more colour in your life” they say. And they sure did it.   

The packaging takes inspiration from everything that is vibrant and fun – from the British pop scene (remember Wham!?), Steven Sprouse, Andy Warhol, Elio Fiorruci and Italy in the mid-Eighties, the rave parties of the Nineties, Harajuku girls, and of course, not forgetting the neon “Smiley” icon.

Notes for the feminine version are familiar ones – mandarin, bergamot jasmine, neroli and blackcurrant – with a base of amber wood, musk and patchouli, all packed a hot pink canister. As for the masculine one, you get verbena, anis and petitgrain blended with lavender, vetiver, driftwood and heliptrope.

Apparently, according to some perfume distributors I’ve spoken to, we Malaysians are suckers for packaging. So I’d expect this duo to do very, very well indeed.

Fuel For Life Summer Editions are RM190 each (75 ml) at major department stores nationwide. 

I smell like freshly-cut grass.

No, not because it’s just stopped raining, but I have on me Guerlain’s Aqua Allegoria Flora Nymphea.

Aqua Allegoria scents are spring scents from one of the oldest perfume houses in the world. Over the past decade, Guerlain has delighted perfume lovers around the world with more than 20 versions of Aqua Allegoria. The scents have been inspired by the beauty of nature – citruses, herbs, spices and flowers. I already have Mandarine-Basilic as a firm favourite – and so was looking forward to falling in love with this floral nymph.

These scents are normally fleeting, light and evanescence – it’s almost a trademark for Aqua Allegoria perfumes. And they’re all beautifully presented in charming bottles, complete with the golden honeycomb top. Flora Nymphea is a little more special, as it marks the fifth anniversary of the very first Aqua Allegoria edition. The golden honeycomb is still there, but the flacon is slightly different – and capped with a golden bee.

Floral Nymphea was developed by Guerlain perfumer Thierry Wasser, and is inspired by a spring garden. The notes of this dewy floral include seringa flower, orange blossom, and honey, and the combination of these notes gives out a green-herbal-citrusy scent.    

The first time I sprayed this on, I was taken aback at how much I didn’t like it. It was just too green for me, not in a light manner, but every breath I took had me smelling something that was herbal-based. But this is a pretty persistent scent – and it just grew on me. After a few weeks, I found myself enjoying its fresh, green notes in the mornings at first spritz, the powdery orange blossom drydown, and the woody/earthy finish. I like it best worn on cool, rainy days. 

Like most Aqua Allegorias, the scent is an acquired taste. You might like it, you might not. But one thing is for sure – if you do catch a whiff of it, it’ll be one you won’t forget.

Guerlain has also presented a cute animated movie inspired by the scent, which you can view here. Enjoy.

Aqua Allegoria Flora Nymphea EDT (125ml) is available at Guerlain counters nationwide.

I thought you ladies might enjoy reading this little fragrance feature. It kinda got me thinking, and wondering how many of us here in Malaysia choose a perfume to feel sexy. For all the fragrances I own and have ever owned, I can’t think of one that truly made me feel sexy – confident, yes – but hey, some people translate that to feeling sexy. But I don’t think I’ve ever sprayed on a scent that made me feel “hey boy – come and get me”  sexy. What about you?

Enjoy the piece, I’ve always loved Luca Turin, he’s hilarious! 

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The Sexiest Fragrances (Ever)

*Allure July 2010

Scent is so closely tied to sex that when people lose their sense of smell, their sex drive often disappears, too. But it doesn’t take a degree in science to know that some scents evoke love (er, make that lust) more than others. We asked Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez, the professional sniffers behind Perfumes: The A to Z Guide, to pick the five sexiest-smelling perfumes of all time.

• Chinatown by Bond No. 9 New York
• Smells like: spice. “If wearing Opium is like walking around with a bullhorn shouting, ‘Come and get it!’ Chinatown is like discreetly whispering the same thing.”

• Insolence Eau de Parfum by Guerlain
• Smells like: tuberose amber. “One of the few fragrances built to work for three stages of a successful encounter: to draw someone’s attention from across the room, to make flirtatious conversation for a few hours, and to still smell fantastic the morning after.”

• Bulgari Black by Bulgari
• Smells like: rubber plus leather. “With those notes … you do the math.”

• 31 Rue Cambon by Chanel
• Smells like: floral amber. “The ultimate fragrance of the unattainable blonde, as incarnated at various times by Grace Kelly, Cybill Shepherd and Betty from Archie.”

• Sécrétions Magnifiques by Etat Libre D’Orange
• Smells like: floral bilge. “This frightening perfume, which smells like you’re wearing Dior J’Adore while on your period, is so sexy no one at all should ever wear it, because randy dogs might chase you down the street.”

These scents are a beauty to behold, and a joy to breathe in. And best of all – because it’s always hot and sunny here, we get to wear them all year long!

L’Eau d’Issey Summer EDT (100ml)

A reinterpretation of the cult classic, L’Eau d’Issey Summer is a delightful floral bouquet peppered with fruity nuances. Notes are fresh (rosewater and pear), sweet, and spicy (peony, carnation, and woods).

Jean Paul Gaultier Classique Summer EDT (100ml)

JPG’s bestselling Classique gets all flirty in this edition, shedding its heavier scent for something light and breezy with notes like orange blossom, Sicilian lemon, jasmine sambac, ylang-ylang and white iris. The base of this rather charming scent is vanilla, musk and amber.

Jean Paul Gaultier Eau Fraiche Ma Dame EDT (100ml)

This summer cocktail is crisp and happy – and bursts open with orange zest and grenadine, deliciously blended with raspberry and pink grapefruit. As a base, there’s rose, musk and cedarwood.

L’Eau d’Issey Summer EDT, Jean Paul Gaultier Classique Summer and Jean Paul Gaultier Eau Fraiche Ma Dame all cost RM228 and is now available at leading department stores nationwide.