Try before you buy. “Ask for a sample of a scent, then live with it for a few days before buying it,” advises Stacy Brown, a scent specialist for Thymes fragrances. Even if you don’t get hot flashes, you’re probably experiencing midlife hormonal changes, which can affect the way a fragrance smells on your skin from hour to hour. So wait a week to see if the scent works well with your body chemistry.
Branch out a bit. “If you’re wearing the same scent today that you loved as a teen, let go already,” says Judith Sills, a clinical psychologist in Philadelphia. “Your fragrance should reflect who you are now.” Jan Moran, a consultant for Perfumania stores, agrees, but she points out that most of us have several selves to project. “Your persona in a business meeting is different from the one you have on a date with your husband or relaxing with your family on the weekend. My advice is to invest in two or three fragrances that you rotate depending on where you are and what you’re doing,” Moran says.
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