What Does the Way You Apply Your Perfume Say About You?

Abbey Lee Kershaw for the YSL Beauté Opium campaign by Gregory Harris

An unscientific guide to your personality based solely on the way you put on your fragrance, in the grand tradition of insipid women's magazines  

There’s been much written about what your choice of fragrance says about your personality. Those who gravitate towards fruity scents are fun and happy-go-lucky. A floral perfume connotes a girly, romantic sensibility. Women who wear sweet, sugar-inspired aromas appreciate nostalgia and apparently pleasing their men. Something woodsy translates to sexy and mysterious. But what about the way you apply your fragrance? There are as many different ways to put on your perfume as there are personality types, and each style actually indicates a different type of woman. So consider how you apply your perfume, and see if your disposition matches up:

1. The Dainty Wrist-Dabber
Does the term Type A ring a bell? Savvy, astute, and mindful, doing things haphazardly is not your style. Chaos doesn’t suit you (it actually makes you quite uneasy), and modern as you are, you’re rather old-fashioned in certain ways. It’s not that you’re antiquated. You just happen to appreciate time-honored traditions. Maybe your mother showed you how to apply perfume, and it stuck with you. Moreover, you like putting it on the same way she did, and like her mother before her. The wrists are one of the most delicate areas of the body, not to mention a pulse point, and tough as you are on the inside, you like to project an air of feminine delicacy. You also know better than to rub it in after spraying. A single tap is all you need to get it stick.

2. The Neck Tantalizer
Sexy, enigmatic, and alluring, your sex appeal is important to you for a number of reasons. For one, it’s a way to get what you want. For another, you simply love feeling sensual. Maybe you’ve got a little vampire in you. Or maybe you want a little vampire on you, so to speak. Face it: Consciously or not, you would love someone to nibble you like you’re a delicacy. Your perfume is meant to draw the object of your affection – as well as potential objects of affection – to your erogenous zone (the base of the throat is also a pulse point). But your motives aren’t just founded on the notion of attracting other people. By applying it to your neck and collarbone area, you know you’ll be catching periodic whiffs of your favorite scent, too. 

3. The Mist-and-Strutter
You’ve got a “more is more” attitude, and you love nothing more than to feel lavish and decadent. This is the way Estée Lauder applied her perfume: She liked to spritz the air in front of her and walk through the mist so it would settle lightly and naturally all over her body. There’s something so luxurious about walking through a cloud of your favorite fragrance; there’s also something just a little wasteful. But that’s of no consequence to you. You’re not the type to constantly count and save your pennies; being overly pragmatic bores you to tears. You’re a frivolous breed, as you’re of the mind that life’s too short not to enjoy it as much as you can, right down to its little pleasures. Live it up!  

4. The Repeat Offender
Maybe you really adore perfume; maybe you’re just a tad neurotic. If you repeatedly apply your perfume throughout the day (whether it’s by carrying a small atomizer with you in your bag or never neglecting to replenish your scent when you stop off at home), you possess a great attention to detail, along with a propensity towards excess. It makes for an interesting combination, but then again, you’re a study in contradictions. Calculated as you are, you also have a passionate and well, temperamental temperament. Most of all, you like to make your presence known, which isn’t a difficult task for you. People are drawn to you – and that’s not just because your omnipresent signature scent pulls them in.

5. The Clothes Horse
So you like to spritz your scent on say, the collar of your coat right before walking out the door or down the décolletage of your low-cut top while you’re getting dressed. Maybe you have a habit of saving things until the last minute, and perfume is sometimes a mere afterthought. Maybe you’re too busy daydreaming to plan ahead. Regardless, you like to leave your mark on things, your own clothing included. It’s comforting; it feels more personal this way. As a social, spontaneous type of girl who loves to go out, you like to make yourself feel grounded and “at home” in small ways. But odds are you haven’t given the fact that you like to spritz your clothes with perfume a whole lot of thought. A true people person, you’re an instinctive, emotional thinker, and your behavior reflects that. 

6. The Hair-Raiser
If someone calls you a diva, you take it as a compliment. Nothing wrong with that! You’re a woman who dreams big and, therefore, deserves big things. It’s not that you’re spoiled (well, you’re a little spoiled, but again, you wouldn’t have it any other way). You just enjoy the finer things in life. You also enjoy taking the time to primp and preen yourself. Priding yourself on your spotlight-stealing appearance, you know the way your hair smells is just as important as the way it looks. Well, almost. Taking this approach a step further, famous diva Christina Aguilera has been known to spray her perfume on her hairbrushes so the scent wafts into her hair. This is actually a smart technique. The alcohol in perfume can dry out your precious strands, so misting it onto a brush or comb first is easier on your hair.

7. The Slow Burner
If you know that spraying your calves, ankles, and the area behind your knees is actually the way to make your perfume last the longest, then you’re a planner who does her research. You might not be hit with fragrance at first, but scent rises, so by applying it to your lower body early in the day, you’re ensuring it will last well into the evening. Needless to say, you’ve never had a problem recognizing that patience is a virtue. Surprises don’t necessarily excite you, at least not in a good way, and wild spontaneity isn’t your game. Steady, strategic, and rarely lacking in foresight, you like to know what you’re getting. You appreciate things that last for the long haul. Think classic over trendy. You’re also an active type who’s constantly on the go, with her schedule planned down to a precise T.

8. The Navel-Grazer
Active and body-conscious, the woman who likes to mist her abdomen with perfume is as intriguing as she is athletic, as sensuous as she is dynamic. It’s been said by perfume experts that the bellybutton is a brilliant vessel for holding and emitting fragrance, especially when your body heat rises. Getting hot is something you’re more than happy to do; you love to break a sweat any chance you get. You also work hard for your body and you’re not afraid to show it off a little bit. What would be the point of spraying yourself there if you aren’t going to reveal at least a sliver of flesh? Much like this style of applying fragrance, you’re full of surprises.  

9. The Mix-and-Matcher
Two words: Pretty reckless. You’re not afraid of a little risk, and you’re not afraid to try something new. Actually, you relish a degree of uncertainty. Then again, you know what you like and once you find something you do really like, you’re going to stick with it. But as loyal as you are, you’re a free agent at heart. Anyone who tries to tie you down has got another thing coming, your perfume included! You probably won’t go out of your way to accumulate a plethora of different perfumes, but when you do, you’re not afraid to shake them up. A spritz of one here, a light blast of one there: Lo and behold, you’ve created a new signature fragrance as unique as you are. Variety is, after all, the spice of life, and you like life spicy.