A Beginner’s Guide To Fragrance Layering
The result is often a cacophony of competing smells. “Your own nose gets used to this after a while so you may not be aware of the overall alchemy, but others certainly will be,” he warns.
The solution? If you’re not layering from a fragrance’s own body range (see above), try using products that at least share common notes. For example, if your eau de toilette is big on vetiver, black pepper and sandalwood, a black pepper body wash will probably complement, rather than work against it.
Try L’Occitane’s Eau De L’Occitan Pour Homme with Molton Brown’s Black Peppercorn Body Wash:
When Two Become One
“Although I’m not a fan myself, many people like combining fragrances and sometimes achieve striking results in the process,” says Craven. If you’re going to try layering two completely different scents – whether two EDTs or a body lotion/EDT combo – he suggests applying the heavier of the two first, letting it dry and then spraying the lighter one over the top.
As an experiment I tried this with Creed’s warm and earthy Original Vetiver and Balmain’s uber fresh and citrusy Monsieur Balmain, which worked pretty well, as did the combo of Acqua di Parma Colonia and Aramis Classic – the former adding a refreshing and uplifting edge to the latter.
Whether they’re better together than apart is debatable (every fragrance is designed to be perfectly balanced remember) but it’s certainly fun to play perfumer:
Also worth considering are the colognes from The Library of Fragrance. Based around familiar smells, there are over 300 of them (with 101 available in the UK) and you can mix everything from Fresh Ginger and Amber to Pure Soap and Play-Doh.
Trust me, you’ll never have more fun fragrance combining:
If you’re unsure about combining, though, Craven suggests starting your experiments with your existing collection. “Don’t spend a fortune doubling up on fragrances until you discover whether you have a talent for combining: it does take a certain skill but can be rewarding – and, of course, if it works, you end up with a unique scent particular to you!”
