Why Does My Perfume Fade So Quickly? 8 Questions CLEARLY Answered to Make Your Perfume Last Longer
1-minute quick read:
- Why my perfume doesn’t last?
- Ingredients
- Notes
- Perfume type
- Season/temperature
- Humidity
- Where you wear it (clothes/skin)
2. What ingredient makes perfume last longer?
- Animallic natural fragrance
- Botanical natural fragrance
- Liquid or solid synthetic fragrances
3. What type of perfume lasts the longest?
Parfum.
4. Do expensive perfumes last longer?
Not always, but natural fragrance ingredients fade faster than synthetic ones.
5. How long does perfume smell last on clothes? How long does perfume smell last on skin?
The scent lasts for 1–30 days depending on the perfume type and brand.
6. Where to spray perfume to last longer?
- Pulse or no sweat points
- Lower body
- Hairbrush
- Whole-body mist
- No armpits
7. How to make your perfume last longer on clothes?
- Innerwear
- Shawl, scarf, hat, collar, gloves
- Dress edge/lining
- Collar, front placket, inner cuff
8. How do I make my perfume last all day?
- Spray at the right time
- Don’t rub the perfumed skin
- Use less scented products at the same time
- Use Vaseline, coconut oil or other unscented lotion/cream
- No odor eliminating products
Now let’s get started.
There is almost nothing like a spritz of our favorite fragrance that acts as the final touch to make us confident in a new day. But how can the lovely scent just flee without a trace in less than 1 hour that you cannot smell it any longer? Why does my perfume fade so quickly?
Why does my perfume wear off so quickly?
It should be clear that almost any perfume can be smelt in 24 hours once applied if you smell by putting your nose close to it. So when we talk about longevity, it should be the scent that smelled at a distance.
The perfume’s quick fading is got a lot to do with:
- Ingredients (we’ll talk later);
- Notes
Woody, oriental, leather notes last longer than floral, green, aquatic notes. Citrus notes fade the quickest.
- Perfume type (we’ll talk later);
- Season/temperature
Perfumes wear off quicker in summer (hot days) than autumn and winter (cold days).
- Humidity
The perfume scent evaporates quicker in low humidity than high humidity. So on rainy or humid days, not overspraying the perfume will do good to both you and others.
- Where you wear it
Generally a fragrance lasts longer on the clothes than on the skin.
What ingredient makes perfume last longer?
We all know that every perfume uses “top note”, “middle note”, “base note” as a way to label its structure. Fixative is exactly what makes up the base note.
These long-lasting essential oils would make the fragrance last longer by evaporating the fragrance molecules steadily and less quickly.
Numerous fragrances can work as the fixative, including:
- Animallic natural fragrance: musk, genet, castoreum
- Botanical natural fragrance: resin, benzoin, vetiver
- Liquid or solid synthetic fragrances that have a high boiling point: rose acetate, vanillin, coumarin, acetyl eugenol, benzyl benzoate, linalyl phenylacetate, etc.
What type of perfume lasts the longest?
The answer is parfum. According to the proportion of perfume oil and alcohol, perfumes are divided into 4 main types, each with different longevity:
- Parfum (P): 20%-30% of perfume oil, lasts for 12+ hours
With the highest concentration of ingredients, parfum has the best fragrant quality. Parfum lasts the longest among all perfume types. It’s usually expensive but just one drop is enough to get the job done. It’s suitable for night outs, banquet, and other nighttime formal occasions.
2. Eau de Parfum (EDP): 15%-20% of perfume oil, lasts for 6–8 hours
EDP is the closest type to parfum in terms of scent and longevity, but the volume is relatively cost-effective at a lower price, which is one of the secrets of why it’s popular among people who think parfum too powerful.
Women’s EDPs outnumber men’s. EDP is suitable for daytime banquets or outings. Common package capacity: 30ml, 50ml.
3. Eau de Toilette (EDT): 5%-15% of perfume oil, lasts for 4–6 hours
EDT is the most popular and common type of perfume in recent years. It has a higher percentage of alcohol than EDP so it fades quicker. The three notes change softly and freshly, perfect for the office and other daily uses. Zero-experience perfume starters will also love it!
It’s recommended to spray in the morning, and if gone, consider fueling another layer in the afternoon. Common package capacity: 30ml, 50ml, 75ml, 100ml.
4. Eau de Cologne (EDC): 2%-4% of perfume oil, lasts for 3–4 hours
In ancient Europe, most men’s perfumes fall into this grade, but there are very few women’s perfumes. So people have longtime misunderstood cologne as men’s perfumes.
Alcohol and distilled water are the main components of EDC, and the proportion of alcohol is high as 60%-75%. Due to the low concentration of fragrance ingredients, EDC is the cheapest with high volume. You wouldn’t even think it a waste to spray all over the body.
Most EDCs have fresh citrus notes that make you feel refreshed. They are a wonderful after-bath refreshment.
Do expensive perfumes last longer?
Why does my perfume fade so quickly? Did I wrongly buy the cheap one? Not always. But one thing is sure: the unnamed cheap perfumes we see on the market usually use lower-cost synthetic fragrance ingredients. Normally they are less volatile than natural fragrance ingredients, so surprisingly the natural ones fade faster once applied.
In order to please people’s sense of smell and meet the blind pursuit of longevity, low-end perfumes often have many compound fixatives added in.
In terms of chemistry, fragrance ingredients+alcohol+aqua=100%. If the fixative is added to improve the perfume’s longevity, the proportion of fragrance ingredients need to be reduced, which will result in a change of the whole aroma.
For most consumers, the difference may be too slight to be noticeable. But almost all beauty or perfume houses that seek for the best fame will not apply compound fixatives in their products.
After all, fixatives are much cheaper than quality fragrance ingredients. It’s not worth ruining the expensive with the cheap.
On the other hand, quality brands have their button line; they feel shame to cheat people by applying such things.
How long does perfume smell last on clothes? How long does perfume smell last on skin?
Normally a fragrance lasts longer on the clothes than on the skin, especially on wool, cotton, linen, and other natural fabrics. Like I said, judging a perfume’s longevity isn’t black or white, so I can only share some common figures:
Classic Chanel and Dior perfumes do have the strongest longevity of half or nearly one month, other perfumes from popular designer houses including Giorgio Armani and Burberry generally stay for 2–7 days, while for Dolce&Gabbana Light Blue, Kenzo L’Eau par Kenzo pour Homme and fresh perfumes alike, you will find no trace of it on your body after 1–2 days.
Most perfumes from Atelier Cologne, a niche perfume house, have citrus notes or ingredients. Fading quickly themselves with alcohol meddling in, their scent fades very fast. Most of them keep solid for 2 hours, but that doesn’t mean it’s a terrible brand to try.
Where to spray perfume to last longer?
- Pulse or no sweat points
The tricks include back ears, side of neck, and wrists, where the natural temperature of your body blends well with the perfume to make the scent as mild as your body scent.
2. Lower body outruns!
As heat always rises from the low to the high, spray the perfume on the waist, back of knees, or ankle will prolong your perfume’s presence.
3. Hair pitfalls
I’ve seen people asking whether they can spray perfume on hair. Actually no, especially on the scalp, which is the sweet home to bacteria and body fouling. And the strange mixed odor can frighten people away.
But the right thing is to spray the perfume on your hairbrush. When brushing your hair, the scent will be through them naturally.
4. Fragrance rain
If you want your whole body to smell naturally good, spray the perfume high in the air, and whirl in the mists to perch the elves before they fall on the ground.
5. Cover body odors? Seriously?
Don’t spray the perfume on the armpits to cover their odor (if there are). Actually, never count on any perfume to cover body odors completely. It’s better to get up earlier and take a quick shower, which will not only rinse away odors but make you feel fresh for the rest of the day.
How to make your perfume last longer on clothes?
Guess you must know that it’s better not to spray the perfume directly on the clothes in case of color marks, but now as we have more colorless choices, color marks are less common than before. And if you are the one with sensitive skin, spraying the perfume on your body may hurt you.
In summer, perfumes wear off so quickly on the skin (particularly sweating skin) under high temperature; and in autumn and winter, we and our favorite scent are wrapped in heavy clothing. Spraying on the right place on the clothes in these days will help you get more time surrounded by your favorite scent:
- Innerwear. My perfumes stay at least double the time than on the skin, and my clothes can share the scent too.
- Shawl, scarf, hat, collar, gloves;
- Dress edge/lining;
- Collar, front placket, inner cuff.
Here is one of my other hacks: spray the perfume in the wardrobe where you hang/put the dry clean clothes. Next time you wear them, they’ll still smell good while not being too strong. In this way, your perfume can also be served as an air spray:)
How do I make my perfume last all day?
- All starts from the right time
Normally what you smell in 0–10 minutes will be a perfume’s top note; 2–4 hours, middle note; and the base note appears after 4 hours.
So if you want to enjoy the most of a perfume’s soul, spray it 20 minutes before you go out, so there will be enough time for the middle note to grow naturally without being weakened by sunlight or sweat.
2. Don’t rub the perfumed skin
Many are used to rubbing it off after applying the perfume, but this will make your perfume fade faster instead and cause allergies to sensitive skins.
3. Use less scented products at the same time
Avoid mixing your perfume scent with too many hair styling products, skin cares, or cosmetics. The mixed scents will not only impair your perfume’s best performance but also make you smell garish.
4. Does Vaseline help perfume last longer?
The moisturized skin holds the fragrance in the long run. So you can either spray the perfume right after a bath or consider rubbing unscented lotion/cream, unscented lipstick, Vaseline or coconut oil to make the perfume last longer before spraying it. This method helps one of my colognes — Bvlgari Au Thé Rouge last around 2 hours longer.
5. Careful about “odor eliminating” products
These products get their job done by eliminating scents no matter how expensive your perfume is. So if possible, choose the soap/body wash that has the same scent as your perfume.
By using the strategies above wisely, you can extend your perfume’s presence as long as possible and make the most of your favorite scent!
Did you click in wondering “why does my perfume fade so quickly”? Have you found the answers you are looking for?
Do you know some other tricks that make the perfume stay longer?
Let me know in the comment.
