How the seasons affect your perfume, from Chanel and Hermès to Maison Margiela
Here’s how to make your fragrance wardrobe work for you through the seasons, from citrus top notes that vanish in the summer heat to base notes that bloom in the cold
Not so long ago, perfume culture was simple: find a signature scent, commit, and let it announce your presence like a theme song. You then wore that same bottle on a humid July commute and a January night out – and it would express two different personalities.
The reason behind this phenomenon? The weather. Ambient conditions change the way a perfume evaporates, projects and lingers, which means the same formula can feel crisp and sparkling one day, then dense and oddly shouty the next. “The simplest reason is temperature and humidity,” says Grace Cha, brand manager at Keyth, a Korean beauty brand. “Heat causes a scent to evaporate more quickly, which makes it project more strongly and feel brighter or sharper.” In contrast, in cold and dry weather, evaporation tends to slow. “The scent stays closer to the skin and feels softer and less powerful.”