In case you weren’t informed, its ‘National Fragrance Week’ this week. If your favourite social media platform has been awash with the Gen-Z slang: SOTD (scent of the day) or you’ve been seeing the hashtags: ‘#fragspace’, #fragrancecollection, #fragfam, ‘#fraghead’, #NFW2024, accompanied by snapshots of various fragrances, this is probably the reason for it.
According to National Today, the National Fragrance Week happens every year on March. The Fragrance Foundation U.K. is in charge of announcing the date every year, meaning that NFW (National Fragrance Week) doesn’t have a set date. The date for the celebration this year is slated to hold from March 18 to 24.
This week is essentially dedicated to celebrating the power of scent, fragrance and the fragrance industry to promote the use of fragrances worldwide.
Everybody has a particular scent that appeals to them and more times than not, when we pick a new one perfume to add to our collection, we tend to choose from the same family grouping like Floral, Woody, Fresh or Oriental.
We all have our preferences, some of us love to wear more niched fragrances in a bid to stand out from everyone. On the other hand, the rest of us are happier wearing a fragrance that is more common and people might easily recognise.
For National Fragrance Week, a lot of online activity will be centred on looking at what fragrances fit best with different personalities. It can also be a period to delve deeper into the type of scents we like and why we do.
In 1984, Michael Edwards created the Fragrance Wheel out of a desire to group fragrances according to the way they smell. There are currently four major groups of families: Floral, Oriental, Woody and Fresh.
Floral Fragrance:
The floral scent has been touted as the most popular in the fragrance family. The floral scent smells like freshly-cut flowers. Think roses, gardenia and lily flowers. People who are fond of floral fragrances are usually feminine and friendly. If this is your type of scent, you are probably an open, sunny, warm and sociable person.
Oriental Fragrance:
If floral fragrances are the most popular in the Fragrance Wheel, then the Oriental fragrance is the exotic queen of perfumery. An Oriental fragrance possesses spicy, warm and musky notes e.g. Amber, Vanilla, Sandalwood and Tonka. If you wear perfumes with these notes, you’re likely to be something of a night owl, a flamboyant, romantic, passionate and sensual individual. You are someone that is sexy and confident in their sensuality.
Woody Fragrance:
Traditional woody scents are domineered by harmonies of cedar, patchouli, pine, sandalwood and vetiver. Woody fragrances are sensual but warm and they elicit a sense of confidence and strength. Individuals who adore this scent usually posses a charismatic, strong, adventurous and sophisticated persona. They are also very caring people.
Fresh Fragrance:
The fresh fragrance family is usually associated with light, clean sparkling and bright aromas. This scent profile includes a wide variety of citrus, aquatic, green and fruit aromatic combinations. The dominant note here will be the citrus scent which includes lemon, mandarin, bergamot and grapefruit. Individuals opting for this perfume scent usually lead a busy and active life, juggling several activities in both their work and social lives. This fragrance is perfect for spraying often, throughout the day.
I think I might just be an oriental fragrance babe. I simply can’t get enough of vanilla scents.