The idea of seasonal fragrances is completely foreign to most perfume and cologne wearers. Most people approach the topic as you wear what you like when you want to wear it. However there are more seasonal fragrances to help your body chemistry match the perfume note more accurately. While not applicable to absolutely every individual with every fragrance, there are a few basic standards to guide you.

Winter is a time for the more spicy colognes for men and the more oriental fragrances for women. Musky, wooded scents or an outdoor of type aroma do well in the winter as well. In winter, the metabolism slows a bit and the science of fragrance (yes there is a science) dictates that the combination of our bodies' chemistries combined with our smell association are more inclined to prefer some scents in the winter time versus other scents in warmer weather.

Apple or distinct fruity scents are typically a woman's spring and early summer scent while she may want to pick something less sweet when the weather turns hot. This is partially due to over active sweat glands in the summer time and our naturally desire to smell “cooler” scents when it is hot outside. For men, summertime scents involve more of an outdoor leathery scent. Spicy scents tend to mix poorly with sweat and create an unpleasant aroma.

Some perfumes and colognes do well all year long. The more subtle the fragrance is, the more it will mesh well with both summer and winter body chemistries. The fruitier scents that are blended with other aromas are good for spring while some of the floral blends are really more appropriate for winter.

There is no exact perfect match for everybody when trying to determine which perfumes and colognes are more suited for each individual season. Often you can tell what types of perfumes are more popular by the types of samples are on the fragrance counter, but each body is unique and each blend is unique to the wearer. The previous text is considered a basic guideline based on averages. Some things may not apply to your body and your perfume selection.

If you are in doubt remember that subtlety is always the best policy. Subtlety allows for a greater margin of error whether you are talking seasonal selections or trying a new fragrance for the first time. Overpowering perfumes and colognes make the small mistakes we make in the selection process stand out.