How to Layer Perfumes Like a Pro

It's one thing to find your signature scent or the fragrance family you like best. Whether you prefer gourmands, citrus, or floral perfumes, chances are there's already a premade mix that you'll like well enough to purchase. Still, one of the most underrated art forms is knowing how to layer your perfume, which can take your olfactive experience to new heights.

"Perfume layering is taking multiple unique scents and wearing them one on top of another to create a new, personalized perfume," Derek Miller, national sales director at Initio Parfums Privés, tells POPSUGAR. "It can be done using two traditional fragrances whose combined complexities will create something completely different from either original scent or with a traditional fragrance over an amplifier, which will only enhance the paired notes."

There are quite a few reasons to layer perfumes. Maybe an elixir you've long loved has catapulted to popularity and you don't want to smell like everyone else (hello to everyone who loved Maison Francis Kurkdjian's Baccarat Rouge 540 ($325) pre-TikTok), or maybe you've grown bored of your current scent and want to try something new. Whether you're a fragrance novice or connoisseur, read ahead for everything you need to know about layering your fragrances.

Baccarat Rouge 540

From

$325

$325 at Nordstrom

You can mix scents across any fragrance family, and the four big categories that all perfumes fall under are floral, fresh, woody, and spicy. "It may be best to layer scents that have at least one of the same notes," Miller says. "This will help tie the two scents together on the skin."

In practice, if you notice common base notes like vanilla, musk, or woods, or top notes that share a similar scent family, then these ingredients are likely to cause your two perfumes to wear well together. Some potential pairings include Billie Eilish's Eilish Eau de Parfum ($52) and Ariana Grande's Cloud Eau de Parfum ($45), which share musk and vanilla notes; Initio's Side Effect ($306, originally $360) and Oud For Greatness ($349, originally $410), which have a saffron note in common; and Kayali's Vanilla 28 ($27) and Musk 12 ($27), both of which have notes of vanilla and woods. This is a great shortcut that can help to point you in the right direction if you want to keep your journey into understanding layering short and to the point.

Billie Eilish's Eilish Eau de Parfum

From

$52

$52 at Ulta

Ariana Grande's Cloud Eau de Parfum

From

$45

$45 at Ulta

Side Effect

From

$306

$360 Now 15% off

$306 at Saks

Oud For Greatness

From

$349

$410 Now 15% off

$349 at Saks

Vanilla 28

From

$27

$27 at Sephora

Musk 12

From

$27

$27 at Sephora

As you start to further understand fragrance, you may notice that the multiple olfactory notes within one elixir can take you on a journey, especially when you have contrasting top and bottom notes. Miller says you should embrace this process. "In some fragrances, a base note may be more woody in contrast to its fresh or fruity top note," he says. "The sillage and discovery throughout the day is often the best part." So you may want to layer your perfume based on the top notes that are more prominent at the beginning of the day or vice versa when the base notes stand out during the end of its wear time.

To make sure that your new concoction lasts, layering different product formulas is also key. "A neutral cream or balm can be applied to the skin before the fragrance to not only give you some moisture but to give the scent something to stick to," Miller says. Many perfumes come with body lotions or oils in their hero scents, which are perfect for layering with your favorite fragrances.

However, some perfumes act solely as amplifiers, created to take the perfumes that are paired with them up a notch. "At Initio, we've found the amplification of Magnetic Blend 7, a fragrance that has a singular musk note, a major contributor to not only amplifying scent but also extending the sillage of the fragrance sprayed atop it," Miller says. Perfumes like D.S. & Durga's I Don't Know What ($75), DedCool's Milk ($90), and Byredo's Animalique ($205) offer similar qualities for endless ways to play with your scents.

DedCool's Milk

From

$90

$90 at Sephora

Byredo's Animalique

From

$205

$205 at Nordstrom

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to layering your perfumes, which is why it's one of the more fun and lighthearted ways to become familiar with the world of fragrance. However you decide to approach and perfect your technique, remember that this is an experience that centers you, so take the time to discover what you like and how you want to be perceived by others when you step into a room. Fragrance is, after all, a universal language.