this week's tip | find your signature fragrance

One thing I vividly remember about my great-grandmother is Chanel No.5.  Even though she passed away when I was 10 - every time I catch a hint of that perfume, she's right beside me once more.  To me, scent and sound are the most memory evoking senses.  You know like when you hear a song you haven't heard in ages then you're suddenly right back in your high school boyfriend's car and feeling those exact same butterflies that have long since passed (partly due to hindsight).

But my great-grandmother was a very classy lady.  Other memories I have of her include tulips, crystal ware, fine china, rubies and fur.  None have that same emotive response of her signature fragrance though and I often think of how nice it would be to have someone remember me that way.  To have my scent entwined with their impression of me for the remainder of their life.  According to Harper's Bazaar, it's one of the top 10 things every woman (but I think men too) should have before turning 30.

I'm sure if you asked my high school boyfriend what his fragrance association with me is, he would say Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle.  He bought that perfume for me twice in the three years we spent together and I wore it most days (the great thing about Chanel is how long lasting it is - one spray is all you need).  But sadly, my own association of him is now mingled with that heavenly scent so it's my fragrance no longer.

Maybe if you asked some of my girlfriends they would say Estee Lauder's Pleasures, Gucci's Flora, Ralph Lauren's Ralph or YSL's Babydoll.  But I have spent most of my 20's with Will.  He knows me better than anyone, so if you were to ask him (which I did earlier today) he says that while I often flirt with different fragrances, my true love in this arena and signature fragrance is actually: Sarah Jessica Parker's Lovely.  Sort of anti-climatic I know.  Maybe even a let-down... and although I realize it's of an inferior quality to an oil-based perfume, I adore this fragrance like no other!  It's sexy for night-time, fun for the day and sort of comforting when I'm sad...

So Will's probably right and, unlike my great-grandmother's timeless elegance and class that lingers long after she's gone, what will linger after me is a musky, vanilla-ry, uplifting, one of a kind, pretty but inexpensive perfume.  Fitting.