The human nose can only smell so much when exposed to different fragrances while shopping for perfume. And no, taking a whiff of the coffee doesn’t help, it seems.
Perfume shopping is indeed a thrilling and refreshing experience. But it isn’t always easy to make a choice when you have one too many options to pick from. However, a simple exercise is said to reset your noise quickly.
How to ‘reset your nose’ while perfume shopping
The nose may lose its ability to detect different smells under multiple stimuli and requires to be “reset”. Fragrance expert Kevin reveals an easy way to do it in one of his TikTok videos.
One of the ways to do the above is by smelling the bare part of your skin when exposed to different kinds of fragrances in a short while.
However, the “best” fix is to step out of the store away from the perfumes to clean your airway, and when you step back in, your nose is prepared to distinguish the smells again.
Kevin says spending thirty minutes to an hour in the perfume store in the presence of different fragrances causes you to go “nose blind”. You’ll end up losing the ability to smell and only upon resetting it with fresh air will you be able to tell different scents apart.
Why are there coffee beans in perfume stores?
Most perfume stores have a jar full of coffee beans on display and it isn’t a decor. It’s believed that smelling coffee beans when you’ve gone “nose blind” from overexposure to a variety of perfumes helps.
But Kevin says recent studies have invalidated the method as taking a whiff of coffee doesn’t prove effective in resetting your nose. Furthermore, you’re still exposed to an overwhelming number of fragrances inside the store while smelling the coffee.
The fragrance expert has shared additional tips for perfume enthusiasts, including the correct way to spray your favorite fragrance on yourself.
He doesn’t suggest spraying the perfume on the wrists and rubbing them together as it “destroys” the scent particles. He instead recommends spraying it on the top of the hands, so the smell spreads around more easily.
Kevin is a known face in the fragrance world thanks to his love for perfumes evident in his popular content across different social media platforms. His videos serve as a guide to fragrance lovers with reviews, shopping suggestions, and more.
He has a decade of experience in high-end fashion and luxury. His journey as a fragrance expert began after a trip to the Esxence Perfume Trade Show in 2022.
