How to chose a perfume for your wife or girlfriend, and recommendations from Dior, Chanel, Gucci, Tom Ford

Looking for a Valentine’s Day gift for the lady in your life - or a beloved friend you want to spoil? A thoughtfully selected bottle of perfume will make her smile
How to chose a perfume for your wife or girlfriendHow to chose a perfume for your wife or girlfriend
How to chose a perfume for your wife or girlfriend

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It might be a classic present option, but that’s because it always pleases the recipient. Whether you’re giving her a bottle of her go-to favourite fragrance or want to help her discover her new signature scent, she’s sure to be all smiles when she unwraps a bottle of perfume.

If you would like to choose her a new perfume then we’ve done the hard work for you and chosen eight of the best fragrances available to buy right now.

How do I choose a perfume?

To choose a perfume you first need to decide what kind of scent your other half would like.

Each perfume has a variety of different ‘notes’. These notes determine the overall scent and they consist of three different layers called base, top or head, and middle or heart notes, and they all work in together to create a specific smell.

The top notes are the ones you will smell when you first spray the perfume, followed by the heart notes and the base notes. It’s the base note scent that will last the longest on the skin, so each of the notes are important.

Broadly speaking, all perfumes can be divided in to four categories; floral notes, oriental notes, fresh notes and woody notes.

Once you have decided which kind of scent you want - and crucially which kind of scent your other half would prefer - you can go ahead and make your choice.

We’ve chosen perfumes from across the four categories, so there’s bound to be something below that will delight.

What else can I buy for Valentine’s Day?

If you’re looking for the perfect present, we’ve also rounded up some of the best Valentine’s gifts for her and also the best romantic gifts for him that are sure to go down a treat, no matter what stage of your relationship you’re at.

For another traditonal yet beautiful gift we’ve also found the best flower gifts that can be delivered to your door.

If you’re thinking about food, then Morrisons has revealed this year’s two dine in meal deal, and Marks and Spencer has also launched it’s 2022 Valentine’s dine in menu - so, no matter which you choose, you can offer your love a luxurious three-course dine in experience from the comfort of your own home.

This perfume is an beautifully rich floral woody fragrance with an unusual top note of coconut. Perfect for both night and day, it’s a good fragrance choice for women who like sweet smells and like to experiment with their fragrance.

This is a fresh and fruity fragrance. The top notes are cactus water, sweet agave and solar blooms, while the heart notes are creamy coconut, orange blossom water and plumeria, and the base notes are warm sandalwood, moss and drenched vetiver.

Black Orchid was the first fragrance to be released from the Tom Ford brand.

It was first available in 2006, and there’s a reason why it’s still available 16 years later - it’s gorgeous and timeless.

Tom Ford is known for his sensual yet sophisticated products for women. This scent is rich, deep and stands out from the crowd, just like the precious orchid it’s named after.

The scent begins with a blend of citrus, jasmine, truffle and black currant. The heart consists of the titular orchid complemented with fruity notes, spices, lotus and ylang-ylang. The lavish base consists of dark chocolate, vanilla, incense, patchouli combined with warm woody notes and vetiver.

This fragrance was first available in 1984, proving that the best scents will never go out of style.

The fact it has been loved so long by so many means it’s also a great choice if you’re not sure which perfume to choose for your beloved. This one is a safe but universal and luxury choice.

It is a luxuriant oriental symphony that gradually reveals its contrasting notes.

The fragrance opens with a citrus note of Sicilian mandarin, and reveals a voluptuous heart of jasmine absolute, heightened with touches of ylang-ylang from the comoros and Tunisian orange blossom.

All in all this makes for a gorgeous harmony that leaves behind a vibrant combination of Indonesian patchouli, Tonka note and benzoin.

Dior have been making perfumes that women fall in love with for decades, and your other half will quickly come to adore their latest release.

This fragrance is amazing, classy, elegant and timeless - and also comes in the most beautiful bottle so it’s a lovely gift to present.

It has fresh and floral notes that are composed like a bouquet of countless flowers with endless sparkling colours and a gorgeous mix of scents.

For an extra £10 you can engrave the bottle with a special message for your beloved.

This is a woody, leather scent which is exciting, rich and luxurious. It contains notes of vanilla, leather, patchouli, osmanthus and caviar.

It is an elegant, feminine and classy fragrance. As the deep red bottle suggests, there’s some sexiness and a glamorous feeling to it too so it will leave your other half feeling those things when she wears it.

The bottle is very striking too so it will look great upon her dresser.

This perfume is charming and feminine. It also comes in an unusual apple shaped bottle which is a hint of the beautiful perfume within.

It offers heart notes of sweet red toffee apple and vanilla, combining with base notes of white cedar and cotton musk - making for a delightlful scent that is sweetly floral.

Beginning with bright mandora and delicious lychee, this fragrance unfolds into a romantic heart of ylang-ylang and tuberose that’s given a mysterious seductive edge with plum extract.

The rich, earthy vetiver meets creamy vanilla in an intense base that ignites the senses.

After application, it initially seems to be a musky scent, but once it settles it seems lighter and fresher. This makes it the ideal choice for the lady who doesn’t want a floral fragrance, but neither does she want anything too heavy.

It’s also a good option if you’re not sure what type of perfume your beloved prefers as a delicate balance between a variety of scents.

Thierry Mugler has given us a new vision of luxury that is both bold and sustainable with the introduction of refillable bottles.

Alien is an iconic scent by Mugler with woody, floral notes that has been attracting compliments since it was first launched in 2005. It’s a powerful floral scent of jasmine linked to woody and amber notes.

As the bottle is refillable you can enjoy great savings on the price of your perfume in future too whilst being kind to the environment.

Once you have used all the perfume in this stunning bottle, all you have to do is take it to high street stores such as Boots or House of Fraser where they will be able to refill this bottle for you.

We confess, this is inter-galactically out of our price range. But the cheeky name and Tom Ford's utter excellence in manufacturing luxury perfume compelled us to include it. It's sexy rose, not nana-esque rose, bought alive with a lace of Sichuan pepper and tonka bean grace notes. 

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