It happens to most of us at least once a year: we struggle through the sore throat and lethargy of a cold; allergies tickle our throats and clog our sinuses; or we’re completely laid up with a virus. These past few days for me, it’s been the flu. I feel achy and sluggish, but I still want the comfort of a little bit of fragrance. What perfume is best when you’re feeling under the weather?

Obviously, if you’re nauseated no scent is safe. When I’m feeling queasy, my nose goes into overdrive, and even the faint whiff of someone on the street can make my gorge rise. Simply hearing the words “amber” or “powder” turns my stomach…

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On my refrigerator is a placemat from an outdoor dinner I attended this past Midsummer’s Eve. It says, “A year soon runs its length and never returns the same, and the end seldom seems to belong to the beginning.”¹ That’s how I feel about 2013. I can’t say anything earth shattering has happened this year, but life feels subtly different — including how I feel about perfume.

Here are a few things I’ve learned over the past year:

Give certain fragrances a second chance. As I wrote in yesterday’s Best of 2013 post, this includes perfumes you know you like. A good perfume can be like an absorbing painting…

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