Today we’re helping Melissa, who is looking for her holy grail comfort scent. Melissa has good access to department and discount stores, and can make it to Luckyscent’s Scent Bar if need be. She can spend about $100, but is also happy to buy decants so price should not be a deterrent. So far, she has mostly tried mainstream perfumes, and she’d like to branch out into more sophisticated niche perfumes. Here is what we know about Melissa:

She’s in her early 30s, and studying Human Development in college.

She says she’s a bit of a nut and has an odd sense of humor.

Melissa loves dessert-type scents…

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Joane has been wearing Prescriptives Calyx for 20 years, and she still loves it but she’d like to find something new. Ideally, she’d like to find two new scents: one casual day fragrance, and another for evening. She will shop online if necessary, but prefers brick ‘n mortar stores, and she does not have a price limit.

Here is what we know about Joane:

She’s in her mid-40s and lives in Toronto.

She works in an office, and at night likes to go out to restaurants with friends, and to go see bands every so often (she was in a band herself when she was younger).

She has blond hair and brown eyes.

Joane doesn’t really know what notes she likes or dislikes…

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Before we start with today’s subject, Malte, I wanted to note that we’ve just about cleared through the waiting list for the Monday Mail: if you ever thought you might like to be a subject, this would be a good time to apply. You can find the instructions here.

So, Malte lives in Germany, and he’s looking for a new evening-wear fragrance. He’s willing to pay about $100, and although he doesn’t want to shop online, he lives in a town with good perfume shopping, including many niche options. Here is what we know about Malte:

He’s in his early 20s and is studying English literature.

He is interested in fashion, traveling and (new wave, indie rock, electronic) music.

His style could be described as modern, European, sophisticated — slim silhouettes, mostly black, white and grey.

Malte likes dry and woody fragrances with amber and/or patchouli…

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About 20 years ago, Susan started getting blinding headaches from perfume, and so until recently she’d mostly given up wearing scent other than a few essential oils purchased at a local store. Her headaches have abated, and she’d like to find a new signature scent (or two) for daytime. She says she can tell right away if a new fragrance will give her a headache, and it doesn’t seem to be related to how light or heavy the perfume is.

Susan doesn’t have wonderful access to retail perfume stores, but she’s happy to shop online and doesn’t mind buying samples. Cost is not a huge factor, but she says she probably wouldn’t spend more than $200. She’s not after anything trendy, and probably wouldn’t buy a celebrity perfume. Here is what we know about Susan…

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Today we’re helping Nike, who lives in southern Sweden and wants to find a summer perfume that will work in cool Swedish summers and in hotter climates — she’s planning a trip to Israel and Egypt this summer. Her fragrance should be feminine and summery, work for day or night (although she’s willing to consider layering at night for more depth), have good longevity and some sillage, and cost less than $135. Here is what we know about Nike:

She’s in her mid-20s and works in human resources. She also works as a consultant on topics relating to religion and the Middle East.

She says she is perceived as a bookish academic, but she also has a creative and witty side…

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