With how intricate bottle designs over the past decade, it’s easy to see why people tend to opt to use their perfumes not only as a utilitarian object to keep themselves smelling great but also as centerpieces for their homes. You’ve no doubt seen this on social media before, where you’ll see people placing it in their bathrooms, their bedrooms, their living rooms, and everywhere in between. But what if I told you that placing it beside your scented candle, no matter how great it looks for the gram, is not exactly the best idea in the world? For one thing, doing this will not only ruin your perfume, but it may also warp its scent into something other than what it originally came with. But don’t worry, here are a few things you can do to keep it smelling as fresh as the day you bought it.
First thing’s first. It’s never a good idea to keep perfumes in direct sunlight. We all get it, it looks great, especially when that golden elixir is hit by the sun’s rays and spreads it about in a gorgeous kaleidoscope-esque way that just makes it that much more Instagrammable. But it’s not the best thing for your perfume since sunlight tends to break down the compounds in your precious bottle of goodness and ultimately turns it into something other than what you bought it for.
The next thing is to keep it in a dry, cool place. No, not the fridge, though there has been some debate as to why you should keep it in your fridge, the general rule of thumb is that you’d be better off leaving it in your closet rather than your fridge since there’s a likelihood that condensation will form when you take the bottle out, therefore, ruining it all the same.
Keep it closed. Oxygen, though it’s important for our survival, is doing more harm to your perfume if you leave it exposed to the air. This is because O2 tends to react with compounds and oxidize it. It’s more or less the same thing that happens when you leave a cut apple in the open for a bit. This is why it’s a good idea to keep the bottle close until you need to apply it, otherwise, keep it closed tight.
Keep it where you can reach it. This is more of a good idea in general rather than a tip for keeping your fragrances smelling fresh, but people tend to place their perfumes in a shelf that is higher than it needs to be, which leads to accidental knocking of the perfume which then breaks on the floor, leaving glass shards and all of your precious elixir on your hardwood floor. Keep it where you can reach it properly and you’ll be good to go.
Don’t place it in the bathroom. We get it, perfumes make a great decoration piece that looks great in the bathroom, but your bathroom is one of the places with the highest moisture in the house, and moisture, is the enemy of perfumes. The same reason for not storing your perfumes in the fridge applies to this as well.