Squeeworthy scents.

Vera Wang's "Princess" is an example of the one instance in my LIFE where a free sampler of a perfume actually persuaded me to brave it and buy a whole bottle.

Apparently scents are not a one-smell-fits-all kind of deal. Each person causes the fragrance to react differently with the oils in his/her skin and a host of geeky other factors. I only know this from an episode of Nip/Tuck when Dr. Troy was dating the blind Noxema girl, and she explained the semantics behind top, middle, and bottom "notes."

Top notes are what you smell when you first put it on.
Middle notes are what you smell after top notes evaporate.
Bottom notes are what you smell after several hours.

So, just because your friend smells really good in a perfume may not mean it's right for you. (Also, stay away from Dr. Troy, cause he will get weird and dump you.)

Playing around in stores like Sephora are fun for finding new scents. Although, you may want to cruise by Starbucks beforehand so that you can pick up some coffee beans to "cleanse your nose" in between scents. It's like intermezzo at fancy dinners, except you're not scratching your head wondering why they're serving you dessert before you've even had dinner.

"Princess" has its own website, and its own MySpace. (Yeah. I, uh...friended it.) Nonetheless, I did learn that the excessive product packaging was actually intended to be bonus jewelry for the "princess" wearing it. So, if you get unexpectedly jabbed in the hand with a crown-shaped ring, you know who to blame - Vera Wang.

But, hey. You'll smell good.


Snag a bottle of Vera Wang's "Princess" here.