TL;DR: No one really knows what "body chemistry" actually means. Maintain a healthy skin pH, keep that bod moisturized, ease up on those bottomless mimosas (you’re embarrassing the family) and your favorite scent should smell just as good on you as on anyone else. Promise.

There’s not a lot of scientific research to explain why exactly the same scent can smell so differently on different people. But there are a few credible explanations on which there’s a pretty good consensus. "Body chemistry" tends to be the go-to explanation you'll hear most, but that's pretty vague and could mean any number of things, like how much you sweat, or whether you're wearing other topical products that could be altering the effect of a fragrance (see Tip #4 in our Five tips for applying perfume). Over the years, body chemistry has become a popular catchall theory that seems like it makes sense, so people run with it.

But there are some factors that are way more credible. Here are three factors that really do affect how a fragrance reacts to your skin, according to experts, and how you can make adjustments for better results:
 

1. Skin type.

 If your skin tends to be dry, it’ll react differently to perfume than skin that’s well moisturized. Since many of us apply fragrance after we shower – when our skin is most likely to be stripped of its natural oils – it’s important to moisturize before applying fragrance. It's also goo to avoid products that tend to overdry the skin, which also means not getting overzealous with harsh cleansers and scrubs if you tend to be oily. Dry skin is thirsty, so it tends to absorb the fragrance more, and you’d probably rather have your fragrance sitting on your skin than in it. The better moisturized your skin is, the better it’ll react to your perfume, so use gentle cleaners and quality moisturizers that you know your skin absorbs well, then apply your fragrance as usual a few minutes later. If your skin tends to be oily, though, remember that it might react differently to certain scents, too: sugary notes like vanilla might be extra potent, but light citruses might work really well. As a general rule of thumb, remember that the more balanced your skin’s moisture, the less likely it is to skew the scent you’re adding onto it.

2. Skin pH.

pH can vary from person to person. This is where oft-referenced body chemistry actually does come into a play little a bit. For many of us, the surface of our skin is a slight bit on the acidic side of the pH scale, but that can easily get thrown out of whack if you have conditions that affect skin pH, such as eczema, kidney disease, or diabetes. Some lotions and soaps (including old-school classics like Ivory and Zest, which are highly alkaline) can also affect your skin’s pH when applied topically, skewing your skin's surface to be more alkaline. Your skin's pH can also get temporarily thrown off if it's exposed to air pollution, antibacterial products, hard water...pretty much anything that comes into contact with your skin that can throw off your normal pH range.

Fragrance will react to the pH of the skin it’s sitting on and will perform differently depending on how far off balance it is. But, unless some of the environmental things you're exposed to are constant, your pH skin is likely to normalize before long and it shouldn't have long-term effects. Chronic exposure to these things, though, can make pH imbalance, well, chronic. To avoid this issue, look for skin products that are pH balanced, and use products tailored to your specific needs if you have a skin condition that can skew your pH. And if you have hard water, look into the possibility of a water softener (also because hard water creates a lot more problems than just skin stuff, peeps).

3. Diet.

There aren’t too many foods and drinks that affect how our skin smells. But there are some notable exceptions. Hitting the sauce too hard (booze, not sriracha) or going wild on a tray of garlic bread might actually give your skin an alcoholic or garlicky twang afterwards. Why? When our bodies can't metabolize something, or metabolize it fast enough, our clever bodies find a Plan B and excrete it elsewhere. Garlic, for example, contains enzymes that our livers can't process, so it gets released into the bloodstream and eventually ends up in sweat. Alcohol, similarly, ends up finding evacuation routes when your liver is working overtime at happy hour. So unless you like to layer your perfume with a hungover or vampire-repelling edge, avoid overindulging on these before adding your scent to the mix.

Real talk...

The reality is, barring some of the factors noted above, a lot of why we think things smell different on us compared to other people is kind of subjective. Sometimes we get tired of a scent when we wear it, but it's suddenly new and interesting on someone else. Or maybe it's that the same scent really is being altered slightly by the other person's hygiene products, habits, detergents, etc. And sometimes, it's because we said something we regret, like the time I told a friend I couldn't stand a perfume, only to have her tell me she had just bought it, so I had to backpedal and insist that it smelled bad on me, but it surely will smell fantastic on her. (Don't tell me I'm the only one who's ever been in this situation. Yikes.)

Knowing how scent works and the best way to wear it helps you get the most enjoyment out of your fragrances. And all of our unisex fragrances are designed to smell great on everyone...just treat yourself to a Sampler if you want to see for yourself.

Let us know if you have any other burning scent questions or comments – we love to hear from you!