Top notes are what you smell first — citrus, herbs, light spices — and they fade in 5–15 minutes. Heart (middle) notes are the personality of the perfume — florals, fruits, softer spices — and they last 30 minutes to 2 hours. Base notes are the lasting trace — woods, resins, musk, vanilla, oakmoss — and they hold for 4–12 hours. The three layers blend and evolve on skin rather than playing in sequence.

It's the percentage of perfume oil dissolved in alcohol. EDC (Eau de Cologne) is 2–5% and lasts 1–2 hours. EDT (Eau de Toilette) is 5–15% and lasts 3–5 hours. EDP (Eau de Parfum) is 15–20% and lasts 6–8 hours. Parfum or Extrait is 20–30% and lasts 8–12+ hours. Note that many "EDPs" on the market sit at 12–15%; Stuga's EDP is blended at 20–25%, which is why a single morning spray reads through to evening.

Skin chemistry. Your skin's pH, oil production, body temperature, hydration, and even diet change how a perfume develops. Warmer or oilier skin amplifies base notes; drier skin makes top notes feel sharper and shortens longevity. This is why testing on a friend's wrist tells you almost nothing about how a perfume will smell on you.

Answer five questions: noticed or comforted, sweet or dry, warm or cool, day or night, familiar or unusual. Each answer points you toward two or three of the nine families (woody, floral, oriental, chypre, fougère, citrus, gourmand, fresh/aquatic, green). Then test inside that family — a 10ml Traveller is the cheapest way to do that without committing to a full bottle.

A chypre (pronounced "sheep-ruh") is a perfume structure rather than a list of ingredients: bergamot at the top, a floral heart (usually rose or jasmine), and a base of oakmoss and labdanum. The family was named after Coty's Chypre in 1917 and codified by Guerlain's Mitsouko in 1919, which remains the textbook reference. Chypres feel dry, sophisticated, and grown-up — there's no sweetness softening the edges.

A fougère (French for "fern", though no fern is used) is the backbone of classic men's perfumery. The accord is lavender, coumarin (hay-like sweetness from tonka bean), oakmoss, and geranium. Drakkar Noir, Cool Water, and Azzaro Pour Homme are all fougères. The result smells clean, herbal, slightly powdery — what most people picture as a traditional barbershop scent.

Heat amplifies projection, so heavy ouds and dense orientals can read loud in summer. Citrus, fresh/aquatic, and lighter florals carry better in 30+ degree weather — Stuga's Solstice, Azure, Sakura, and Whisper are built for this. Save the deeper bases (Obsidian, Ember, Bliss, Nomad) for cooler months when the warmth has somewhere to settle. Apply to pulse points after dressing rather than before — heat from skin opens the perfume up faster than you might expect.