How to choose a scent that makes sense

Wearing a fragrance that leaves an odorous trail can be as offensive to your co-workers or clients as any fashion faux pas.

But with the uptick in fragrance launches, it's tough for novice noses to know whether they're sporting a scent that complements their body chemistry like a fine wine to a good meal, or one that will just leave a bad taste in people's mouths.

''Nobody wakes up and says, 'Oh, I'm going to offend somebody today' " with their perfume, said Julian Coleman-Harding, a manager at fragrance boutique Nantucket Natural Oils in Boston.

The trouble is, smelling pleasant while keeping co-workers from turning up their noses is difficult because there are so many scents from which to choose.

Last year, 227 new fragrances were introduced in the United States, compared with 183 in 2003, according to Little Falls, N.J., research firm Kline & Co. Making the choice even tougher, cosmetics firms are using glitzy, celebrity-driven ads that have nothing to do with what their colognes and perfumes smell like.

Curious, an Elizabeth Arden-designed perfume endorsed by Britney Spears, sold more than any other new fragrance in 2004, according to Kline. Several other launches had the advantage of celebrity spokesmodels like Beyonce Knowles, Sean ''P. Diddy" Combs, and Donald Trump. Anna Wang, a Kline research associate, said celebrities drive sales of fragrances people might not otherwise try. ''If they really like Britney Spears, it might make them choose a fragrance that they normally wouldn't," she said.

With all the clutter at the fragrance counter, Coleman-Harding said the best way to pick a fragrance is still to let your nose be your guide.

Start by spraying it on your wrist, he said, rather than on a piece of paper or in the air.

''A fragrance isn't going to smell the same on a card because it doesn't have skin chemistry," he said. And ''skin chemistry," vernacular for how each person's body temperature causes different scents or ''notes" in a fragrance to change as it's worn, is a critical factor.

Fragrances react differently on every person, which is why some notes are stronger on one person than on others, why colognes that last only an hour on one man might linger all day on his best friend, and why almost everything smells different on men than on women.

After trying a fragrance on your skin at the counter, Coleman-Harding recommends waiting a day before buying. Colognes and perfumes all have multiple notes, with some coming on stronger when first applied and others revealing themselves after an initial ''cool down" period. Choose something that you'll love at the end of the day as much as you do after your morning shower.

Once you've selected one that's right for you, be careful about how and where you apply it. Some points on the body -- the nape of the neck, for example -- generate more heat and project scents more than others. Put too much in the wrong spot and you're bound to trigger one of Coleman-Harding's ''three bad words with fragrances: headaches, sneezing, and allergies."

''The two main complaints about fragrance is that they don't stay on long enough, or they're so strong they're offensive to people," he said.

Keith Reed can be reached at reed@globe.com.