While smelling is an activity done with your nose, it's your brain that plays a crucial role in the process. You probably recognize it: a smell you no longer notice, when in fact it is still plentiful. Why is this? It's actually quite simple! Your nose only transmits new smells to your brain. If you are in a room with a certain smell for a long time, your nose gets used to it and you no longer consciously perceive that smell. It simply becomes part of your constant environment. The result? You become 'scent blind'! But don't worry, there is an effective way to prevent this. Find out how to tackle it here!
Scent experience in layers
In order to fully enjoy scent experience, it is important to understand how a scent is constructed. This is because fragrance consists of different layers: top notes, heart notes and base notes. This composition stimulates our senses and evokes emotions. When smelling a fragrance, the top notes emerge first. These are the light scents that fade quickly, usually within half an hour. Then the heart notes appear, when the intensity of the top notes decreases. And finally, we have the base notes, which linger even after the top and heart notes have faded. These base notes provide a long-lasting fragrance experience.
Smells and scent blindness: how are they related?
But why do these base notes also seem to fade over time? We call this phenomenon scent blindness. As discussed earlier, our brain becomes accustomed to scents that we smell often. In fact, our brain constantly evaluates scents for safety. If a smell is labeled as safe, our brain pays less attention to it and we become accustomed to it.
Preventing scent blindness: the power of variety
You can cleverly get around this by varying. Just like you don't eat the same meal every day because it gets boring, you can't have the same smell around you day in and day out without getting used to it. Fortunately, there is plenty of variation possible within your desired scent goal! By changing scents from time to time, you give your nose and brain a chance to recover. This does not mean giving up your favorite scent, but rather alternating it with other scents.
Optimal scent experience
This way you will experience a fragrance every time as if it were the first time. This will keep your scent experience fresh, vibrant and engaging without going 'scent blind'. Explore our wide range of fragrances and get the most out of your scent experience.