Scentsational Gift Idea

Boyfriends/Husbands/ Partners/Daughters/Sisters/Brothers/Sons, take a mental note.

Sephora has had an aHA! moment(courtesy of Ben at We Love Beauty) and come up with an idea that has me going "Why didn't I think of that?" It's a scent sampler. Samples of their 10 best selling perfumes with a free atomizer and a voucher for the "chosen one" once she decides which is her favorite. For 50 bones. Brilliant.Are you puzzled as to why this is such a profound accomplishment in the realm of good ideas? Let's get personal. (all photos are linked)

Generally speaking, I, like many of you, like to smell good. As I am in my own company more than with anyone in particular, it's frequently for my own benefit although I do so love when you notice. I've never been able to wear a perfume that a) "Everyone" is wearing and downright refuse to even consider it when b) it is the signature scent of a good friend or colleague.
For the last eight years I've been wearing Flower by Kenzo almost daily, which I do still love and remain the only one I know of wearing it. I've worked in Kate Spade for ladies lunches and Nanadebary Pink, which I bought solely for the fabulous bottle but have since taken to wearing seasonally. I am now gunning for something fresh for the new year.
But who has the time? And how do you determine which one smells like "you" when you're in migraine mode from the zillion spritzes happening on all sides at the department store or apothecary? And THIS is how those of you looking for a creative, personal gift can add your own twist. Instead of going for the top 10, do your homework and find 10 unique scents you like for ________. Look at the descriptions online (Lucky does a nice round-up), a good guess would be to find something with one similar basenote to what they currently wear so there is something familiar in the mix but done differently(i.e. gardenia, jasmine, sandalwood, citrus).
Make a voucher for their favorite once chosen or have a Sephora/Nordstrom/Barneys gift certificate on hand. This not only allows for a gift that is very "From ME to YOU" but it keeps on giving as they try a new one every day and really get to make the choice on their own time, in the context of their own life/pheramones. It is also something that can smell so very rich and still be reasonable for the $$$ and can be worn daily.
This is now a consideration for my Dad, who is also the world's hardest person to shop for. He wears scents I love- Polo Blue, Sandalwood by the Art of Shaving (my favorite: I picked it for Brother one year and it caught on family-style) etc. But Dad is always looking for a change (insert cliche about apples falling from trees and whatnot) and this year he will have all kinds.I think I'm going to run around and grab some favorite ideas, then let him choose while we're in Mexico over Christmas. This just keeps getting better (welcome to my realtime stream of consciousness everyone): I'm going to go to a thrift store and find a cute, cheap tie. I'm going to lay my choice amulets out on top of the tie and sew them into little loops one at a time. Fold the tie as one normally would in a tie box and VOILA! Presentation. And this is how Christmas shopping starts to get very very fun...