As far as the scent world is concerned, perfumer Francis Kurkdjian is like royalty. He deserves a gleaming, golden crown and a velvet lined throne. And some corgis too. For he is the legendary nose behind some of the most celebrated and prestigious fragrances that we know of today. Like Narciso Rodriguez For Her and Acqua di Parma Iris Nobile. No, seriously, this man is something special.

As such an expert in his field, who better to talk to on all things smell. Fragrances, how to smell them, what to do, you name it. It’s something we’re faced with every day and where perfumes are concerned, it’s often tricky. Here’s how to smell like a pro…

All the other senses have to be turned down so you brain focuses only on the sense of smell. A dark and quiet environment is required to allow your brain to focus on the olfactive stimulus. My office for example is always in the dark, with no music. Silence more than dark is key to concentrate and focus.

Close your eyes. It helps the brain to disconnect from the visual stimulus.

Let the smell go through your nose to hit your brain. The nose works like a muscle; it needs a brain to give the order, to decrypt the information. So you have to allow your brain enough time to process the information.

"People generally sum up the art of creating perfume by the fact you have a good nose. But a good nose with no inspiration or creative ideas is useless for a perfumer."

Don’t take a deep breath in. You need short and fast breaths so you do not saturate your nose with scent. It allows your brain time to read the information and process it. Repeat the short inhalations several times until you feel you have all the information you can get or need. In between, you should breathe normally to ‘clean’ your nose.

Don’t smell more than three fragrances at once. The reason why regular people are not able to smell more than three fragrances is because the brain gets tired. It isn’t about the nose at all; it is an intellectual fatigue.

Don’t smell a scent when you are stressed. You need to be relaxed, in a confident environment.

Smell a scent on your skin rather than a blotter. The blotter gives you an idea of the fragrance but in the same way that a piece of clothing on a hanger comes to life once you have it on, a fragrance needs the skin to breath.

Never put the fragrance on the back of the hand nor the palm. The back is rather dry, and the palm always sweats a little. Avoid also the wrist if you wear jewellery or a watch. The strap of the watch smells (and it’s even more terrible if it’s leather or steel). Chose to spray the fragrance above that zone, such as on the back of your arm. The skin is softer and thinner there.

If you compare two fragrances, put one on each arm. Spray them at the same level and place per arm so you can compare them evenly. If you have more than two fragrances to try, put them on the other side of your arm where the skin is thicker and the temperature more even.

"It’s better to smell in the morning. Your brain is more relaxed and the cells of your nose have been renewed during the night."

It’s better to smell in the morning. Your brain is more relaxed and the cells of your nose have been renewed during the night. This is part of the magic of the nose. Every day, your olfactive cells in your nose are renewed and this is the only sense that works like that.

Avoid coffee, excessive eating and smoking and any strong smelling, long-lasting foods. Drugs and alcohol should of course be prohibited. Avoid eating spicy foods with cumin, garlic or onions and any kind of food that goes through your skin and your pores.

Avoid all types of fragrance before smelling something new. This includes fragranced body care products too. Some soap leaves a strong scent on the skin. Shampoos can leave hair smelling like a fruit salad and hair-styling products are the worst! Not to mention cheap laundry products and softeners. Those leave a heavy load of synthetic musks and fruity accords on your clothing.