7 Best Perfumes for Grandmothers [for Nostalgia!]

Grandmothers are among the most selfless relatives we’re blessed to have. Often, parents complain that their parents didn’t show them the love they show their grandkids. Showing your gratitude by buying your grandmother a perfume is a great idea if you get the right fragrance.

The best perfume for grandmothers is Miss Dior, as it is reminiscent of Chanel No. 5, which remained prominent throughout the youthful years of most grandmothers. Miss Dior is priced reasonably and exudes elegance and femininity with citrus top notes, a floral heart, and a wooden base.

In this article, you will discover seven different perfumes that are best for grandmothers in different contexts, including the best budget perfume, the best overall, and the best bold fragrance

What Perfume Notes to Consider for Your Grandmother?

Perfume for old ladies is not supposed to smell like old ladies. That misconception is why the quest for granny’s perfect perfume becomes unnecessarily tough. Once you know what notes to consider and the kind of intensity to opt for, picking the right perfume becomes so easy that you have too many options to pick from.

The options to consider must lean towards a floral heart with a slightly citric opening alongside wood bottom notes. More specifically, you must look for Mandarin, Plum, and Bergamot top notes, Jasmine, Rose, and Lily of the Valley heart, and Cedar, Amber, or Sandalwood bottom notes.

You might be tempted to treat the above as a checklist but trying to get a perfume that features all the above notes is not the point. The aforementioned notes must act as a guide towards what most older ladies are likely to be interested in. 

To get the best perfume for your grandmother, your approach should be more personalized and consider her personal taste, which brings us to the next section.

Tips for Buying Perfume for Your Grandmother

Knowing the notes that work for older ladies is a start. To get the perfect perfume for a specific older lady, you must know her taste. In this section, you will learn three tips to zero in on the kind of perfume that your grandmother will fall in love with.

1. Get Her Favorite Current Perfume Professionally Sampled

Not everyone has the educated nose to tell apart amber bottom notes from burnt musk middle notes. Perfumers are experts in sniffing out the top and the middle, with some having the patience and the expertise to deconstruct a specific fragrance all the way to its tail end. 

Getting a sample of your grandma’s current favorite perfume to such a professional is obviously better than trying to sniff it off the back of your hand and guessing which perfume might be similar.

When getting her perfume sample to the perfumer, you might face a few challenges. The first would be getting the perfume discreetly. If the fragrance is her favorite, she will notice the bottle missing. This makes it impossible to take the bottle to a perfume shop without giving away the surprise. 

You cannot buy a bottle of the same perfume just to get it sampled by the perfumer; that eats away a portion of your gifting budget. That’s why you should spray the perfume on a hard paper strip and keep it in an empty metal business card holder like BBTO Credit Card Holder.

2. Switch Notes Without Stepping Out of Categories

You’ll be surprised how well your grandma’s current perfume matches the description of ideal notes covered earlier. Remember, citrus top, floral heart, and wooden bottom notes. 

Whether the perfume fits these categories or not, simply request the perfumer to stay within the category of notes as your grandma’s current perfume but switch the notes. In other words, the floral notes must stay floral, but the kind of flower can change.

3. Remember the FEM Rule

Not everyone can get a perfumer’s opinion or a customized perfume. In that case, you can try to match the top notes with your grandma’s current perfume going by your own estimation. But in doing so, do not break the FEM rule of fragrances for older ladies. The perfume must be

• F – Feminine – Most unisex perfumes and bolder ones have no nostalgic points of reference for older women. 
• E – Elegant – Classy is classic. Getting perfumes that were crafted when your grandma was young is the easiest way to make her feel young.
• M – Mellow – While making your grandma feel young is a great thing. You have to also respect her age and sensitivity and pick a mellower bouquet.

Top Perfume Recommendations for Grandmothers

Here’s a summary of our perfume recommendations. The recommendations are provided based on context so that you can choose the one that fits your needs the most.

That said, feel free to choose with the one outside your category too as these are all great options!

1. Best Overall Perfume – Miss Dior by Christian Dior
2. Best Modern Perfume – Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker
3. Best Perfume for Nostalgia – Carolina Herrera Eau de Parfum
4. Best Feminine Perfume for Grandmothers – La Via Est Belle by Lancome
5. Best Bold Perfume for Grandmothers – Pure Poison by Christian Dior
6. Most Timeless Perfume for Grandmothers – Chanel No. 5
7. Best Budget Perfume Option – 5th Avenue by Elizabeth Arden

Let’s look at each of them in detail below.

1. Best Overall Perfume for Grandmothers: Miss Dior by Christian Dior

Let’s start by looking at how well the perfume fits our ideal note composition. There’s Bergamot in the top notes alongside Gardenia and galbanum. Jasmine is featured prominently at heart alongside lily of the valley and rose, among other floral notes. Finally, the bottom notes include oakmoss, amber, and sandalwood.

Having been designed in 1947, the fragrance was marketed “for women,” and given the era, remains distinctly feminine and has aged elegantly. The floral heart and controlled citric top give it a mellow vibe, making it the best overall perfume for grandmothers.

2. Best Modern Perfume for Grandmothers: Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker

When it comes to making a 60 years old woman feel young, Lovely is a lovely option that features Mandarin Orange at the top, Orchid and patchouli at heart, and wooden notes like musk and cedar at the bottom. While the perfume matches note classifications mentioned in our ideal note composition, it doesn’t make for the perfect FEM fragrance.

The perfume is feminine, and there is some elegance to it, but it is far from mellow. Expect your grandmother to wear it on occasions only as this perfume isn’t something she will wear daily no matter how much she loves the smell.

3. Best Nostalgic Perfume for Grandmothers: Carolina Herrera Eau de Parfum

There was a period in the 80s when floral perfumes were all the rage. And if you get the right perfume that is floral at heart and also features similar notes at the top, you’re likely to transport your grandmother to her youth. 

Carolina Herrera EDP was introduced in 1988, making it a FEM candidate. Apricot and orange bloom notes bring a citric edge to the top, whereas white blossoms at the perfume’s heart revive the nostalgic era of floral perfumes. Amber and musk in the bottom notes make for an elegant, mellow conclusion.

4. Best Feminine Perfume for Grandmothers: La Vie Est Belle

In our discussion of FEM, we covered the importance of femininity, elegance, and mellowness for older women. La Vie Est Belle is as girly as a perfume for an adult can get. 

It opens with hints of blackcurrant and pear, which turn seamlessly to an ensemble of middle notes featuring florals like jasmine and orange flowers. Finally, the bouquet closes on non-wooden notes that include vanilla and patchouli. 

It is evident that the perfume features an unusual emphasis on floral scents, which makes it simultaneously youthful and feminine. That said, there’s a chance your grandmother might not like it, given the lack of wooden and citric notes. Please make sure she is fond of floral fragrances before opting for this one.

5. Best Bold Perfume for Grandmothers: Pure Poison by Christian Dior

When getting a bolder scent for a grandmother who likes to stand apart, you must be careful not to abandon floral notes for wooden top or middle ones. 

There are many perfumes on the market supposedly packaged for women but feature prominently masculine notes; Such perfumes suit business women and those who like to make a gender-bending statement, not grandmothers who identify strongly with floral fragrances.

A bolder scent for a grandmother must have two traits: Fewer notes and a clear contrast between a bolder floral note and a subtle botanical one. With crisp white florals from the top through the green middle, Pure Poison is a great candidate. It is backed by warm amber and sandalwood and is likely to match your grandmother’s preferences.

6. Best Timeless Perfume for Grandmothers: Chanel No. 5

When it comes to perfumery, Chanel No. 5 is the equivalent of the Mona Lisa. While you may not consider Coco Chanel to be the same tier of artiste as Leonardo DaVinci, it is undeniable that her No. 5 perfume has the same recognition among laymen as the Mona Lisa. Chanel No. 5 is a truly timeless classic, and for a good reason.

It has persisted since the 1920s and opens with Bergamot, peach, and neroli. The heart of CoCo’s most famous perfume features lily of the valley rose and jasmine. In fact, this perfume paved the way for most elegant, feminine perfumes by creating the connotation between “elegance” and the combination of citric top notes with a floral heart.

7. Best Budget Perfume for Grandmothers: 5th Avenue by Elizabeth Arden

Getting a perfume that costs less doesn’t mean you have to buy a cheap perfume. The difference between cheap perfumes and budget-friendly perfumes is that the cheap one is made of the cheaper source material. 5th Avenue is quite evidently well-crafted perfume featuring decent quality oils and essence.

It comes in sophisticated packaging that conveys luxury and features lilac and magnolia with strong orange notes at the top. The heart of this perfume includes nutmeg, violet, and Bulgarian rose, with a base of sandalwood and musk. The perfume is feminine, elegant, and mellow enough to match older women’s taste while having a nostalgic heart that will make most people who grew up in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, smile.