Splurge or Steal Perfumes

In 1921, Coco Chanel asked perfumer Ernest Beaux to create something that "smells like woman." The resulting elixir would become the world's most iconic fragrance, beloved by legions of women including Marilyn Monroe, who famously stated she wore nothing else to bed. A blend of luxurious florals and warm base notes, including ylang-ylang, rose, iris, neroli and vanilla, No. 5 is an elegant, womanly scent that transitions well from day to nighttime wear.

Sometimes a woman wants to smell like a woman, but spend like a woman-on-a-budget. This accessible Liz Claiborne scent features many of the same fragrance notes as No. 5, including ylang-ylang, rose and vanilla, for a refined-yet-slightly-naughty effect. The result is a fair approximation of Coco’s masterpiece, at a far less intimidating price.

Shalimar was inspired by the Indian Gardens of Shalimar, where emperor Shah Jahan met the woman who inspired him to build the Taj Mahal. This perfume is suitably exotic, blending fragrant florals with sensual notes of patchouli and amber to create a powerful love potion. Shalimar’s recognizable scent has captivated women and their admirers for almost a century now.

This perfume was inspired by the gardens of the singer's home state of Louisiana, rather than India, but its appeal is similarly warm and voluptuous. Vanilla-infused musk gives the scent its sexy glamour, with magnolia, pear and lotus flower adding sweetness. An instant best-seller, and a nice modern take on a classic.

Jean Patou created this intensely floral fragrance to cheer up his wealthy American customers during the Great Depression. One of the world's costliest perfumes, a single ounce of Joy contains 10,600 jasmine flowers and 336 may roses. Notes of green and musk subdue the flower profusion, giving this scent a luxurious, grown-up feel.

This drugstore brand blends gardenia and green notes over a base of musk, for a fragrance that straddles the line between freshness and maturity. A decent substitute and great value for the money.

Opium has enslaved many a woman with its hypnotic charms. Its alluring cocktail of spicy, sweet, woody and floral notes includes cinnamon, patchouli, cedar, jasmine and myrrh. Exotic and seductive, it is ideally suited for nighttime and romance.

This scent uses many ingredients found in Opium, to achieve a similar effect.  Jasmine, vanilla, cedar and sandalwood deliver warmth and mystery, with a musky base adding sex appeal. A good, affordable analogue to its more-addictive cousin.

Women have been falling for J'Adore since it launched in the early 1990s. A classic fruity floral, it melds the lush scents of orchid and violet with the sweetness of orange, vanilla and cassis. The effect is young and flirtatiously feminine, with just a hint of adult mystery.

This fruity-floral scent from Benetton mimics J’Adore’s ingredient list, but gives it a global spin befitting the clothing retailer's brand. Egyptian rose and French hyacinth mix with Israeli basil, pineapple, jasmine, tonka bean and vanilla, to create a fresh, sweet and feminine fragrance. A steal at the price.

Everything about this top-selling fragrance says modern, from its alluring scent to its bold black-and-gold bottle accessorized by a horse-bit charm. Blending juicy guava and pear with florals and sexy patchouli, this perfume is young, fresh and dangerously flirtatious.

Say what you like about Britney’s life choices, the woman has a way with fragrance. The princess of pop gets a second mention in our Steal category for this gorgeously girly scent. Blending yummy guava and tangerine with sweet honeysuckle, amber and pralines, this perfume is a master class in flirting, at beginner's prices.