How do I tell a co-worker that her perfume is just TOO strong? We share a small office and it's killing me!

Tell her outright. You don't have to be mean. Just say, "Sarah, I should have mentioned this to you earlier but it has gotten to the point where I can't ignore it any more. I know you would never deliberately do anything to make me uncomfortable....You may have noticed that I never wear perfumes that is because I'm very sensitive to different perfumes and colognes, they make me ill, often triggering migraines. Please help me by either refraining from using them or by using them very sparingly.
Thank you, I knew you would understand."

Find a mutual friend and have them talk to her.

-OR-

Just be forthright and talk with her yourself. Just remember, unless you want to start a turf war, use as much tact as you possibly can.

Say, "Hey stinky" did you spill your perfume this morning?

You could politely say "Your perfume smells really familiar, what do you wear?" and when she answers, smile and say "I knew it was familiar, that is the same kind/brand my grandmother wears!" Most women do NOT like to be compared to grandmothers....

Live near any skunks? If so, leave some old clothes out in the garden one night to catch the scent. Wear them the next day...I'm sure she'd say something!

Tell her that her perfume smells lovely, but in your confined space, it's just alittle overwhelming. Tell her you don't mind that she wears it, just that she maybe tone it down abit.

I think you should get her aside and gently tell her that perfume is a very personal thing. What one person loves another will hate. Actually, wearing perfume on the job is not professional. It should be saved for dates and private times. Once I was sick with the flu and went to a Dr. His nurse was wearing strong perfume and it made me even sicker. Tell your co-worker she should leave the scent at home. My Dr's. office has a sign requesting people not to wear scent or even scented lotions.

Have everyone in the office come in drenched in some scent so that the entire place reeks and let management fix the problem by banning all perfume.

Tell her that if you wanted to smell her all the time you would bring her home. That should do it I think.

Here's only way I know how to do it if you have abosolutely no guts whatsoever:

Try and get her talking about smells. You could try talking about food. Say, "I just love the smell of that pizza you're eating" or whatever. You could then slip in the type of perfume you like the best by saying "My favorite smell in the world is ____ type of perfume." That's like an open invitation for her to tell you about hat type of perfume she wears. Then you can say, "Oh, so that's what that smell is. What is that like a musk?" If she's smart at all, she'll get the hint and start to be self conscious.

If she doesn't get the hint, just keep mentioning it. Refer to her as her perfume's name Whenever she enters the office say, "Here comes Chanel number 5." You can do it jokingly, but if you keep bringing it up, she will start to be more conscious of how much perfume she puts on in the morning. If she tells you to stop it, say, "I'm sorry, it's just all I think of when I think about you."

OR if you don't even have the guts to do that, set up an anonymous email account, or better yet, go to annoyingcoworker.com and send her an anonymous email about the problem.

You could just tell her that her perfume is too strong and it's bothering your allergies. Politely ask her to wear less.

I used to work with a guy who did that. You could smell him coming long before you actually saw him. I didn't have to work in a confined space with him though. I can't imagine what that would be like.

You don't. You tell your supervisor that the "overwhelming smell" is making it hard to concentrate and you fear your work could suffer. Trust me, this will get it fixed quickly!

[Avoid using words like "stench" and "putrid odor" when you do this.]

"i'm really sensitive to smells...our office is so small, which makes things worse....i wouldn't expect you to stop wearing perfume, but it's really affecting me....can you think of something we can do about this?"
....maybe if you brought in a fan, opened a window, etc.....hopefully if you bring it up tactfully she'll cut back on the amount she uses

Simply tell her that her wearing so much perfume bothers you and to please stop. There is no need to be nasty about it. Also if she persists, tell your supervisor, certainly there is a company policy already in place that simply needs to be enforced. Most companies do not permit "heavy" smells such as cologne, perfume or lotions due to employees with health issues such as asthma/allergies/sensitivities etc. Good Luck!

Depending on the size of your company, you might not have to address this at all. If you feel comfortable enough with her you can approach it tactfully and just tell her that you've been experiencing unpleasant feelings/ headache etc... and you believe it's being caused from her perfume. You might even compliment it, but just tell her that you're having a bad reaction to it.

If you have a larger company and you don't feel comfortable (this would be me as even though I am close to my co-workers, I'm unsure I would be able to discuss this with them). You can talk to a manager or HR person and request they make it policy that you may not wear obscene amounts of perfume.