Men wearing Women's Fragrances? - Page 12

Angel
Sycomore

Along these lines, I've noticed that men's fragrances seem to have a wider range than women's fragrances. Men's fragrances run from very, very masculine and aggressive to very polite and quite sensitive. Most women's fragrances, on the other hand, seem to range from feminine to swooning in the roses. Women who want a more masculine scent just wear men's fragrances.

I handle Tarantulas and love big, gaudy, lush white florals - connection? I'd like to think so.

For a floral that's fuzzy and has eight legs, I recommend Poison, especially in Esprit de Parfum.

Memoir Woman
Black Orchid
Bandit by Piguet

Well, you're knew here, so I'll recommend trying Bandit, Sycamore, Azuree, and Feminite Du Bois and getting back to us. I'll be curious if you still feel the same.

... or Habanita!!!

That's a good one!!


ROTFL! You guys are so funny.

Actually, the gender of the scent is up to the wearer, but here is my list, which only contains a few of many (usually chypre, tobacco and leather):

Anais Anais
Jicky
Cabochard
Miss Balmain
Balmain de Balmain
Miss Dior
Vol de Nuit
Shalimar
Shalimar Initial
Bandit
L'Heure Bleue
Apres L'Ondee
Mitsouko
Jolie Madame
Tabac Blond
En Avion
Narcisse Noir
Poivre/Coup de Fouet
Knowing
Caleche Eau Delicate (cedar)
Kelly Caleche
Gaultier MaDame (cedar)
Boucheron Trouble (cedar)
Habanita
Aimez-Moi
Tom of Finland

All true. The female fragrances I know by name are the ones worn by women I know well and none of those is on your list. I have tried Black Orchid and I have to say to me it is female only in theory (kind of a darker M7, if such a thing is possible). From what I hear, the "new" Sycamore is headed in the same direction, that is, a "female" fragrance that is more beloved by men. Even the name sounds male to me.

Sycamore is one I definitely will look into.

All true. The female fragrances I know by name are the ones worn by women I know well and none of those is on your list. I have tried Black Orchid and I have to say to me it is female only in theory (kind of a darker M7, if such a thing is possible). From what I hear, the "new" Sycamore is headed in the same direction, that is, a "female" fragrance that is more beloved by men. Even the name sounds male to me.

Sycamore is one I definitely will look into.

Surprisingly nobody mentioned ambre sultan which is usually listed under womens.

I am surprised that no one has mentioned Chergui.

Sycomore and Coromandel are both marketed to women, although I find the former to be masculine to the 9th degree and the latter to be very unisex.

Sycomore is so masculine to my nose, it is one of my all time favourite perfume.

But I consider all fragrance is unisex.

i dont know the names of any female fragrances

+1 "L" (Maurice Roucel) by Lolita Lempicka

Shalimar, Sycomore, Coromandel, Habanita, Obsession, Magie Noire, Choc, Metal, First... the list can be endless.

+1 to Sycomore
Shalimar
Angel
Infusion d'Iris

From the description on the Chanel website, Sycomore sounds very masculine and also something I would like. But it is also said to be close to Encre Noir, which I already have and like very much.

Shalimar is a favorite of a number of women friends. I like it very much though I find it quite feminine, albeit with a touch of Grand Dame about it.

We are talking about female fragrances that SHOULD be men's, not female fragrances that men like and wear, though. This would be a smaller list, I would guess.

the openings of Coupe De Fouet and tubereuse Criminelle both seemed like incredible contemporary niche masculines.

Must de Cartier
Sycomore
Bandit
Elizabeth Arden Green Tea
Azuree
Habanita

Cuir de Lancome

If you take a perfume at |absolute| value, you'll soon realize that everything is fair game and the only limitations are your mindset and taste.

Having said that. Carnal Flower smells feminine to me but suits men too. I'm not fond of tuberose otherwise I'd wear it.

Have not encountered a women's frag that should be a men's. They all smell sufficiently feminine/unisex to me.

Exactly!



There are differences by sex - not 'gender'.

- Men and women smell different due to differing hormonal status.
- In order to build up a complete and satisfying picture a fragrance has to take the body odor into account.

A brief, yet painful compilation of given facts should reveal the need for concoctions which are sex oriented. The 'perfume has no sex'-litany is wrong. At least if perfume is considered a fashion article with the purpose to be worn and smelled by others with pleasure.

Yes! haha

Now that you mention this, what are these differing hormonal status that fragrances should taken into consideration when labelling as masculine/feminine (and/or even unisex)? Any concrete examples of extant fragrances that already do?

Could you provide a link on this compilation of facts?

We went over this and over this some time ago on Basenotes, and the thread was eventually locked. I maintain that the perceived "gender" of the fragrance and the appropriateness to one sex or the other is just that--a perception or a personal preference--and by no means universal.

Each person does indeed smell different in a particular fragrance, but one cannot make sweeping assumptions about the bodies of men and women. For instance, the scent of a diabetic man's skin might have the scent of ketones from his condition, but all the same, he can wear any fragrance he chooses, and no one can tell him otherwise.

The "genderfication" of fragrance is really a concept started toward the end of the 19th century and modern times, so much so that "unisex" fragrances are a marketing ploy. (Think about the new Khloe and Lamar Unbreakable Bond, for instance, or even CK One.) In the 18th and 19th centuries, all men and women wore the same fragrances, usually single notes such as musk, or soliflores, such as eau de jasmine. Eau de Colognes were worn by everyone, as "toilette water."

Sales histories sometimes reveal the error of this "gender tagging." In the 1920s, the D'Orsay scent Le Dandy was marketed to men but later marketed to women because they were buying it and wearing it. By the 1940s, it was a women's scent. Caron's Tabac Blond was marketed to women but now it is considered a "shared scent" in the advertising literature.

The leather note, which is rarely used in most modern scents marketed to women, was very popular in the early part of the 20th century (Chanel Cuir de Russie, Tabac Blond, Shalimar) and well into the 1950s (Miss Balmain, Jolie Madame, Cabochard). Now it is seem as mostly a note found in men's scents.

One still sees the suede/leather note in modern scents marketed to women: Avon Fergie Outspoken, Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire Modele 2, and ELdO's Putain des Palaces.

I heartily agree with JCPetrucci in his statement: "Here is what is "sensible" - Wear what you want to wear, and don't worry/care about what someone else wants to wear - because it ain't none of your f'ing business. "

http://www.basenotes.net/threads/249...-sensibilities

I experienced a huge difference in smells of women and men. There is an uncertainty of course. As a heterosexual man I'm fond of females smell and barely sniff at a boys neck - You know what I mean. But, few 'female' frags seem to be appropriate to connect to my personal body odor, and too I don't like male frags on women.

My current partner could wear: Piguet - Fracas, Balmain - Vent Vert, Givenchy III, YSL - Y. But I hate perfume on girls I like to ****, honestly. I'm totally o/k with the full olfactory spectrum of natural secretions ;-)

What I find interesting are several layers of change in the whole spectrum of gender identification in fragrances. For example, Black Orchid and Sycomore have been taken up by men to such an extend that their brands have been altered (last week I was in Neiman Marcus and they actually stocked Black Orchid in the men's section along with Tom Ford's other men's fragrances). I was taught in marketing that this almost never happens: women often adapt men's products, but not the other way around.

Women often wear men's fragrances but they seem not to be converting them into "women's" fragrances or to be seriously shifting their brand identities. Meanwhile, what is popular in men's fragrances these days is way over the line of what have been considered feminine forty years ago and what once was considered properly masculine (e.g., Old Spice, English Leather) is just dismissed as disgusting, having fallen off the spectrum at the other end.

Presumably there are all sorts of cultural associations with different scents, along with different ideas of what masculine and feminine mean, lying behind this.

Womanity smells better on me than on the women I have smelled it on... Why? Because I'm twice the man you will ever be and twice the woman you'll ever have! LOL

Keep in mind that a good number of members on this forum are women--who wear fragrances.

I am glad I am not your woman.

I am totally loving Spicebomb--grenade bottle and all.

@BurgundyMarsh I agree this is an interesting phenomenon. I learned yesterday that Black Orchid is now marketed a unisex scent here in Australia.

I all depends on how they market it.

In many Sephora stores, Black Orchid is still in the women's section, while Tom Ford for Men is the only one in the men's section.

The White Patchouli is also now considered a unisex.

This topic seems to fascinate a lot of men on these boards.

...and it's been hammered into the ground, mrclmind. I guess it's a subject I never got too much into, seeing how I just wore what I liked.

Heck, my father would always give me a spray of what he was wearing!

Premier Figuier Extreme by L'Artisan Parfumeur - Upon application, one is pleasantly treated to the sweetish greenness of fig leaves coupled with the coconutty floral of gorse flowers. This fascinating duet percolates a bit before segueing to the waiting middle. Here, in the aborning heart, a wondrous blend of galbanum, with its sour green and somewhat stemmy facets, ivy, with its pert and slightly savory character, almond milk, with its gloppy and nutty features, as well as sandalwood, with its creamy and spicy trait, gives rise to an illusion of budding figs, abounding with milky sap. Transitioning to the enhancing base, the swollen delectability of tree-ripened figs comes to fruition. A redolent, dried fruit accord, with elements of plums, apricots and peaches, commingles with the strong, camphor smell of stone pine. A hint of creamy, coconut milk flutters about to seal the illusion. A delightsome drydown ensues. This wonderful, all-season scent has good longevity, and, after an hour of radiating projection, settles to a skin scent. A truly awesome composition, it leans to the masculine side.

As said before, 'all fragrances to anyone', but IMO there is a pair of female-marketed perfumes to my nose stay better at male skin: Tom Ford Black Orchid & Chanel Nº 19 EDT

I really don´t believe at all in marketing strategies and social conventions. I have never understood why some fragrances are restricted to some people... but well...
When I first smelt Black Orchid, I definitely thought it was marketed for men.
And I have got Gres - Cabochard here and it´s so beautiful!
Versace´s Crystal Noir is not a masterpiece and rather synthetic but it does make a very comforting whiteish - floralish fragrance that smells great! Very sexy on either a man or a woman!
Chanel Nº 19, needs no introduction, its an original Chanel, what can I say? Green, galbanum, some leather in there... a true masterpiece! The EDT version though...
I´ve also got Cacharel´s Lou Lou which is a very strong very unique spicy - sweet oriental which immediately takes me away to a spice market somewhere in "candy-floss" Mumbai!
And just to point out why I think scents dont have a gender; Narciso Rodriguez For Him Musc could have easily been sold as a female perfume. The Dreamer by Versace is right on the edge of what people consider femenine/masculine from my point of view...
It all depends on how you view things. But I will tell you something, if you throw away social ideologies and try any type of fragrance you will gain a lot!

Ispahan by Yves Rocher
Bvlgari Jasmin Noir

Bottega Veneta - perhaps not a "should be a masculine" but definitely should be unisex.

The last time I was in Sephora they had Tom Ford for Men AND Tom Ford Grey Vetiver. I didn't look for Black Orchid, it may have been in the women's section. Black Orchid was definitely in the MEN'S section of Neiman Marcus in Boston (it's on a different floor from the women's department) on a shelf with other Tom Ford scents (they had an excellent selection). My guess is that men had been asking for it there. Both the men's fragrance selection and the clerk were quite sophisticated, unlike those other department stores and perfume shops.

Gender switching is a significant topic in marketing, as companies often want to expand a successful gendered product to both genders, potentially doubling sales. The switch from female to male, though, is considered next to impossible. There is a classic business school case study of Marlboro cigarettes, cited as one of the very few cases where marketing was able successfully to switch the target gender of a women's product to men. Marlboro was developed as a high-end women's brand, presumably named for the first Duchess of Marlborough (the name probably was supposed to have aristocratic British associations). When the brand bombed, the advertisers came up with the Marlboro Man and made the brand a huge success. It was male identified but also more popular with women than it had been as a women's product. Now Black Orchid makes the same switch with no apparent effort from the marketers. I wonder what the marketing profs are saying about this one?

Very true on this observation. Think of the Chesterfield brand.

Why ?
Is it a femme ??

AND SHE NEVER RECOVERED!

LOL! Suga, and look how I wound up here!

Guys just wear what you like but leave me my Sycomore!

Alexander McQueen's Kingdom

Perhaps it's like wearing a pair of women's panties.

Surprised Paloma Picasso's Paloma Picasso hasn't been mentioned yet.

The edt more so than the edp, unless you happen to like a sweeter drydown (and more aldehydes).

cheers

For that matter, men can wear My Queen, a violet with heavy patchouli.

I really like to wear Laguna and Laguna Maravilla, by Salvador Dali, in the summer!
And, since Angel isn't the same anymore, I like to layer some Body Shop Patchouli oil with Angel on top!
It brings the Original Angel to the masculine side! Try it!

Aromatics Elixir always gave me the impression of being a bit more masculine

racine's une folie de roses feels like a masculine rose to me, like VdR. It should at least be unisex.

Eau du Soir;
Burberry Brit;
Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau (should be unissex);
Samsara;
Cuir D'Iris;
Chantecaille Vetyver;
Midnight Oud;
Infusion D'Iris;
Must Parfum, Le Baiser du Dragon;
Montana Parfum de Peau...

Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely smells better on my BF

I love and wear Jicky and Shalimar often, but I wouldn't say that they should be men's. Unisex, absolutely, but they're not overtly masculine.

On the other hand, I, too, find L de Lolita Lempicka to be a very masculine scent.




Edited to add: But I sure would love to smell it on a woman.

+1, like Eau du Soir.