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Suggest a men's fragrance for me to wear on speak n sniff

post #1 of 21
9/4/08 at 1:46pm
Thread Starter 
It's gender-bender speak and sniff this Saturday and I'm a lady looking for suggestions for a men's fragrance to wear. I'm currently traveling so can't choose from my usual wardrobe. So I thought I'd go to the local department store counters and try something. I can get to a fairly good mainstream selection, but nothing niche (no Creeds, Carons or even Guerlains).

I already wear and love Royal English Leather, Acier Aluminium, Virgin Island Water, Jicky and Bulgari Black as well as a number of Eaux de Cologne and citrus frags. I'd like to stretch myself a little and I'm sure you gentlemen will be able to make some interesting suggestions.

Thanks in advance for your help and advice.
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post #2 of 21
9/4/08 at 1:50pm
is Acier Aluminum masculine? I'm intrigued to know how you perceive this fragrance

Diesel Masculine plusplus would be a good cheap choice.
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post #3 of 21
9/4/08 at 1:52pm
Terre d'Hermes and Eau d'Orange Verte are usually available at Sephora or better department stores.

Nordstrom used to carry the Truefitt & Hill line. All of which are quite nice.

Burberry Brit for Men is pretty widely available, too.

I think any of those would be great without being too manly. Unless that's what you want.

Then I'd go with Michael for Men or maybe Kiton Black.
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post #4 of 21
9/4/08 at 2:19pm
Hi Wordbird,

You might try checking out Dior Homme. It's got iris and tobacco and seems very unisex to me. I wear it happily. It should be at most sales counters as it's a recent fragrance.

I also think Fahrenheit can be worn on women, and it would probably be available at the counter.
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post #5 of 21
9/4/08 at 2:24pm
  • kbe
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Givenchy Xeryus Understated and just wonderful. Thanks, DustB!

John Vavartos Madjool date in a male frag? You bet!

Montana Parfum d'Homme if you can get it. Re-introduced to the market recently and very near the original. Quietly masculine but would be just great on a woman.

Aramis Havana if you can buy it in Switzerland. Yup..Havana for Men. A wild initial ride and a drydown to die for..
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post #6 of 21
9/4/08 at 2:26pm
Hi Wordbird... Im also participating in the gender bender S'n'S this saturday (Silver Rain for me!)

Perhaps you might like to try the men's Burberry London, or for something even more challenging, try Dior's Fahrenheit (the original). I have always wondered how this uniquely masculine scent would 'translate' on a woman.
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post #7 of 21
9/4/08 at 2:40pm
Gucci pour Homme
Angel Men
Aramis
Encre Noir
Giorgio for Men
Gucci Envy
Grey Flannel
Habit Rouge
Jaipur Homme
M7
Narciso Rodriguez for Him
Obsession for Men
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post #8 of 21
9/4/08 at 2:45pm
Antaeus (Chanel) could be fun! I have only tried it on papers yet since I´ve felt that I´m not man enough... But lately it has grown on the papers. Next time it is skin testing.

Now I might be completely wrong, but aren´t Antaeus and Bandit rather similar, at least in their "feeling"? BUT - my nose were very untrained six months ago when I tried Bandit, and my memory sometimes fails me.

Antaeus dry down is gorgeous though. Perfect for a woman?
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post #9 of 21
9/4/08 at 3:00pm
You gave five stars to Bois des Îles, how about trying her brother? Egoiste.

Many good fragrances have been suggested so far (I have to second Giorgio for Men). You can't go wrong with any of them.

If you want to stay with a fougere - try Azzaro Pour Homme. That will be my choice for Saturday.
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post #10 of 21
9/4/08 at 3:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by pelle View Post

Antaeus (Chanel) could be fun! I have only tried it on papers yet since I´ve felt that I´m not man enough... But lately it has grown on the papers. Next time it is skin testing.

Now I might be completely wrong, but aren´t Antaeus and Bandit rather similar, at least in their "feeling"? BUT - my nose were very untrained six months ago when I tried Bandit, and my memory sometimes fails me.

Antaeus dry down is gorgeous though. Perfect for a woman?

Which Bandit makes a big difference. There are Bandit and Bandit Light. There are EdP and EdT versions of both. There are three different versions, all by different noses (the original, a reformulation in the 70s I think, and a more recent reformulation). And, I believe there was a version for men and one for women. (How this all mixes and matches is beyond me.)

So, while I would say that the Bandit I have smells nothing like Antaeus, the Bandit you sniffed may have an Antaeus quality to it.

The wonderful world of fragrance! No one said it would be simple.
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post #11 of 21
9/4/08 at 3:11pm
Some of my designer favorites:
Burberry Brit (easy to wear for women, neo-English powdery citrus-floral)
Cacharel pour homme (cumfy nutmeg-wood, christmassy)
L'Eau Bleue d'Issey (strong dry rosemary-wood, challenging)
Zino Davidoff (the full monty, 80s power frag, but very refined, just recently discovered this and love it)
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post #12 of 21
9/4/08 at 3:23pm
Carlos Santana would be wonderful...and very inexpensive might I add.

for a slight challenge try Dirty English by Juicy Couture.....smoky, campfire, spicyness....
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post #13 of 21
9/4/08 at 5:43pm
Wordbird - you need to try Terre de Hermes.
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post #14 of 21
9/5/08 at 1:59am
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys - I appreciate the help.
I'm visiting the UK at the moment, so I'll scope out the counters today and see if I can pick up any samples. If not, I'll see what I can get to a tester bottle of tomorrow.

Just looking over your suggestions I'll be trying to get hold of Fahrenheit, Egoiste (I used to pinch my ex boyfriend's Anteus) and Dirty English - sounds very me.
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post #15 of 21
9/5/08 at 2:51am
Some more suggestions for you Wordbird...
Cartier Declaration
Cartier Must PH
Hermès Bel Ami
Givenchy Insensé
YSL Opium PH (even better if edp on a woman)
JPG Fleur du Male
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post #16 of 21
9/5/08 at 6:47am
Why bend it when you can tie it into a pretzel?

Kouros or Yatagan!
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post #17 of 21
9/5/08 at 7:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by thaifighter View Post

Yatagan!

Yatagan is a great idea. It, along with L'Anarchiste, are the ones from my wardrobe that my wife wears most often.
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post #18 of 21
9/6/08 at 2:15am
Thread Starter 
Oooh and I love Kouros... right! Yatagan is on the 'must try' list.

Anyway, thanks for this guys - I think I'll have a full-blown testing list from the men's counter and try a lot of them over the next month or two. I know I like some men's ones anyway and it's good to challenge your preconceptions now and again.

I didn't manage to snag any of your recommendations at the counters yesterday, though I smelled a lot of good things (Fahrenheit was really good). I used the (true) excuse that my hubby refuses to try 'perfume' at the 'make up counter' and could I have a sample to take away. I got Guerlain L'Homme, which was nice and very fresh, so felt like a cop-out.

I also got Lolita Lempicka au Masculin, which smelled more complex and a bit more hairy-chested on the card, so that's what I'm wearing today. There's nothing in it that would be out of place in a female fragrance and although it's brawnier than the girl's LL, it still has the salty licorice accord, but without the sweetness and with perhaps a little bit of patchouli to butch things up. I like it.

Thanks very much for all your help and advice - I really appreciate it. And your suggestions have started me off exploring a whole new area of fragrances.
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post #19 of 21
9/6/08 at 9:12am
NOT TO HIJACK, BUT TIME'S A TICKIN...
If anyone wants to help out, can you distinguish whether the following of these are fougeres also--I'm trying to do today's sniff-n-speak with both a men's fragrance AND a fougere (that is, a men's fougere):

  • Gris Clair
  • Dior Homme
  • Fahrenheit


(I have Grey Flannel available, which I know is a fougere, but I just can't get into it--it feels just too herbal on my skin).

Thanks for your input!
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post #20 of 21
9/6/08 at 2:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lushsoup View Post

NOT TO HIJACK, BUT TIME'S A TICKIN...
If anyone wants to help out, can you distinguish whether the following of these are fougeres also--I'm trying to do today's sniff-n-speak with both a men's fragrance AND a fougere (that is, a men's fougere):

  • Gris Clair
  • Dior Homme
  • Fahrenheit


(I have Grey Flannel available, which I know is a fougere, but I just can't get into it--it feels just too herbal on my skin).

Thanks for your input!

Sorry, I'm late - I just saw your post.

None of them are fougeres, but I attaching a link to Michael Edwards' Fragrance Directory.

At the bottom of the screen, click on Fragrance Families then select the 'plus' sign next to Aromatic Fougeres. You can explore the four subcategories - the men's fougeres are denoted with a little blue guy symbol.

Glad to see you on our side again!
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post #21 of 21
9/6/08 at 2:31pm
I just swapped with a woman, who got Prada Amber for men in the deal, and she really likes it, though it's not peppery. Rouge Royal for men does seem to have a peppery quality, and I consider that one unisex. It's powdery, has some gentle spices, and is a little fruity up top (pear seems to dominate).
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