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What is the worst male fragrance you've ever smelled?

post #1 of 88
Thread Starter 
I hated Boucheron pour Homme EDP. It smelled old, powdery, and pungent.
post #2 of 88
Hmmm, I'd vote..."Joop Pour Homme" A 9 year olds attempt at his first science experiment...not a fan
post #3 of 88
Something called One Man Show. It was very big in the Middle East in the late '80s and early '90s.
post #4 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Balavassassin View Post

Hmmm, I'd vote..."Joop Pour Homme" A 9 year olds attempt at his first science experiment...not a fan

Agree, it's vile
post #5 of 88
Tauer's Lonestar Memories... I literally couldn't breathe...
post #6 of 88
I can't stand Cuba Gold.
post #7 of 88
I don't know that I've ever smelled anything horrendous, but I have to say that even a great fragrance over applied can be suffocating and a complete turn off.
post #8 of 88
LeMale, JPG
post #9 of 88
Grey Flannel smelled amazing in the 80s, now it has me running for the hills.
post #10 of 88
Hugo by Hugo Boss.



I don't know why, but it just turns a musty-sour on me.
post #11 of 88
I always hated Drakkar Noir. Apologies to anyone who wears this - I know it's been a popular best selling fragrance. Does anyone even wear it anymore? I'm pretty clueless about male fragrances, actually. My husband won't wear any.
post #12 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by ubuandibeme View Post

LeMale, JPG

+1 for LeMale. Another confirmation of why like you so much, ubuandibeme.
post #13 of 88
+2 on Le Male. It was absolutely disgustingly cloying on DH.

Oh, and Kouros definitely went urinal cake on him. Interesting, but not something I'd like to smell regularly (he hated it).

DH wears both Grey Flannel and Drakkar Noir. Not crazy about the first (although drydown is nice), but I do like the second. The key to both is light application.
post #14 of 88
Lonestar Memories was pretty grim, I agree. I couldn't breathe either!
post #15 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by BlackCat View Post

+2 on Le Male. It was absolutely disgustingly cloying on DH.

Oh, and Kouros definitely went urinal cake on him. Interesting, but not something I'd like to smell regularly (he hated it).

DH wears both Grey Flannel and Drakkar Noir. Not crazy about the first (although drydown is nice), but I do like the second. The key to both is light application.

+7 haha.. There's only one Urinal Kouros.
post #16 of 88
A lot, but this piece of crap tops the list for now...
post #17 of 88
...have to add Fleur du Male to my Le Male answer...they are both no good. Not into JPG frags.
post #18 of 88
Am I allowed to say 'Unwashed teenager with fetid socks'?


Am I wierd? I find Kouros very sexy and rather comforting. I'm showing my age, I know, as I was an 80s girl who smelled it on most of my beaus when I was young.
post #19 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wordbird View Post

Am I wierd? I find Kouros very sexy and rather comforting. I'm showing my age, I know, as I was an 80s girl who smelled it on most of my beaus when I was young.

Not weird at all. I like Polo for the exact same reason. (DH hates this too, but allows me to put a drop or two on the back of his neck occasionally.)
post #20 of 88
No offense to those who love it. Cool Water. It was revolting on somebody who sprayed probably half the bottle.
post #21 of 88
Personal taste: Either Jicky or Caron's Pour Un Homme, both nasty civet monsters (but both dearly loved here by many people with more well-heeled palates than mine)

From a technical standpoint: Zara Vetiver. I could smell the cheapness of every single ingredient coming together into a disappointingly flawed scent.
post #22 of 88
What a great thread, very addictive reading.
post #23 of 88
J-Lo's
Deseo for men

So, so noxious, caustic, putrid...
post #24 of 88
Axe Voodoo. When i first met hubby, as he started to realize my fragrance passion, he showed me his only fragrance ever owned, Axe Voodoo.
Well he sprayed it in the air to smell, there were a few of us there at the time, and it wafted into his room-mates computer fan and the room was filled with the noxious scent of Axe Voodoo. We all had to evacuate the room and let it air out and my friend could not stop coughing; I was close to having an asthma attack. So that is tops on the list.

But like Wordie, I absolutely adore Kouros. I also love Polo and Drakkar Noir. So go figure.
post #25 of 88
Anything by Hugo Boss or Lacoste...,
post #26 of 88
Heir by Paris Hilton. Almost choked me to death.
post #27 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruggles View Post

Grey Flannel smelled amazing in the 80s, now it has me running for the hills.

I'm close on yer heels, don't look back already
post #28 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brielle87 View Post

Axe Voodoo. When i first met hubby, as he started to realize my fragrance passion, he showed me his only fragrance ever owned, Axe Voodoo.
Well he sprayed it in the air to smell, there were a few of us there at the time, and it wafted into his room-mates computer fan and the room was filled with the noxious scent of Axe Voodoo. We all had to evacuate the room and let it air out and my friend could not stop coughing; I was close to having an asthma attack. So that is tops on the list.

But like Wordie, I absolutely adore Kouros. I also love Polo and Drakkar Noir. So go figure.


I'm absolutely hysterical reading this! Too funny.
post #29 of 88
My new favorite expression: "When the Voodoo hit the fan."

Thank you, Brielle.
post #30 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by VM I hate civet View Post

Lonestar Memories was pretty grim, I agree. I couldn't breathe either!

Another vote for hideous is Lonestar Memories. As I was exploring leather notes, I could not believe how offensive the "barbecue charcoal fire accord" was in this scent!
post #31 of 88
+1 for Joop ph (yech!)

Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille nearly made me sick. X_X

And I'm another 80s girl, so have mixed nostalgic love/hate memories to do with Kouros, Drakkar Noir, Aramis, Polo etc.
post #32 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by matthewfoo View Post

Hugo by Hugo Boss.



I don't know why, but it just turns a musty-sour on me.

Hi Matt ! My son's fave - don't know why though - he thinks it smells manly .

Worst male fragrance to me is unwashed male at the gym wafting BO sillage mixed with beer and bad breath .
post #33 of 88
This may be TMI, but, the worst male fragrance? Any fragrance a guy sprays "down there" to freshen up rather than taking a shower. I don't know if women do this too, but please, humanity in general - don't!
post #34 of 88
Joop Homme
Au Masculin
Trussardi Light Him

*gag, choke wheeeeze*
post #35 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Galamb_Borong View Post

This may be TMI, but, the worst male fragrance? Any fragrance a guy sprays "down there" to freshen up rather than taking a shower. I don't know if women do this too, but please, humanity in general - don't!

They really do that Galamb ? Ooooohhhhhh.
post #36 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Galamb_Borong View Post

This may be TMI, but, the worst male fragrance? Any fragrance a guy sprays "down there" to freshen up rather than taking a shower. I don't know if women do this too, but please, humanity in general - don't!

I don't know about you, but nothing burns more than alcohol on the b*lls. Ouch!!!!
post #37 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruggles View Post

I don't know about you, but nothing burns more than alcohol on the b*lls. Ouch!!!!

Oh, not true, not true. Icy Hot is exponentially worse! (and just in case anyone was wondering, no, it was not intentional!)
post #38 of 88
Worst fragrance?

Definitely a Montale - either Boise Vanille (like play-doh + cedar sawdust), Mukhallat (disgustingly sweet), or Musk to Musk (nuclear strength Windex).
post #39 of 88
Hi all,

Acqua di Gio Pour Homme --- the rosemary note smells overwhelming to me. I don't know why I pick right up on that note in particular. It can smell like stale pasta sauce when it mixes in with a man's clothing. (sorry)

Blue Sugar --- that male cotton candy/blackberry/woodchips/ozone twist of it's sister Pink Sugar. Horrible to my nose (both of those Aquolinas).
post #40 of 88
Funny that Hugo Boss and Drakkar are mentioned in this list. I bought both of those because of girlfriends who practically had fetishes for them.

The worst I've smelled would have to be Antaeus. I liked a small whiff of it from the bottle, but when I actually wore it... YUKKK! Literally made me ill. Someone ( I still haven't figured out who) wore this around me when I was a kid and I associate the smell with what a man smells like. But, no, not for me. Ended up being the first and only fragrance I've ever had to scrub!
post #41 of 88
Floris Elite. Old arrogant rich male with cigar. But it has been a good two years since I smelled it; I may have changed my mind by now.
post #42 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brownie View Post

Hi all,

Acqua di Gio Pour Homme --- the rosemary note smells overwhelming to me. I don't know why I pick right up on that note in particular. It can smell like stale pasta sauce when it mixes in with a man's clothing. (sorry)

Blue Sugar --- that male cotton candy/blackberry/woodchips/ozone twist of it's sister Pink Sugar. Horrible to my nose (both of those Aquolinas).

I absolutely LOVE rosemary and wish it was more prominent in more scents. I never picked up on it strongly in AdG before but I'm going to test this again soon as it seems like my nose/perceptions have changed recently as I've been overcoming chemical sensitivity.
post #43 of 88
Christian Lacroix Tumulte- like inhaling cedar sawdust
Serge Noire- similar to to Tumulte but add cinnamon
L'eau d'Issey Pour Homme - it just doesn't stop screaming, the male scent equivalent to Bond Chinatown

I loved the 80s powerhouses like Kouros, Polo Green, Grey Flannel, Fahrenheit et al in the 80s but am afeared to sniff them now....but back then they smelled like love, lust & French kisses, with a touch of Grand Marnier on the rocks and a menthol ciggie :P
post #44 of 88
Baby Blue Jeans by Versace totally made me frown the first time I smelled it, and I haven't dared to revisit it since.

An ex-boyfriend used to wear Old Spice in the early 90's and that was horrendous, too.

It's not often I come across something that makes me cringe, but these two really do.
post #45 of 88
Armani eau pour homme

cant believe this is considered a ''cologne''
post #46 of 88
There are a LOT of disgusting "men's" fragrances out there on the mainstream market, most of which smell pretty similar. I don't know the names of all of them, but I gag when I smell them. My most recent encounter was with a bottle of Chanel Egoiste that had been given to me and that I was wrapping to ship off in a trade. I wanted it out of the house as quickly as possible because, to me, it has an unbearably offensive synthetic note that smells like burning plastic. A tiny bit of the juice leaked onto my stash of bubble wrap and contaminated it. A week later I could still smell the vile stuff on the bubble wrap and had to dispose of it all. As I double-bagged the bubble wrap, I felt like I was dealing with hazardous waste.
post #47 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by SculptureOfSoul View Post

Oh, not true, not true. Icy Hot is exponentially worse! (and just in case anyone was wondering, no, it was not intentional!)

Oh, man that brings back some bad memories... gonna have to back to the therapist for more post tramatic stress treatment! My ex-wife thought it was pretty funny, though.
post #48 of 88
On my skin, Serge Noire (Lutens) has a top note that instantly reminds me of chicken soup (complete with onions). It gives me that nauseating feeling you get when you leave a restaurant reeking of the food you just ate. Maybe not the worst, but definitely not good.
post #49 of 88
Just about anything with calone. L'eau d'Issey, Calvin Klein Escape and most aquatics. I'm sure somewhere there's a man who smells good in that stuff, but I have yet to meet him.
post #50 of 88
Nobody has said "Angel" yet?!
post #51 of 88
You have to get past the opening of serge noire which is disgusting. It's worth it in the end.

Doc Elly I wonder if the note you're talking about is the one I hate that is so prevalent, smelled in Anteus but haven't smelled Egoiste in a long time. It dominates the drydown of most "classic" men's fragrances and some I can think of off the top of my head that have this awful bitter smell which for the life of me I can never understand...PdN new york, aramis havana. But a little little bit of this stuff can work well, as I think might be happening in chergui.

I have never smelled Joop!
post #52 of 88
That cheap "I want your Bod" cologne that they sell at Walmart I hate hate that with a passion it makes me sick
post #53 of 88
...
post #54 of 88
Strange, Lacriox Tumulte PH is one of the best male scents sold by retailers IMHO. I also very like Eau Noir by SL. On the other hand, unwashed old man is much much worse than unwashed teenager. You know, adolescents' digestion by-products are more acceptable than those of the old. Brrrrr, disgusting....
post #55 of 88
Quote:
Originally Posted by asingleman View Post

Nobody has said "Angel" yet?!

I came in here to post the exact same thing.
post #56 of 88
Acqua di Gio. It gets right up my nose and and offends me to my very soul.
post #57 of 88
anything from hugo boss and of course acqua di gio' awful
post #58 of 88
Brut!!!
post #59 of 88
The worst I ever had to smell is Gaultier - Les Fleurs du Male. I can't stand it. The artificial, screechy orange top-notes... yuk.
post #60 of 88
+7? +8? On Le Male and Les Fleurs Du Male.

These two may be combatted with a hidious third one... Gaultier2.

I absolutely do not understand the popularity of Le Male. It is one fragrance I seriously keep wondering do people smell it in a profoundly different way, since it has great admirers too, among women.

(Every perfume divides opinions but here the opinions are like from two different planets. Half the people swearing this is sex in a bottle, half the people almost throwing up!)
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