Good Read…Men’s Health Grooming Awards

For men’s magazines, March and September are big issues. It’s usually when you’ll see the most fashion coverage and they distill seasonal trends. Its a must read if you like to be in the know about that sort of stuff. I, however, look forward to the June issue of Men’s Health as it’s when they conduct their annual Grooming Awards.

Each year, Men’s Health consults a panel of grooming and fragrance aficionados to seek out the best products in myriad categories. What you’re left with is an excellent list products worthy of your consideration.

For the past few years, Brian Boye has asked me to contribute to the fragrance category and I look forward to it. Where else are you going to get all of these products in one issue? This year, he sought out my opinion on how much fragrance one should apply, in addition to other topics, and I’m quoted in the issue.

The June issue is on newsstands now. Pick it up. It’s a good one.

Balenciaga L`Essence

Memorial Day marks the unofficial beginning of summer. For some of you reading this, you’re probably asking yourself, where is the sun? Keep the faith, it’s coming.

With summer on the horizon, we can look forward to sticky days and stickier nights. During those times, having a fragrance cling to your skin is the last thing you want to even think about. It’s the reason we typically reach for lighter scents. But when perusing men’s fragrance offering this time of year, I’m usually bored. They either contain too much citrus or they’re too sporty or aquatic.  So what’s a guy to do? This guy ventured to the other side of the isle. Yup that’s right, I went looking in the women’s section and I discovered a gem. Continue reading

Wordless…

R.I.P.

Febreze and The Power of Scent

Over the last few months, I’ve been researching the power of scent, specifically as it relates to scent marketing. It’s a burgeoning field that fascinates me. Prior to beginning that journey, I realized my own awareness about the sense of smell but the studies I discovered gave me clarity.  A part of my study included executive interviews with perfumers and marketers within the scent marketing industry and that added a fascinating layer to my discovery. In one interview, a perfumer talked about a Febreze commercial and how it really illustrated how powerful scent can be. If you need any more evidence of that, watch this short video:

If you allow yourself to get past the thoughts of that’s not real, it’s pretty incredible how much our sense of smell can tell us about our surroundings.

Wordless Wednesdays

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A Fragrant Moment at Min New York

Top L to R: Chad Murawczyk, Harry Sheff, sipping Macallan 12 and talking scents, Amouage’s Attar, Tribute

Life has a way of getting in the way at times and the last few months have been intense. In addition to moving, I was deeply involved in completing a research paper for my Masters degree. Needless to say, there wasn’t enough hours in the day to get to blogging…but I’m back!

A few nights ago, I had the pleasure of being invited to Min New York to discuss fragrances with a few like-minded gentlemen. In attendance was Harry Sheff from Cocktails and Cologne, Andrew Buck from Sentrist, Chad Murawczyk from Min New York, Carlos Powell, who runs the private Facebook group Peace Love Perfume and Cody Sulaimana of the YouTube channel Drac Doc. We were interviewed for an article that should be out in a few weeks in the UK Sunday Times.

What I enjoyed most was our collective passion for cologne and it was really interesting to hear everyone’s stories. We all had different tastes but agreed, smelling good is the best accessory.

Once the story goes live, I’ll share it. In the interim, stay tuned. I’m back.

What Would They Wear

Every now and then during award show season, I peak at the red carpet shows just for the hell of it. Unfortunately, the guys are usually boring. There’s only so many ways to wear a tux. And yes some do it wrong. The woman on the other hand can be eye candy but if there’s a game on, that usually gets my attention. Continue reading