A few weeks ago, one of my twitter pals mentioned he was wearing a Jo Malone scent that was suggested to him by a mutual friend. To be specific, he was wearing sweet lime cedar layered with vanilla. Where it gets interesting is while he liked it, he thought it smelt girly.
Undoubtedly, his feelings toward this scent have been influenced by how the industry has marketed fragrances. Sweet and floral scents are for women. Spicy and woody scents are for men. But the reality is, the ways our bodies react to scents are quite different. I personally experienced this when I was testing Le Labo’s Oud 27 and a women who was also testing it, hated the way it smelled on her skin and loved it on mine. I also had a moment when I was wearing Tom Ford’s Black Orchid. A woman smelt it on me, thought it was great and had no clue I was wearing a women’s scent. To my male comrades, this girly smell thing is all in your head…get over it.
This brings me to what I’m currently sampling, The Different Company’s Oriental Lounge. I learned of this fragrance a few weeks ago when I was looking for a Christmas gift for my wife. In my opinion, this very well could be a unisex scent but it was introduced to me as being for women. From the moment I smelt it, I thought to myself, I could wear this and quite frankly, after this twitter exchange, I decided I would begin wearing it.
Oriental Lounge starts off like a sweet smelling rose and you quickly realize you’re in good hands. The fragrance is very concentrated and on the Different Company’s website, they discuss their concentration levels and reveal they only create parfums, so that makes total sense. But if a rose isn’t your thing, perhaps you’ll appreciate how it evolves.
What I find attractive about this fragrance is how warm and spicy the dry down becomes without being overbearing. As a Different Company says, “It is a modern and sophisticated amber, an outspoken and subtle perfume for those who are looking for a comfortable, sensual and true oriental. A fragrance that suggests but does not reveal immediately its true character.”
I’m loving this scent and know I’ve worn it more than my wife. I just might have to get my own bottle.
fragrantmoments.net 
As this very fragrant man’s wife, I have a message for all the fellas – get over the whole male/female thing when it comes to fragrances. Even if you do it in secret, there is absolutely nothing wrong with men wearing frangrances marketed to women as it is no myth that everyone’s body chemistry responds to scents differently.
I secretly think my hubby “buys me fragrances” so that he can wear them too. Many of mine smell great on him. But this Orinetal Lounge is about to go into hiding because it is way too good for me to share.
And to the women reading this, take a spritz of something in your man’s collection. You may be pleasantly surprised.
You’re so right about scents not being a gender assigned issue. I have generally worn men’s colognes since I was 14. Stetson for men was the first. I still spray it on my pillows. Cereus No. 5, good lord. Love the Jo Malone lime scent. MUST sample some of this Oriental Lounge. Thanks for having the best nose ever, Barney! Say hi to Tony for me 🙂