Picking fragrances is already difficult enough with how many choices are available.
Figuring out what is meant for who is only a small hurdle to get around these days.
Ingredients that were traditionally only found in fragrances for Men or for Women are being mixed up to create fragrances that appeal to all. You’ll find fruits and flowers in Men’s fragrances, and spices, woods, and Fougere notes in Women’s fragrances, and everything in between. With this, quite a lot of fragrances are being released as unisex, or universal, which means it can be worn by anyone without the traditional masculine or feminine nuances.
When a fragrance house has feminine and masculine options, it can sometimes be difficult to navigate.
A couple of easy giveaways can be in the name…Femme(French) and Donna(Italian) will mean Feminine and Homme(French) and Uomo(Italian) will mean Masculine. Sometimes, it will just say ‘For Men’ or ‘For Women’ as well.
Other times, the name itself will tell you whether to expect something masculine or feminine. An example is the Caswell-Massey collection. A lot of their fragrances are simply named after flowers, like Lilac, Honeysuckle, and Gardenia, or their main ingredient, like Almond, Sandalwood, and Verbena. These types of indications can make things easy to interpret.
The bottle design can also by the hint, like with Jean Paul Gaultier Le Male and Classique being shaped like a man’s or woman’s torso. Or with Parfums de Marly, the feminine styles are in hourglass shaped bottles with tassels and gemstones, and the masculine/unisex are in the taller, broader shaped bottles.
In a lot of cases, whether a fragrance was created for men or women, there is a lot of versatility that can make them work for anyone.
If a scent looks interesting, or the notes sound interesting, try it. Smell the cap or nozzle or spray it on paper to see what the scent is all about. If it strikes your fancy, try it on the skin.
At the end of the day, it’s how the fragrance smells on you, and whether you love it or not, that should be your deciding factor.
At Parfumerie Nasreen, we’re happy to help guide you, or let you browse to your heart’s content.
