Suggest me a first cologne

[cybrok]

Hi

I'm a 24 years old college student and just took a look at "your first cologne" thread and I'm telling myself I should try. If you also have advices on how to wear cologne it would be appreciated. I saw a few times "teens don't know how to wear cologne". Well I'm not a teenager anymore but I'm not used to cologne.

Little bit of my nose history.

The only scent I had on myself have been deodorants, mainly the ones with marine scents. I loved Speed Stick's Ocean Surf but had to change due to irritation. These days I use Mitchum Marine.

Like every teen in the early 2000s I bought some Axe, the only one I could stand was the Phoenix. I still think it smells good, a huge step behind all the other Axe products. Don't throw rocks at me, but the first time I tried TOBS St James cream, I tought it smelled a little bit like this Axe.

It will probably help if I tell you the scents I like in my den at the moment:

Like (no particlar order):
-Proraso splash
-TOBS sandalwood cream
-Avon Black Suede splash
-Booster Oriental Spice
-The Gentlemen's Quarter Desert Ironwood
- Absinthe cream by Chad Steward, I really like absinthe/anise smells.
- In the T&H samples I got, I prefered the 1805.

What I like less:
-Tabac splash, good but a little too floral. I might come to like it with the use.
-AV, the blue one. Smells old to me (or on me)
-I'm not really into citrus smells. I don't know if I will finish the TOBS lemon and lime sample.

Also as I said, I still am in college, so the cheaper the better.

Thanks


EDIT: And of course, I don't want to smell like an old man and want the girl to like it

 

[sapito318]

A good, relatively cheap cologne would be the T&H 1805. You say that you really like marine scents, so you should love that one. It goes very well together with the ASB and shave cream, and lasts a good long time.

To wear most colognes, you just spray 1, or maybe 2 sprays if its a weaker cologne on your chest or neck. The general guideline is that the scent should only be immedately obvious to yourself or significant other in the sense of strength. Meaning that only those who are very close to you should notice your cologne fragrance. If everybody can smell you, then you are probably wearing too much.

Axe is simply awful, and not gentlemanly at all, imo. I think it smells gross. For your deodorant irritation problem I would recommend looking into an Alum Block.

 

[cybrok]

Do you guys (those in their 20s) use cologne everyday?

I'll try my 1805 sample, but I'd like to try a few more to see wich one fits my body chemistery the best (at least I know about body chemistery). I will have to check with wich of my actual aftershave it smells the best. I can't really afford the 1805 ASB.

As for the deo, just changing brand solves the problem, I'm ok with Mitchum at the moment.

Another question, while checking on basenotes, I saw someone talking about a "black" cologne, I think it was for the Black Suede. What exactly is a "black cologne"?



Or I could try this. (na, not really)

 

[Rorschuck]

You might look into some citrus scents, always good for both the younger crowd and warm-weather wear. Two of my favorites (and arguably two of the finest citrus scents ever) are Christian Dior's Eau Sauvage and Guerlain's Eau de Guerlain. Creed's Virgin Island Water is magnificent, and TOBS St. James is another great (not citrus) scent.

If you like the TOBS Sandalwood cream scent, you'd probably like the EdC, as well, but it's definitely on the soft/powdery side of things, which some associate with "old man" smell.

If you like anise, you really should try Azzaro Pour Homme. Simply amazing, and I don't normally like anise, either in my mouse or my nose.

 

[Doc4]

-TOBS sandalwood cream
- In the T&H samples I got, I prefered the 1805.


EDIT: And of course, I don't want to smell like an old man and want the girl to like it

Both the TOBS sandalwood and the 1805 are sold in cologne form too. IMHO the TOBS sandalwood is 'old-man', but YMMV.



Most of the comments about teenagers not knowing how to wear cologne are about teenagers who wear waaaaaay too much cologne ... one spray should be all you need.

 

[JaeBeam]

Black probably referes to Armani's "Black Code", but I could be wrong. Black Code is more of a evening/date type of cologne.

Bvgari Avqa - Aquatic scent, spring/summer appropriate
Bvgar Extreme - nice tea notes IMHO
Burberry Brit - Complex Oriental/flower, but manly

You can pickup a tester for less than $30 online. I'd recomend hitting the department stores to test them out, and possibly getting a good deal if there is a sale going on.

 

[cybrok]

I will pass on the Azzaro.

My father has a few colognes (wich he never use), one of them is Azzaro, I tried some on my wrist and it's not for me.

He also has Antartic (Yves Rocher) and Chaps (Ralph Lauren). I should try them on my wrist too.

My bet is that he got those as gifts and he's just not into colognes... or shaving.

 

[drumana]

Get some samples from Trumpers - It costs around $5 last time I checked. You might like their Sandalwood, or GFT - some of them might be a little too 'old man' for you (Spanish Leather)...

Off the top of my head you could also try Acqua di Parma Colonia or Intensia. And the rest of the T&H line - particularly Trafalgar or Grafton you might like.

 

[john.crissman]

Get some samples from Trumpers - It costs around $5 last time I checked. You might like their Sandalwood, or GFT - some of them might be a little too 'old man' for you (Spanish Leather)...

Off the top of my head you could also try Acqua di Parma Colonia or Intensia. And the rest of the T&H line - particularly Trafalgar or Grafton you might like.

I don't think he will like the GFT (sweet lemon top notes). I would recommend the ToBS Sandalwood.

 

[cybrok]

He also has Antartic (Yves Rocher) and Chaps (Ralph Lauren). I should try them on my wrist too.

Done, not for me.

I guess if he doesn't use them, he doesn't like them. So we must have a similar nose.


I was considering Acqua Di Gio, but I see it's a best seller. I don't really want to smell like half of the guys there (more chances to smell like the ex too). Is it true that this one is practically the same as 1805? How about l'eau D'Issey?

 

[Lynchmeister]

Done, not for me.

I guess if he doesn't use them, he doesn't like them. So we must have a similar nose.


I was considering Acqua Di Gio, but I see it's a best seller. I don't really want to smell like half of the guys there (more chances to smell like the ex too). Is it true that this one is practically the same as 1805? How about l'eau D'Issey?

For what it's worth, I don't find AdG and 1805 similiar. They are both considered aquatics, but miles apart in my mind...1805 is the winner.

 

[joto]

The best thing to do is head to the nearest mall and smell 'em. Nothing like dropping $50 or more on a cologne you don't know if you like and finding out... YOU DON'T!! The better stores have paper strips to spray them on- certainly not ideal, but a good way to winnow the list down without spraying every exposed mm of skin with fragrance. If you like any, spray them on a wrist and see how it goes. I found that I hated most of the store's selection, but there were a few I liked. It's free anyway, if you've got the time.

If you want to make a cold purchase, and liked the 1805, you could try the Taylor of Old Bond St. St. James cologne. It has similarities to the T&H 1805- I like the top notes better, and the 'aquatic' scent is more subdued than in the 1805 sample I tried. If you have smelled the cream, it's quite similar minus some of the deep warmth I attribute to the natural scent of the cream. It's not exactly 'cheap,' but cheaper than other scents being tossed around so far. Around $30 from classicshaving.com and others.

Hoyt's is also a good inexpensive cologne at $10 from QED for 5oz. There is a minute or two of citrus in the top notes, but it is gone quickly and leaves a nice floral scent that lasts a few hours on my skin. I know 'floral' may sound feminine, but I thought it had a little touch of something masculine in it that I very much liked. Sounded like you might like something floral, might not. YMMV.

If you like spicy, you could try the Master's Bay Rum aftershave you can buy at a local Sally's beauty supply for $7-8. I personally like it a lot, although it only lasts a couple of hours and hovers very close to my skin (being an A/S splash and not a cologne) after the first few minutes. Not exactly a cologne, but is inexpensive and lasts long enough on my skin.

The Clubman aftershave/ colognes you can buy at Sally's or most Walgreens last a LONG time on my skin, and use usually very inexpensive.

There it is, hope it helps.

 

[Dandaman]

Not to be negative, but also watch out for reactions. After buying 3 colognes to try, I discovered all I needed to do was spritz once and wait. Anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes later, here came the headache. It barely responded to painkiller, and lasted 12+ hours. So maybe start slow...

 

[richmondesi]

How to wear cologne: The best way to not over-power and have a long-lasting scent (IMO of course) is to dab a little on each wrist and on both sides of your neck right by the corroded artery (on either side of your esophagus). When I say little, I mean little. The location is critical (this is from the "experts" that were coaching me up on this). These locations are ideal because of the pulsing of the ulnar artery (wrist) and the corroded artery (neck). If that makes sense to anybody, great (I'm not sure). I've tried a lot of other ways, but this works well without being obnoxious.

For scents: I find that Tommy Bahama makes some really nice scents. They will also give a lot of samples for free. I've gotten one tube of sample scent that lasted me over a year. Other scents... there are just too many & I swear they all smell different depending on your body chemistry. So, you just have to suck it up and go smell them, wear a sample, and get feedback. *** I also want to give a +1 to the recommendation to watch for the headache effect of some colognes. They can suck, and you don't want to waste money on something that you won't use

 

[OldGrowth]

Dolce & Gabbana pour Homme

Since you're on more of a budget, check out the men's fragrances at Bath & Body Works (seriously). They have 4 different scents, and they're only like $20/bottle. I'm not saying they can compete with some of the big boys from England or Tom Ford's most complex creation, but they are good for what they are...inexpensive everyday colognes.

 

[millertime150]

http://www.basenotes.net/ID26121010.html

Has Aniseed in it. You can get it for a pretty decent price online.

http://www.scentiments.com/Product/SkuInfo.aspx?id=97248 $28.99 for 1.7 ounce

$38.99 for 3.4 ounce

I wouldn't go with anything real expensive until you have more experience. Alot of the niche fragrances have a lot of depth and are not always common smelling and are sometimes very odd but good.

Another recommendation is Terre De Hermes. Winner of 2008 Basenotes best mainstream scent. I have it and love it. Kind of a bitter orange/woody/vetiver scent.
http://www.basenotes.net/awards/2008/mfine.html

Also I hate to mention it because everyone wears/wore this but Acqua di Gio is well liked for a mainstream scent.

 

[scavenger]

I like Tommy boy ( Tommy Hilfiger ) for day time it has a crisp light citrus scent.For evening I like Fahrenheit by Christian Dior which is very potent,a bottle will last me like five years.The Tommy is also avalible as Tommy girl a citrus/floral scent that my wife likes for casual use.

 

[Kouros]

Spray a mist in front of you then walk through it. Anything more than that and you risk pissing people off.

 

[Boyextraordinare]

Go with Pierre Cardin's PM. It's inexpensive and among the best of the best.

I like the scent of traditional shaving creams but don't feel like they translate well into EDCs -Ts and -Ps for a young guy.

 

[desmoface]

Terre de Hermes is pretty tasty stuff and can be had for around $50 on line.

Steve