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New Girlfriend doesn't like my cologne - need some "clean" smelling recommendations

Sounds like she might have something specific in mind. Why not ask her, or if you have asked her, what did she say exactly except for "clean smelling." It is hard to guess at someone else might like in a frag.

The fact that she does not like Aventus is throwing me, too. It is not my favorite frag, but my sense would have been that it was nearly universally popular among younger folks. Actually, just how young are we talking? How old are you? Maybe she is thinking something like Le Male or Sauvage. I guess I would put Bleu de Chanel in there, too. Those are scents of a particular type to me, which I suppose someone might describe as clean smelling, even if I would not necessarily do so, that have been hugely popular in, say, the recent decade. To me the have been somewhat overplayed, and to wear them might risk seeming out of date.

And, no, I would not think Cool Water.

A trip to the local frag shop with her might well be in order, but I personally find it difficult to pick out frags to actually buy based on sampling them at a fragrance counter. The way they evolve after being applied for some time is more important than fleeting top notes, and that is hard to judge for multiple scents at a time.

Check out You Tube maybe for what might be currently popular among younger people that is described as clean smelling.
I know Coolwater gets a lot of hate, but ironically its the only frag I have that had random people saying “what smells so good” when they walked by me.
 
Much like the title says, I have a new (younger) girlfriend who doesn't like my Creed Aventus (and my FINE Platinum for that matter). She likes 'clean' smelling colognes if that helps and I'm open to not super expensive recommendations that aren't "Cool Water"

Thanks!

My recommendation?

Move on.

You have two choices:
- option a) change fragrance.
- option b) change girlfriend.

Consider that sometimes, when the “other half” tries to change a partner’s behaviour(s) at an early stage of a relationship, the overall best option before it gets worse is b). :sneaky2:

Of course, as I don’t know Creed Aventus, she might be right, in which case a) would apply… :001_cool:


B.
 
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I know Coolwater gets a lot of hate, but ironically its the only frag I have that had random people saying “what smells so good” when they walked by me.

I got it in the 80s when it was new and I was a school kid. I still wear it to this day and get similar feedback. Probably because of that early exposure, I like it better than Green Irish Tweed. In fact, whenever I smell GIT, my first reaction is that someone's Cool Water has gone bad.
 
Scents can be polarizing or overbearing, some people are sensitive to them, also. Sometimes, the best scent is just "clean", as in freshly showered. Maybe save the colognes for special occasions.
 

Mike M

...but this one IS cracked.
I would agree with someone of the other posters. Find a preferably busy department store with a good fragrance selection and get her to try some fragrances out. Whilst she's doing that slip out a side entrance and get away as fast as you can whilst she's distracted.
My OH has said "ooh I like that" when sniffing samples and then as soon as I purchase it and have it on it's "what on earth is that"
 

musicman1951

three-tu-tu, three-tu-tu
I have two suggestions.

1. Make a list from all the suggestions and load up on the smallest sized samples available. Noses are very individual things and it's impossible to predict which ones she'll like without putting some on your wrist and letting it react with your metabolism.

2. Go to a Sephora (at just about any big mall) or big department store and spray samplers until you hit a winner. This is my number 2 as I always find it difficult to differentiate scents after 6-8 samples. Do not spray these on your skin unless you're only going to try two - one on each wrist. You're going to have a hard time figuring out the result of the dry down scent after the top and heart notes have dissipated, but clean scent (whatever that means) is likely to draw you to more linear colognes anyway. Acqua Di Parma Colonia would be on my sample list.

 

Ron R

I survived a lathey foreman
Ach Brito Lavanda cologne aftershave, nice non aggressive with some staying strength scent that should not offend to many folks.
Here are my thoughts I gave on my thread on Lavanda if it helps you!

Ach Brito Lavanda cologne aftershave, I use this as a aftershave mostly in a misting small 50ml bottle, it has a wonderful scent of lavender and a slight mint twist to it with my sense of smell. It comes in a 6OZ bottle and it has been one of my favorites for a nice relaxing scent that has some staying strength that lasts a long time when misted mid arm for testing. According to the Guru's of fragrance it has top notes of citrus , lavender mid note and woody notes for base if that helps some one. This Lavanda scent was made in 1929 and it just works and is pleasant with some projection but should not offend folks in close qtrs or office setting I'm thinking. It comes with no restrictor so care needs to be done for less spillage (little funnel I use for filling my small misting bottle ).
The Lavanda cream shaving soap is very good with nice scent with excellent lather qualities + also and matches the splash scent wise. Very enjoyable combination of shaving cream and Cologne splash.
Price: I bought mine a few years ago and it was around $29 Canadian but I recently checked prices and they have gone upwards considerably lately but deals can still be had. Lavanda shaving cream tube is around $11 Canadian dollars .
Ach Brito Colonge aftershave.jpg


Ach Brito Colonge aftershave 2- 50ml.jpg

Have some great shaves!
 
Ach Brito Lavanda cologne aftershave, nice non aggressive with some staying strength scent that should not offend to many folks.
Here are my thoughts I gave on my thread on Lavanda if it helps you!

Ach Brito Lavanda cologne aftershave, I use this as a aftershave mostly in a misting small 50ml bottle, it has a wonderful scent of lavender and a slight mint twist to it with my sense of smell. It comes in a 6OZ bottle and it has been one of my favorites for a nice relaxing scent that has some staying strength that lasts a long time when misted mid arm for testing. According to the Guru's of fragrance it has top notes of citrus , lavender mid note and woody notes for base if that helps some one. This Lavanda scent was made in 1929 and it just works and is pleasant with some projection but should not offend folks in close qtrs or office setting I'm thinking. It comes with no restrictor so care needs to be done for less spillage (little funnel I use for filling my small misting bottle ).
The Lavanda cream shaving soap is very good with nice scent with excellent lather qualities + also and matches the splash scent wise. Very enjoyable combination of shaving cream and Cologne splash.
Price: I bought mine a few years ago and it was around $29 Canadian but I recently checked prices and they have gone upwards considerably lately but deals can still be had. Lavanda shaving cream tube is around $11 Canadian dollars .
Ach Brito Colonge aftershave.jpg


Ach Brito Colonge aftershave 2- 50ml.jpg

Have some great shaves!
1000001401.jpg
 
I am not usually this sexist, but this thread is beginning to remind me of what, in my experience, often happens when one asks their wife or girlfriend where they would like to eat dinner. What often follows is me searching my brain for possible options and making multiple suggestions, never knowing if I am coming closer to something she might be in the mood for.

I on the other hand usually know exactly what I would like.

Have her figure out what scent she likes--she can go around to perfume counters at various stores or whatever or ask Chad, the guy she would rather be dating :). what he wears--and then buy and use that scent! I am not a big believer in scents smelling different on different people, by the way, owing to the interaction of the person's own chemistry with the secent.

Saying it is a fool's errand to try to divine what scent a woman might most like sounds too harsh and derogatory, but one could spend a lot of time trying to figure out what a younger woman really wants in any domain!

A younger girl keeps a rolling 'cross my mind
No matter how hard I try I can't seem to leave her memory behind
I remember her eyes soft, dark, and brown
Said she'd never been in trouble or even in town
A younger girl keeps a rolling cross my mind
 
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