Wet shaving is bad enough, now obsessed with fragrance, where to start?!?!

[FreddyKruegerFace]

Well here it goes, been obsessed over different creams,soaps and aftershaves for the past few months when I discovered the wet shaving world.

I have quite the newbie collection of creams, soaps and aftershaves (my favs being proraso red, tobs Mr. Taylor and capts. choise bay rum/speick as)

Unfortunately the speick edc was not for me (you may have seen I shipped it to Kooze for free in an older thread). I have been looking on this forum for quite sometime and can not decide which fragrances to start with, the variety is oerwhelming.

I am looking for 4-5 reasonably priced fragrances, 2 fit for the heat and outdoors (I serve and protect for a living) and 2-3 for casual wear. I am willing to try anything that wont break the bank and enjoy all varieties.

Lets say you gents pick frags and I will report back with how they work out after a few weeks of test and eval! Why not have a little fun with it right? BnB you stole my heart

 

[waine]

Hi there

If you want an awesome website to explore and learn about the wonderful world of perfumes, visit and become a member of www.fragrantica.com I am a member there and I highly recommend it as a lover of fragrance myself.

 

[Quintar]

you're saying you are going to buy 4 or 5 bottles of fragrances? or you'll sample them and then buy 1 or 2 if you like them?
I'd definitely recommend trying out samples before you buy bottles.

check out archerfire or gary or rickboone's sample sales on here...

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/299448-Archerfire-Decants-Independence-Day-Sale!!
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...idge-Shaving-Soap-Split?p=4170066#post4170066
http://stinkandstain.weebly.com/

you might want to give some examples of fragrances you like or hate so we can get an idea of where you are at...
or check out the wetshaver's favorites category that archerfire has listed

 

[FreddyKruegerFace]

Thanks for the links!

I really prefer more of the manly musk/leather/wood/pepper frags, but they dont feel right for my line of work
I also enjoy citrus/spicy/herbal frags as well as fern

I will not wear anything overly pungent or sweet (the newer speick edc is like my kryptonite)

 

[Lamb Root]

L'occitan is a manly wood/pepper and I think it's very agreeable for work, clean and simple. You can try that. It's not even that expensive.

 

[jakespoppy]

Welcome to the fragrance forum! Not all great frags have to break the bank. Last year we discussed great frags for less than $20 in the thread below:

Good fragrance for under $20?

We also discussed which frags are "must try" frags in this thread:

"Ten Must Try Fragrances" Lists

So here's a few thoughts for you:

1. A great frag doesn't have to be expensive.
2. A great frag doesn't have to be the latest release, some have been around for a long time.
3. Read as much as you can about frags to learn which you might enjoy. Getting suggestions here is great.
4. Sample as many as possible; sample by wearing, you can't tell much spraying cologne on a paper strip.
5. No one but you can decide which frags you think are great. YMMV us more true here than anywhere.
6. Enjoy the journey!

 

[blantyre]

basenotes.com is a good resource. But be warned - they have reviews of >12,000 frags. Considering that a high end frag can cost almost as much as an ivory handled shaving brush, the potential cost of this hobby is unlimited. At least with brushes, you kind of saturate after a dozen or two (Dr. P excepted).

The best place to start is to read a few reviews, find some things that sound good and get samples from Archerfire or one of the commercial outfits. In general lighter more citrusy one for warm weather and heavier more leathery one for cooler weather but there are no hard and fast rules. Depending on you budget, *** might pay to buy a Penhaligons sampler, but 6-10 samples, and get a few freebies. This would cover a lot of ground for <$100.

 

[ShaveThis]

I too have decided to dive into the fragrance world and have found that learning about razors, soaps, creams, etc. was easy compared to fragrances.
The variety is endless (or so it seems) and complex. But this forum will indeed guide and help you. Great folks here.

Quinta's suggestion to use our (at least my) 3 favorite B&B sample vendors is the best way to go IMHO. They saved me hundreds of dollars buying something I don't like and I get to try almost everything for little money.
Jakespoppy's thread suggestions will certainly help you too. Like Prego: It's all in there. His #'s 1 to 6 about sums it all up too.

Dive in and good luck!

 

[Schad]

Just start using an electric shaver so you can focus all your efforts on the fragrances.

 

[Renato1]

What is reasonably priced depends very much on where you live in the world. USA is the best, we do relatively well in Australia, but discounting is practically non existent in the parts of Europe I've visited. At Basenotes there is the ongoing "Spotted at Marshall's" thread which highlights the real fragrance bargains at that store.

Anyhow, if you want to come to grips with fragrance, it helps to study fragrance classification systems.
You can get one by downloading the H&R Chart from the Leffingwell site at
http://www.leffingwell.com/h&rfragrance/poster_genealogie_masculin.pdf
Another classification system is at the OsMoz site in the Olfactory Groups section.
http://www.osmoz.com/Encyclo/Olfactory-groups
Michael Edwards uses another system which he uses in his book, and is cited at various perfume sites.

While there is a lot of commonality between the systems, they do vary in interesting ways - for example, the Ambery Fougere classification in the H&R Chart is instantly recognizable to me, and I'm instantly drawn to them, while other classification systems shove them in with Fresh Orientals or some other category.

You'll find that if you just use your nose to guide your buying, the scents you pick will often only come from one or two fragrance categories - and then you may get a bit bored with your initial selection. But if you deliberately pick from across the various categories, that's unlikely to happen.
Regards,
Renato

 

[erickson]

Based on your tastes, here are a few for your consideration:

Borsari Acqua Classica
Notes: Citruses, Geranium, Sandalwood, Oak, Musk
$27 for 100ml bottle

D R Harris Windsor
Notes: Citrus, Leather, Black Pepper, Vetiver
$5 for 5ml decant
$33 for 100ml bottle

Eastwest Bottlers Moonshine
Notes: Black Pepper, Tobacco, Leather, Gin, Patchouli
$4 for 1ml sample
$72 for 100ml bottle

 

[Matt555]

Just start using an electric shaver so you can focus all your efforts on the fragrances.

 

[Niles]

Some well-known wetshaving brands make scents: Tabac, Old Spice, Alt Innsbruck, DR Harris. You might want to start there. Otherwise sample, sample, and sample some more. Enjoy!

 

[michiganlover]

I just wanted to second the suggestions to not overlook the "classics". There are tons of fragrances that cost very little coin, that will still allow you to smell great.

In fact having sampled a few higher end fragrances lately, I am fully convinced that for me they are simply not worth it.

I sampled the much raved about Green Irish Tweed, and vastly prefer the (way way) cheaper Aspen, and Cool Water.

Some things to explore in the value category: Avon fragrances (Wild Country, and Black Suede are classics), Bath and Body Works Signature Men's Collection (Oak rocks!!), Canoe, English Leather, Pierre Cardin, Paul Sebastien PS (like a more complex Old Spice), Mcgraw, and Mcgraw Southern Blend (who doesn't want to smell like Tim Mcgraw? lol), Steston, Aqua Velva Musk, Clubman (technically it's an aftershave, but it has a lot of staying power) and many many others.

Seriously, the Avon, and Bath Body Works fragrances are hard to beat: Avon is often 2 for $22, and the Bath and Body Works (when on Buy One Get One Free Sale) is a mere $15 a bottle. All of them are big 3.4oz bottles too!!

If you are not hugely concerned about longevity, the classic aftershaves like Aqua Velva Ice Blue, Skin Bracer, Old Spice, Old Spice Fresh, Florida Water, and Brut are great too.

 

[FreddyKruegerFace]

Thank you all very much, ive got some samples in mind already I will order from the sellers you provided

Erickson, thank you for the help, I am extremely interested in the moonshine frag you mentioned.

 

[CHSeifert]

4-5 bottles, and you say you're obsessed with fragrances, come onnnn

I have currently 308 fragrances in my collection - and it grows slowly but steadily.

I have 52 shaving creams, 12 shaving brushes and 7 DE razors - so there you go

Fragrance collecting can be VERY VERY addicting - trust me on this !

 

[FreddyKruegerFace]

Errrrrrrrr, only 308?

 

[Niles]

Errrrrrrrr, only 308?

This thread is awesome.

 

[Schad]

Start with dior homme, then work up to dior homme intense, then find the original versions of DH and DHI, then you can move on to the private collection by dior. Can also try the classic by dior such as eau sauvage and fahrenheit.

We welcome you to the Dior family with open arms.....

 

[jakespoppy]

Start with dior homme, then work up to dior homme intense, then find the original versions of DH and DHI, then you can move on to the private collection by dior. Can also try the classic by dior such as eau sauvage and fahrenheit.

We welcome you to the Dior family with open arms.....

Umm, Schad, you don't have any affiliation with Dior that you might need to disclose, do you?