At least twice a week on my way to work, I pass a man on the street who is wearing Guerlain Mitsouko. This guy is Asian, young, dressed in “Seattle style” (baggy jeans and a sensible coat and backpack). I want to say “hi” and let him know I like Mitsouko too, but since it’s always 5:30 a.m. when I smell him, I keep quiet. (It would be weird to strike up a conversation about perfume on a dark street with a stranger — at the crack of dawn, especially with the implication: ‘you smell good’ hanging in the air.)

Since I’ve been writing for Now Smell This, LOTS of men have written me wondering why I’m “prejudiced” against men wearing women’s perfumes. I was surprised at this “interpretation” of my articles. Do I sometimes imply men’s colognes are for men and women’s perfumes are for women?

Men who wear “feminine” scents come in many ‘types.’ There’s the natural, confident man who wears what he likes, be it Drakkar Noir or Yves Saint Laurent Paris. Then there’s the exhibitionist/militant who drenches himself in, say, Fracas — and if you don’t ask about his scent, he’ll start flailing his arms and rearranging his scarf (better to disperse the heavy aroma in your direction) and if that fails to elicit a comment, he offers: “Do you like my perfume? It’s Fracas by Robert Piguet…it’s for WOMEN but I love it so….” (Yes, the dialogue is stilted, but often, so is he.) Some men have told me they wear women’s perfumes “at home”…afraid people will get the ‘wrong impression’ if they wear rose-y, tuberose-y scents in public. Then, there are men who do wear women’s perfumes in public, but in miniscule quantity (“a drop only for me to smell”). There’s nothing wrong with any of these “types” and I’ve fallen into all categories except No. 2. (well…perhaps even category No. 2 in my salad days).

One misconception about men who wear women’s perfumes: they’re gay. I’ve known many straight men who wear women’s perfumes…

Read the rest of this article »