Blind date, first date, double date, or the sixth date this month: good impressions count – especially when you’re on the market. Choosing a fragrance for a date is a careful art, demanding a choice that is not only agreeable, but also representative of your unique character. A fragrance for such an occasion needs to be distinctive and memorable. And if all goes well, will be a regular feature that you’ll come to be known by.
Playing it Safe: Safe Date Scents
Every date is filled with uncertainties, and that’s the fun of it. And in the process of getting to know one another – what one loves, likes, and dislikes – we recommend opting for scents with immediately agreeable qualities; tried and true favourites without an overbearing personality.
If you tend to err on the side of caution, where balance and reliability are the utmost principles in your life, then aromatic fougères are a confident classic, with textural and herbal notes of lavender, patchouli, and oakmoss, often enlivened with memorable combinations of citruses, ambery notes, herbs, and spices.
In The Orchid Man (Frapin), an energetic and youthful disposition is achieved with a snappy and punchy top note of spicy black pepper, balanced atop of a sweet-and-sour, hot and cold heart of earthy patchouli, jasmine, and deep lingering oakmoss. It is amiable and sparkles. The total scent is fresh, with an alluring fruit-like sweetness. Its qualities are fun and light-hearted, worked in a way so that it has a serious and profound underside.
For a mature alternative, Cologne Officinale from Heeley vibes within the same aromatic family, at first glance appealing to a classic and mature elegance, taking a beautiful and pure lavender note and sublimating it with herbal notes to turn it into the purest, freshest soap. The quiet opulence of lavender contrasts the rustic texture of these sizzling herbs – moved with a musky freshness. Clean scents are timeless and leave no trace of doubt about its wearer, and are always an appropriate choice.
With Wake Up World (Parle Moi de Parfum), a little goes a long way. It rouses and awakens; sharp and crisp citrus notes work an incredible green apple note that trails down to floral notes and a woody-ambery base. Wake Up World is an astonishing scent – on the limit of what we’d call ‘safe’ as it taps into bold and sexy profiles. It oozes with character within its deeply familiar and time-tested style, with power and longevity ensured with dihydromyrcenol (freshness) and ambroxan (spice) – crossing classic and modern, these popular molecules have an undeniable masculine feeling.
A Dash of Sexiness: Romantic Date Night Scents
We don’t believe in the frou-frou about pheromones and attraction, but we do believe in a dash of sexiness that certain perfumes seem to have innately. There’s no beating around the bush here: make your choice a sexy choice.
Musk fragrances are typically touted as alluring due to their sensual aromatic profile. Milky Musk (Parle Moi de Parfum) is like a second skin made of musk and smooth sandalwood, hugging the wearer in a blanket of palpable softness. It is textured like suede, and surprises with the softness and generosity of an attractive fig note in its heart. It is romantic and gentle, like a blanket of scent meant to be shared.
Dirty Rice from BTSO works on a similar basis, but derives its muskiness from an image of creaminess. Almond, basmati rice, and milk notes produce a sense of calmness: these ingredients form a tender impression then excited by something disruptive – an ambery wood inflection that is a little mysterious, and definitely alluring. A sort of lure that pulls you in closer.
Warm spices and smooth ambers also have a cuddly and attractive quality, often with a bit more edge. L’Air du Désert Marocain (Tauer Perfumes) plays with the intimate and almost bodily aroma of cumin, textural amber, and spicy-cool coriander seed, surrounding the wearer in a beautiful glow of warm and attractive scent, grounded in the humming depth of Texan cedar wood. It is not only sophisticated, but has an almost primordial quality of attractiveness that instantly pleases with its smell. One whiff, and everything about L’Air du Desert Marocain is instantly understood.
Bois Imperial (Essential Parfums) offers a similar wood-and-spice effect that energises and inspires. Its formula is simple but effective, as it elongates woody effects so that they last forever, wrapping around these vertical structures beautifully spicy aromatics of Nepalese timut pepper, which sparkles with a grapefruit-like tone, and anisic and snappy Thai basil. This is a peppy fragrance as its notes move in a glorious flurry. Bois is a contradiction in operation, it is a hollow yet deep black colour, that you can’t help but sink into.
Distinction and Character: Bold Date Night Scents
Bold needn’t be brazen nor brash. And although now’s not the time to try out that bombastic new leather fragrance, even the boldest ingredients soften up in the right context. Boldness signifies confidence, self-possession, and decisiveness.
If you’re an oud fan, Parle Moi de Parfum’s Papyrus Oud is a favourite, treating the oud note with a crisp freshness, as it meets the brilliant evocation of green woodland with pine and cedar. With a dose of incense, ginger, and earthy dry papyrus, Papyrus Oud is chic and unexpected. It retains its remarkable and distinct character, but works it into a form that is addictive and deeply attractive.
One is sure to stand out - in all the right ways - with MEM from Bogue. The scent is expressive and radiant, exuding with a complex lavender feature that is both familiar yet completely innovative, delightfully strange but not unapproachable. It showcases a creative side, politely daring as it takes lavender into places it seldom belongs. Its comforting aspects fuse with a rousing heart that crosses impressions of clay, earth, and mineral, softened with fruit tones and incense. To be interesting and compelling at once - MEM achieves this with style.
Our fragrance choices can definitely vibe with the location of the date. Take, for instance, Corpse Reviver (FZOTIC) which gains its name from the potent cocktail – it’s an ode to the decadent viscosity of syrup and liqueur, a blast of caramel, chocolate, and amaro notes contrasted with blood orange, rosemary, and some animalics for good measure. Yes, it’s bold, but if the date consists of Speakeasys, Blue Blazers, and single malt Scotch – it becomes obligatory.
The Final Word
Confidence First
Confidence is (always) key, and we believe fragrance builds into confidence, but will never stand-in for it. On that, sexiness will always start with impeccable hygiene, and from cleanliness and presentation sprouts confidence. Ensure the malodorous is dealt with by way of an excellent deodorant, toothpaste, and body wash, providing an excellent canvas for consequent scenting. Our ‘No-Fuss’ Kit covers all of the essential aspects.
How Much to Apply?
Be sensible – and allow your scent to become a part of your personality, and not stand-in for it! We suggest a few sprays to the front and back of the neck, which is the area most exposed to the air. A spritz on the wrist wouldn’t go astray either.
Things to Avoid
Like a first date at a shellfish restaurant or ordering a dish packed with garlic, some scents are best left in the wardrobe. Keep the experimental and the challenging fragrances for personal savouring; steer clear of overt animalics, leathers, and ouds