Love is in the air

I recently came upon an article that tackled the interrelation of scents and sex. According to a test, individuals who wore fragrance on a regularly basis were 35 percent more likely to get laid than those who did not. It also said 84 percent of those surveyed preferred to have sex with those who wore a nice fragrance rather than those who wore no fragrance at all.

Being aware of these facts — and being quite the active single male myself — made me think of stocking up on my favorite colognes and scented products for a lifetime. After all, who doesn’t want to get laid more?

Valentine’s Day is one occasion when guys and gals spend a considerable amount of time primping and grooming for that hope-to-be-hot date.  Given how powerful the human pheromone (or sexual scent of attraction) is, one should give a lot of thought to smelling as fantastic as possible.

In trying to attract the opposite (or same) sex, I think a lot of us can learn from the animal kingdom. Many animals succeed by trying to smell as individual as possible. On a night out, I always find it more attractive if the individual doesn’t smell like every other person who’s bought the latest designer fragrance.

Rustan’s and Essenses carries a number of boutique scents that are sure to make you stand out from the lot.

Acqua Di Parma

Nothing smells quite like the old Italian classic Acqua Di Parma. Its signature scent, Acqua Di Parma Colonia, holds a permanent space on my dresser. Over 90 years old, Acqua di Parma’s Colonia (no doubt tweaked over the decades) still smells “modern” and its packaging design is both decorous (black-and-white labels with simple lettering and the royal coat of arms of Parma, Italy) and lively (easy-to-spot, bright golden-yellow boxes and wrapping).

Rarely does a smell make me think of a color, but smelling Colonia brings to mind the “gold” of its packaging; when I spray on Colonia, I think of bright sunshine on a brisk summer morning. As Colonia develops, its scent softens and lingers lightly.

Monotheme

Monotheme’s relatively new on the fragrance market. Created in Venice, the company’s line focuses on products that create very unique fragrances. The perfumes were created to be especially long-lasting. Monotheme’s packaging is evocative of old apothecary charm.

The line’s White Tea Eau de The Blanc pour Femme and Macchia Mediterranea Eau Mediterranean pour homme are two scents that you can easily distinguish even after sampling a horde of scents at a parfumerie. White Tea has sharp floral notes with spicy undertones while Machchia Mediterranea’s scent reminds you of an herbal field in full summer bloom.

Acca Kappa

Acca Kappa’s been manufacturing fine quality bath and beauty care products since 1869.  It creates its lines using three basic principles — clean design, high-quality production and selected materials. Its product line includes fragrances, scented candles, men’s grooming products such as its high-quality shaving brush, blade holder and hairbrushes. 

I’ve personally been using Acca Kappa’s Cedra Cologne for a few years now. I love it as a day or weekend scent because of its light fragrance and easygoing floral and spicy notes.

Its new Calycanthus line, which includes body fragrances and a charming scented candle, is derived from the essence of the flower of the same name and blended with notes of jasmin, orange blossom, honey and musk.

Apivita

Apivita started as a pharmacy in Greece that offered effective natural solutions for a number of skin problems. Its original line, called Dermoline, went on to become known as Propoline and expanded to include fragrances. 

Its Energy Eau De Toilette uses ginger and other natural herbs to create a scent that not only smells great on the skin but has high aromatherapy properties to relax and reduce stress.

Apivita also has a baby and kid’s line that can also be used by adults who prefer very gentle scents. The Apivita Propoline Kids Natural Splash for Boys and Girls is created with essential oils of orange, geranium and lavender.

Clean

In the desire to create a scent that was reminiscent of pure soap and that instant “fresh out of the shower” scent, Randi Shiver created Clean Perfume in 2003. As its name implies, Clean smells just like that — fresh, simple and undiluted.

Clean is produced in small quantities to make sure that all ingredients are fresh, pure and of the highest quality.

The Clean Men fragrance is as close as you can get to smelling like a guy who’s just stepped out of a nice shower. Actor James McAvoy swears by it. The formula is a sexy blend of ruby red grapefruit, English lavender, wild raspberry, clove, lime, patchouli and just enough musk to give the scent its subtle masculinity.

Diptyque

I’ve been a fan of Diptyque’s line of candles ever since a friend gave me a Diptyque Lavender candle. To date, it has created over 53 different scents. It’s one of the few high-quality scented candles out there that don’t just smell aromatic for the first hour. Diptyque’s candles are known to smell as long as the wax is still burning — way beyond 30 hours. It’s always great to come home to a room that smells great. It should be de rigueur for any Casanova to light up a nice scented candle to raise the romance factor.

Diptyque also has its Eau De Toilette line, simply called Eau. Based on a 17th-century potpourri and clove pomander recipe, Eau became an instant classic with its Old World scent and distinctive herbal notes.

Cheers!

 All brands are available at Rustan’s Department Stores and Essenses at Rustan’s

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E-mail me at djmontano@pacific.net.ph.