This post is dedicated to all of the masucline perfumes that I enjoy smelling on men and not myself. I wear many masculine fragrances. I think Dior Homme, Caron Pour Un Homme and Chanel Pour Monsieur are some of the best masculines ever. BUT I wear these myself. This list is dedicated to those masculines that I absolutely adore and wouldn’t wear on myself. Why wouldn’t I wear them? They are just too darn masculine and “manly” for me. This are the ones I want to smell on a man.
1 – Halston Z-14 (1976)- This is my favorite masculine to smell on men. It’s strong, it’s powerful and it’s not cliché. Here’s my review. And you can find this for dirt cheap at discounters like Fragrancenet. It’s very easy to find a 4.2 oz bottle retailing for under $25.
2 – Dior Fahrenheit (1988) – Half of my love for this fragrance is that this is what my husband wore before we were married. I associate it with him. The other half of my love for this is that it is good. I love the aquatic oiliness in this. It reminds me of ferry terminals (in a good way). The 1.7 retails for $57 at Sephora.
3 – Ralph Lauren Polo (in the green – 1978) – I love this stuff. My image of it is a salad with thousand island dressing with patchouli bacon bits. The description sounds odd; it is an odd description. But, seriously, this stuff is irresistible. The 2 oz spray retails for $56 at Sephora.
4 – Chanel Antaeus (1981) – Give me moss and I’ll be happy! Give me a super masculine moss over labdanum and beeswax and I’ll be smitten. The 3.4 oz spray retails for $75 at Nordstrom.
5 – Caron Yatagan (1976)- Weird, herbal, and animalic. Confession – I wear this. BUT it smells so much better on men. And you can find it for a steal on discounters like Fragrancenet. You can often find it in the $40 range.
6 – Jacomo de Jacomo (1980) – Dark, spicy, aromatic, woody, oh, and smoky. Here’s more proof that you don’t need to spend a fortune to smell awesome. The 3.4 oz bottle retails for like $25 at Drugstore.com.
7 – Hermès Équipage (1980) – It’s boss. This is money. I’d be the trophy wife of this one. It’s spicy, woody, elegant. The 3.4 oz retails for $120 at Nordstrom.
8 – Chanel Égoïste (1990) – This always been what I thought hot guys wore. The type of guy that can wear a crewneck under a suit and has a head full of perfect wavy dark hair. This is one of those cocky, confident scents. The 3.4 oz retails for $75 at Nordstrom.
9 – Aramis Devon (1978) – A green, leathery chypre. It’s viewed as the “country” fragrance in the Aramis line-up. It’s the type of romantic that would take you for a picnic in the countryside on the back of his vintage Triumph motorcycle. The 3.4 oz retails for $50 at Nordstrom.
10 – Hermès Bel Ami (1976) – This is like a sophisticated leather only used in yachts I’ll never set foot in. I often joke that Bel Ami is my “sugar daddy” fragrance. It’s a more mature, super wealthy guy fragrance. I love it. The 3.4 oz retails for $120 at Nordstrom.
11 – Yves Saint Laurent Kouros (1981) – Kouros is a powerhouse. It’s loud, it’s dirty with leather and animalic honey. It has moss. It reminds me of those ancient Greek statues of the perfect man wrestling other perfect men. It’s stylized but raunchy like that. Get this while you can. You can still find it for a decent price at Fragrancenet.
12 – Caron Le 3ème Homme (1985) – This is a strong, 80’s masculine. So much is going on in it and it really is one that wears differently on different people. It’s just wonderful. Here’s my review. And yes, you can find it at discounters like Fragrancenet. Once again, you can find it for around $40.
After making this list, I’m left with a few conclusions:
- You do not have to spend a fortune to smell good. Most of these retail for under $100. Many are in the $50 and under range.
- I have “old man” tastes in perfumes. All of these were launched before 1990. I seem to like men’s fragrances from the late 1970’s to early 1980’s. See the next bullet.
- I think I like these older fragrances for a few reasons: They were good and I like leather and moss. Men’s fragrances weren’t clean, aquatic messes. They were “manly”. And the other reason is that these scents were before my time, so I have not smelled them on every guy my age, lack of over saturation, so these seem “new” to me.
Gentleman – Which fragrances do you get compliments on? If you have a significant other, what do they seem to like?
Ladies – Which masculine fragrances do you love but wouldn’t wear because they seem too masculine OR they seem to work better on men?
I wear six of these ten, which must be why the ladies just can’t resist me. 🙄 Compliments? Chanel Pour Monsieur, Frederic Malle Editions de Parfums Cologne Bigarade, Serge Lutens Five O’Clock Au Gingembre (all the “nice”-smelling things I have). The woman likes Puredistance M best.
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Disclaimer – Posted by somebody that has been in the same relationship for over 10 years. I think men should be hairy and I prefer the anti-social dorky ones. I’m not really good at painting the portrait for the ideal.
Those are all compliment worthy. And they are all what I would wear. When I smell Puredistance M, I smell the $$$s. Ladies like $$$s.
No, you’re totally right: all men SHOULD be hairy and dorky!
haha, Good to know that I’m not the only one that thinks this.
This is a fantastic list!
And there’s even one on it I’ve never tried before! 😉
Which one?
actually to be honest:
– I’ve never really smelled Bel Ami but it has been on my radar for some time
– I’ve never even heard of Jacomo de Jacomo
– I can’t place Aramis Devon (but Havana, regular Aramis, Tuscany, JHL – yes. They’re all great.)
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Bel Ami – Try it. It’s a little sweet and I could live without the lemon top (but that’s if I was wearing it). It’s good as is.
Jacomo de Jacomo – It’s slightly menacing. It can be so many things clove cigarette ashes, a mechanic’s shop, but it’s different and I like it. Try Silences while you’re at it.
Aramis Devon – Top is a bit harsh but then it gets really, really good. One can’t go wrong with any of those Aramis scents.
I bought one of these for my sweetie for V-Day! Not saying which until I give it to him, though!
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🙂 now I’m dying to know! Whatever it is, I must think it’s good! Have a great Valentine’s Day!
Le 3eme Homme! I think he likes it. I love that he’s so willing to try new things and share my hobby. <3
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Good choice!
That is cool. My husband could care less. I mean not that he’s completely apathetic. He has opinions. He just won’t be my tester anymore. He likes to stick to a few things.
I love but cannot wear English Leather or Joop! For Men.
I like wearing Stetson, though, which a, lot of women won’t wear.
Oh, Joop! That’s one that I can’t wear. It’s too much for me.
I’ve never tried English Leather or Stetson on my skin. But, I do love Grey Flannel, many women seem to like wearing it.
A former boyfriend of mine wore Stetson, so it smells like “guy” to me.
I need to smell Stetson again.
After reading this I want to go smell Ralph Lauren Polo! And now I’m hungry too.
Haha, well smell it! I never picked up on all of the patchouli in it until recently. It uses a lot of it!
I think this is your best video review yet, and I’m so not knowledgeable about masculines that most of these are not ones I’ve smelled. Thanks for posting!
Thank you.
I think many of us don’t give a hoot about masculines as females because so many are the same! It’s like aquatic after aquatic and maybe a citrus.
Fahrenheit has been my favourite for ages. It would still be, if it hadn’t been reformulated. I think that Fahrenheit Absolute is closer to the wonderful original, even if different in its components.
Egoiste is too sweet for my taste… too much candied fruit.
As for masculines, I usually dislike them. Feminine or unisex are generally more daring and interesting…
Reformulated Fahrenheit is sad, but even the reformulated stuff is better than most mainstream masculines.
Most modern mainstream masculines aren’t worth the time. They are all boring copies of each other. I hate that fake citrus, aquatic, woody messes that are so popular.
*And to be fair about Egoiste, I have a feeling that if I wore it, it’d give me a headache. But, I like to smell it on others!
Nice to see that we agree. I have a lot of respect for your opinions.
Thank you.
Thanks for the list! I’ve really only been interested in masculines as something for my spouse – and, these days, my tween/young teen sons – to wear. Egoiste is terrific, and Dior Homme Sport smells great on The CEO, and I just bought him Gres Cabaret (the women’s, ssssshhhhhh! Decanted it into a plain bottle instead of that Vegasy thing) which is actually rather sexy on him, all spice and musk.
My daughter’s boyfriend currently wears True Religion for Men, which, surprisingly, is NOT an aquatic, and further surprisingly, is beloved by all the other girls in the HS band too. (When I was chaperoning during marching season I heard a lot of “Wow, that smells really good,” and “Mmmm, Brock just walked through here.”) It’s a citrusy aromatic fougere, and it isn’t loud the way some aromatic fougeres can be, announcing its entrance before the wearer, but it’s persistent.
I bought my elder son cKOne Shock for Him for Christmas – it’s something like Egoiste on a 13-year-old’s budget.
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Haha, I trick my husband too by giving him decants of “feminine” stuff. But, right now all he is wearing is LUSH Karma, DSH Perfumes Ancient Air and the new Odin #7
I’ve smelled True Religion and I agree that it is nice. Which was a huge surprise! I also tried Juicy Couture Dirty English and it’s surprisingly good too. (It’d be amazing if they used more of the budget towards ingredients.) My hope is that those boring aquatics are falling out of style. I think we’ll see more fougeres. Or that is my wish.
Oh, CKOne Shock for Him! That’s a great one! I recommend it to all of those guys with a limited budget. It did shock me. I couldn’t believe that I liked it!
I happily wear Egoiste myself, but some of the masculines I’d much rather smell on my homme’s chest than my own are Third Man and Paco Rabanne pour Homme (the drydown of this one is the smell I most associate with him). He rocks fougeres and really strong patchouli better’n me.
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The fruits in Egoiste make it wearable, I think. It doesn’t smell so great on me but I could see it working for some ladies.
It’s so funny because I own a few of these. Husband doesn’t wear them. He hates moss and says I have old people tastes. I use them as room sprays. I’d be so delighted if he wore Third Man. And I need to try Paco Rabanne Pour Homme. It seems like something I’d dig.
Paco Rabanne smells terrible on my skin — both really soapy and really animalic! On my BF it smells a bit soapy at first but then morphs into sweet, musky leather. So good!
I also like Chergui more on him than on me.
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I think Chergui is one of those that smells better on men than me. But, I still wear it because it doesn’t smell horrible. It seems more muted on me, if that makes sense.
😀 Great post. Egoiste is one of the first bottles I’ve ever bought. Its funny – as much as I love Egoiste and Pour Monsieur – I’ve never tried Antaeus. Guess I know what’s on my sample list for next time I am at the mall.
And in reply to the first guy’s post – Puredistance M does attract attention as a manly smell.. so does Frederic Mall Musc Ravageur. I have a feeling that these two didn’t make the list because Victoria wears them 🙂
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I could see you liking Antaeus just for the fact that it projects like a mofo and is loud but in a good loud way.
It’s true! I tried to leave those out that I wear. I plan on doing my favorite fragrances for men (including those like that) and my favorite feminine fragrances for men. So many things marketed towards women can easily be worn by men. You know that!
You are so old fashioned when it comes to men smelling good…! I love that! You have an amazing lineup of fragrances for your male readers. I believe one of the reasons I have turned mostly to niche perfumes is because modern masculine releases lack the oomph! If you get a chance try Loewe Essencia and Van Gils. Cheap and gorgeous.
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I like some more “modern” stuff but I find that I often wear the more modern, niche stuff. Mainstream modern masculines are usually terrible. I think that is why so many guys get into niche, what they have available at the department store is boring and without a soul.
I do need to try those!
Some great frags for sure. I want to like 3rd Man, but have a problem with the strong juniper berry. Here are some that I love (from the good old days):
Guerlain: Mouchoir de Monsieur. Hairy brother of Jicky. Especially great dirty opening.
Pierre Cardin Pour Monsieur. Wonderful. This precedes Creed’s Bois du Portugal (blatant copy, I tell you).
Guerlain: Derby. Too complex for me to describe, other than: heaven (opens citrusy but goes quickly into spicy woody).
Thank you for commenting!
I have not tried Mouchoir de Monsieur but you make it sound awesome. Nor have I tried Cardin Pour Monsieur. I love Bois du Portugal but my husband refuses to wear it 🙁 Those are now on my to-try list.
I have a teeny bit of vintage Derby. I treat it like gold. It’s everything I think a masculine fragrance should be.
good review! helpful! glk! wat do u think of hugo boss number one and santal nobel, and polo safari! u r review! thanks!
I have not tried Hugo Boss Number One. But I love Santal Nobile and Polo Safari. I really feel Safari is an underrated fragrance. It needs more love!
My daily driver: 1903 by J Peterman. I always get compliments on this from men (straight) and women. Woody, masculine, simple. Fresh scent that has a synergy with my own sweat, so it works well.
My special occasion: Bois du Portugal by Creed. The drydown on this is insane. Powdery and old school. It feels sexy.
Bottomline: YOU have to be able to stand the smell on you hours later. If you do and you like it, go for it!
I haven’t tried 1903, sounds like one worth sniffing.
OK, so I love Bois de Portugal but it is wayyy too masculine for me to feel comfortable wearing. Too butch. So, I had my husband try it. He hated it. We were out one weekend and he cut the night short so he could go home and scrub it off! What a big baby…anyway. I use it as room spray because I love the smell and can’t wear it. And hubs for some reason hates it, so yeah, it’s my expensive sexy smelling room spray.
Hi Victoria, Enjoyed this piece about masculine fragrance. Whats your take on Rose overnotes for men? I am a dude, and love fragrances which has a Rose smell in its shadow, such as Ungaro 3(masterpiece) and Rose d’Homme by Parfums de Rosine(sensual). 3rd man is a classic, brilliant from start to finish, but I prefer Pour Un Homme which is similar and better composed. Cedar note in 3rd man man, is too dry and heavy.
I LOVE rose in men’s fragrances and I think it is a sophisticated choice for any man. In my opinion, it displays confidence and self-assurance.
It sounds like you have rose covered in your collection. I agree that all of those are very well constructed and fit a need in any fragrance wardrobe.
Pour Une Homme is very nice but I excluded it from this list as I find myself sometimes wearing it because I find it so comforting. (I agree that is smoother than 3rd Man). 3rd Man was added instead because it is one I enjoy smelling but find it too masculine for myself.
I love both, and yes PUH is Georgia on my Mind- Ray Charles…. Rose is all brilliance for both men and women. My pick 1 is Guerlain Nahema, sultry and dirty rose.. my guilty pleasure. I am glad you still stick to these oldies, as woman nowadays only fantasize imaginary ocean, fruit berries and Tide. Thanks for your quick response.
#1 rose for me is Nahema. Gorgeous. I’m a huge rose fan but Nahema is “the rose”. I flirt with so many, but I must have Nahema in my collection.
If you don’t like scents that are “too manly” I highly recommend Bvlgari Black, as it is unisex scent, and even though I consider myself to be a manly man, I like it a lot. It reminds me of Barber Shop Talc.
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I love Bvlgari Black. I’ve been through so many bottles of it in my lifetime. My husband ended up stealing half of them 🙂
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