Mainstream Monday: Sniffing a Popular Perfume
He mops up the floor. Back and forth. Back and forth. Lavender fumes. He thinks about her. She’s all he ever thinks about. Her eyes. Her hands. The smell of her hair as she rests on his chest.
Door slams. Garbage doesn’t take out itself. A rush of hot air follows into the building.
He’d ask her father if he could marry her. He can’t work up the nerve. There’s no way he’ll approve of her marrying a man that wears a hairnet all day. He works hard but her father thinks he should work harder. Maybe they could runaway together…
Freshly mopped floor gleams back at him. He walks to the back. Removes his apron and hairnet. Hector asks him where he will take her tonight. He tells him but it doesn’t matter where he takes her. He just wants her in his arms. An eye roll is all he gets for that statement which is better than usual. Leaving, he grabs a bag of leftover conchas. Opening the door, heat smacks his cool, air-conditioned face.
A*Men opens with Fabuloso lavender floor cleaner, brownies and cotton candy. The cool lavender is sharp and prominent in the opening. Mint and chocolate. Chlorine and drip coffee. I’ve sniffed A*Men for years and I’m surprised that now, when I’m actually focusing on it, I find it slightly obnoxious. When I don’t think about it, I love it. OK, enter patchouli. When these obnoxious top notes and some of the mid notes burn off, I’m left with the gourmand that I remember. It gets really sweet reminding me of ALL the desserts at the pastelería with an addition of camphoric patchouli, caramel sauce and lavender buds stuck in a bucket of tar. A*Men is one of the world’s strangest but wearable mainstream fragrances.
I’ve always admired A*Men because I tend to like the odd ones, the misfits. This was a big risk and like Angel, it worked out for Mugler. It’s an iconic fragrance that is still be copied today. However, I admit that sometimes this one gets on my nerves. I think that has to do with my mood (sometimes I don’t like super strength fragrances). And I think this is one that is better from a distance, give it 2 feet. It’s one to enjoy, not one to “think” about.
Notes listed include bergamot, helonial, lavender, peppermint, coffee bean, tar, patchouli, tonka bean, vanilla, caramel, chocolate and musk. Launch date 1996. PERFUMER – Jacques Huclier
Give A*Men a try if you like sweet fragrances. Over the years, A*Men has had numerous of copies (just like Angel has). I could list “or if you like…” but I’m not. If you like anything that was launched after 1996 that has chocolate as a note listed, try A*Men. Due to its cavity creating sweetness, I would call A*Men unisex. I know many men and women that wear it.
Projection and longevity are epic. A little goes far.
A*Men retails for $58-$89 at Sephora. Damn, fragrances marketed to men sure are cheap.
Victoria’s Final EauPINION – Closing time at the pastelería: Fabulosos lavender, drip coffee and sweets galore. It’s an epic fragrance.
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I really appreciate A*Men but it’s not something I reach for often – I really need to be in a specific mood for it.
The bodywash is a nice alternative.
I respect it but don’t wear it. It’s a little obnoxious like hanging out with 20 year olds. I mean, they’re nice but they’re 20.
I don’t own A*Men, but I do own A*Men Pure Malt and I do wear it! The lack of mint makes it more wearable.
Elisa recently posted..Expanded tweets
Exactly. I love Malt and Havane because they don’t have the cool floor cleaner opening.
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