Does Your Perfume Say What You Think It Says?

Your perfume is talking behind your back. It's saying all sorts of things about you. It's like a radio transmitter, sending out the subtext of your life. But who's it talking to, and what message is getting through?

If you wear a scent that makes you feel like a sex kitten, does it automatically telegraph "I am a sex kitten" to those around you?

If you're feeling happy and decide to wear one of your "footloose and fancy free" scents, does the scent communicate that lighthearted mood to friends and family?

If you spritz on a "confident and strong" scent, do others believe you are both?

Many of use choose our scents of the day based not only on how we feel (and how we want to feel), but on what we want to communicate. I know I do. And I can probably tell you which scents convey what messages more easily than I can describe the way they smell.

For instance, in my mind, Vivienne Westwood Boudoir is a very sexy scent. It's in my bombshell-sexy category. But does it say "bombshell-sexy" when I wear it? Am I the only one who hears its siren song, or do others find it (and me) alluring and seductive?

Is the way we respond to and feel about our perfumes all in our heads or something that can be shared with others?

I think it would be interesting to find out, so I propose a little experiment. I will wear Boudoir, a scent with a clear message, and ask others to tell me what they think that message is. I'll narrow it down by giving them four or five choices. We'll see how many people interpret Boudoir's message the same way I do.

I may even try the same experiment with other scents, just to see if I'm hallucinating when I think a perfume is saying something specific about me.

You know how we never quite see ourselves the way others see us? I wonder if the same is true when it comes to scent. Do we smell ourselves the way others smell us? I'll let you know what my little experiment reveals.

Editor's Note Added 07/05/08: I've worn Boudoir three times since writing this, and each time I've enjoyed it immensely, even in the heat and humidity. But at no point during the three days did I feel like carrying out my little experiment. So I have no idea if anyone else finds this perfume sexy. And I'm not sure I care!

It's as if Boudoir puts me in a rebellious mood where I don't give a rat's ass what anyone else thinks about my perfume. Don't like it? Tough ta! Maybe it's this devil-may-care attitude that communicates sexiness! Aren't we supposedly more alluring when we're confident?

I didn't conduct my experiment, but I did get to introduce Boudoir to a co-worker (she had read this article and asked about it - and it happened to be one of the days I wore Boudoir). She sprayed some on, and the next day she told me that all night long she had wanted the scent to go on and on. So, if no experiment, at least a convert!

Comments

[Juno]

I was wearing something the other night that I find to be a trippy narcotic floral and kinda sexy (mostly, sometimes it takes other forms) and my dinner companions both said is was a nice light feminine scent.
A month ago, someone smelled the sample I had of the same and rejected it violently as "old ladyish".
Is my nose weird? Or do scents carry different messages to each person - based on taste, memory, experience? Both?

[scent signals]

hi, juno - thanks for stopping by! no, i don't think your nose is weird. i think your theory, that our reactions are based on several factors, including our taste, memory and experience, is likely true.

your dinner companions really liked your scent - those are the words non-perfumistas use when they like something. so even though they didn't say narcotic and sexy, it was still a hit.

i remember shopping at nordstrom alongside two sisters. one was convinced that d&g's the one was incredibly sexy on her skin - she couldn't get enough of it. the other sister thought it was boring. they'd been raised together, and had probably had similar exposures to scents, but their tastes were quite different. it was funny to hear them "argue" about what was sexy and what wasn't.

ultimately what may matter is how we feel about our scent - what it does to and for our mood. anyway, it's the only reaction we can control. as long as we don't let others' reactions color our own.

[Le critique de parfum]

Yes, sometimes my biggest fear is my perfume talking behind my back. But only when I'm wearing spicy, weird or cumin scents.

People might think I didn't shower, and this "fear" usually ruins the whole experience.

[scent signals]

cher m. le c. - i'm sorry to hear that this worry ruins the pleasure of wearing those scents. but i know too well what you mean. the same worry is what keeps me from wearing eau d'hermès and kingdom out and about. although i do wear them for myself. now that i'm used to them, i find they smell less like body odor than they seemed to at first.

unfortunately, most people have snap-reactions to scents, and it's only the interested and patient you can encourage to "see past" those "offending" notes to the beauty of the scent - what it is about it that intrigues you.

[MetroMale]

I like the thoughts in your posting. I love when women telegraph a little bit. Sometimes they signal with clothes or makeup, but when it's scent they lead with it's hard to miss. I appreciate the wake-up call that gives me a hint about what is on their mind - cheers.