They say a man’s best friend is a dog but in my own world, his real best friend, and ever reliable trait, is his scent…that being his cologne! This might be of a slight shock to you but let me gradually take some time to explain the importance of wearing the right cologne for any occasion.
To begin, it is important to always remember that cologne is a canonical essence of a true gentleman. And one of the real reasons behind this statement is that the way you smell is the best way to make great first impressions. We all know how important first impressions are; it lays the foundation to a strong and healthy relationship, partnership and a proposition so it is something you should take extremely seriously.
In a style perspective, the way you look gives off a fantastic first impression and your scent solidifies and creates a truly defined and concrete long lasting impression.
Contextualising the opposite sex, your cologne can have a stronger effect on a lady than your aesthetic appearance.
Women indeed become dazzled by passing men who wear an irresistibly charming cologne. The desirable scent constructs this imaginary sketch in their minds that the individual is highly organised and takes his appearance and surroundings as serious as he can.
On my recent trip to Las Vegas, after being nicely served by a number of waitresses at a night club, each one of them came back to me individually to ask what cologne I was wearing. I mean that isn’t something that happens everyday.
Ask any lady what she thinks about a man who wears cologne and 8 out of 10 of them would say they’ll probably find the man more appealing and memorably due to them always associating him the the particular scent anytime it is smelt.
On a personal aspect, your cologne can even enhance your confidence levels so much that you become more attractive and sought after by a lady.
However, one disadvantage of wearing the right cologne is that your girlfriend or lady friend would tend to want to acquire way more of your clothing to keep your scent and presence when you are away in comparison to having no memorable scent.
The rules to applying your Cologne
Understanding the essence of your cologne is one thing, knowing how and when to use it is another major and important aspect you must take into account.
Many guys end up wasting an enormous amount of cologne by either applying way too much, on the wrong spots and at the wrong times. These three factors are highly important to the long lasting pleasurable effect you want out of it.
Firstly, when shopping for your cologne, understand the strength of its scent and always ask how much puffs/sprays are actually required if you aren’t sure beforehand. Applying too much of it can be detrimental and will most definitely become choking and unpleasant to the perceivers and onlookers, driving them away and leaving a terrible first impression.
Secondly, there are particular areas on the body that help intensify and sustain a strong desirable scent of your cologne which are known as your “pulse points”. These points are at the bottom of your throat, your chest, behind your ears and your wrists. This spots allow the scent to ix perfectly with your natural body odour and then create a unique and personal scent. However, the wrist pulse point, I’ll advise against rubbing them together as contrary to popular belief, this actually rubs of the scent and reduces its life span. Also, skin types should be taken into consideration as the oilier your skin the more the cologne sticks to you. So guys with drier skin should apply a bit more than normal.
Lastly, it is always best to apply your cologne as soon as you come out of the shower as then , your pores are open and more able to absorb and retain the scent compared to an idle body. You can also apply an extra two puffs once you are ready for the final glowing effect.
Understanding the Cologne Concentrations
There different types of cologne vary based on the amount of aromatic solvents concentrate in the solutions. The potency and longevity of the cologne is based on the stregnth of the concentration.
Identifying YOUR Cologne
As with so many fashion items for men these days, there are an enormous amount of colognes, with great diversity of scents available, which tends to make it extremely difficult to choose the best of the bunch. So my advise to you is try picking a selected few that suites your taste to narrow down your options. I always suggest selecting from ones that offer real ingredients in them rather than the artificial ones, which are much cheaper, but not as long lasting
I also prefer having more than one even though you may always want to be identified by a particular scent, there are disadvantages to this which include wearing a scent that is not appropriate for particular seasons.
There are some scents which are not adequate for the fall due to its light and fruity fragrance. On the other hand, woody/dusk and spiced up scents might be too strong for business attire or during a summery day. I usually buy a large bottle of my favourite cologne and smaller (50ml) ones for specific occasions or seasons.
A few of my favourite Colognes
Your Favourite Stylist,
Yinka Jermaine
Spectacular! I loved it.
Thank you Olisa!