SUMMER SCENTS

Whether it’s a first date, a job interview, or meeting your fiance’s parents for the first time, the first impression is the most integral step of building a rapport. Even though we are all taught from the beginning to never judge a book by its cover, human nature and the evolution of survival has instilled in us the natural instinct to make a decision about someone or something in the first few seconds. One of the most important pieces of your first impression is your aroma, it truly is your signature.

There are multiple levels of ensuring that you give off a pleasant and inviting scent for anyone that you meet or come across, it should be a fragrance that compliments your personality and your lifestyle. Before you can choose the scent that is right for you, you have to answer a few questions on intention and understand a few aspects of the cologne itself regarding the message you want to send, how long you want it to last, and what makes up a great cologne. Once you have done that, the following are some great choices to help you make a lasting (alluring) first impression.

The first cologne is the most common in today’s market. The spray bottle is what most of us are used to, whether it’s because it’s the simplest method, or because we started with an affordable body spray and thankfully graduated up. D.S. & Durga goes outside the box with their scents with the goal of transporting you to another realm either living in your memory or sparking your thirst for exploration. They believe that perfume is armchair travel and Jazmin Yucatan’s jungle and snake plant scents can take you deep into the rain forest in the middle of the workday.

One of the older versions of cologne applications for men is the roll-on. While the spray is the most common, this roll-on version is the kind you most likely saw in your grandfather’s closet. It’s rolled directly onto the skin and forgoes the alcohol base of the spray colognes for the oil bases. House of Land is the quintessential feel of the Southwest with High Lonesome using deep Earth notes and sweet woods, bringing together the heavier desert scents with the lighter cool caves for a deeply rich Austin feel.

Taking the fragrance world by storm with a reinvigorated interest and combining the simplicity of the spray cologne with the timelessness of the roll-on, is the solid cologne. While the alcohol bases of the spray cologne create stronger scents that you can detect deeper into the day, the tendency to be too overwhelming in the morning and disappearing by the late afternoon makes the spray less optimal. While the roll-on creates a pleasant subtlety in the morning, it can all but vanish by lunch. This is where Fulton and Roark found brilliance in their sleek and attractive solid colognes. Their portability makes it easy to carry it with you in your gym bag or briefcase and reapply before that last-minute meeting.

Your fragrance will tell a story about you. A light and airy scent will tell people you are approachable and compassionate, while a deep and rich scent will project a no-nonsense-get-things-done style of leadership that people can get behind. Then there’s the Sportsman Cologne, which sends the message that you can be both, all while catching your own food and navigating the great outdoors. With notes of leather, musk, flint stone, red clay, and pine, Sportsman combines the rugged man with the gentleman in the best Theodore Roosevelt aura on the market.

One of the toughest things about fragrances is applying the right amount of the scent so it will last all day, and not overwhelm the people you interact with by being too strong. Olivina simplified that for men everywhere with their natural and essential oil-based scents that are more subtle with the ability to last all day. Their crisp conifer, sage, and citrus notes provide a lighter and more playful scent for the man that doesn’t want to feel too heavy throughout the day.