Eau de Man
I love the way men smell. Most of the time, anyway.
I had a meeting the other day and walked into the conference room a few minutes late. The smell of man-funk was so strong, it was all I could do not to wrinkle my nose. 
I'm not talking about the natural scent of a hard-working man; this was the cumulative effect of several days of not showering kind of odor (eau-de). Pungent. Overpowering. Offensive.
As I sat through the meeting, breathing through my mouth and trying to determine who the culprit might be, I began thinking about men and the way they smell. While I found this particular man’s eau-de to be unappealing, maybe his wife really liked it. Which made me wonder what it is about manly scents that make us lose our heads.
I've read articles about pheromones and their effects on the opposite sex, especially the female response to manly sweat. One study suggests a chemical in man-sweat increases the stress hormone, cortisol, in women, resulting in higher blood pressure and blood sugar. Another study suggests that male sweat may relax women and even make them more fertile.
Personally, I love the way my guy smells. He's a carpenter and always has this lingering scent of freshly cut wood clinging to him. He doesn't use any man-perfumes, just Old Spice deodorant, and if he's been outside working up a sweat and comes indoors, it's about all I can do not to drag him off somewhere private. He spends a lot of time outdoors, and frequently has this crisp, I-just-battled-the-elements scent of wind, and sea-spray, and earth. If he's been tinkering with the engine on the boat (or in this weather, our old clunker of a snow-blower) and smells faintly of oil or gasoline, I find that a turn-on, too. Weird, I know. Maybe it's because I associate these smells with manly activities.
But I also love the clean, just-washed scent of a man who has showered and put on freshly laundered clothing. My guy adamantly refuses to use the herbal shampoos and bath lotions my daughters and I use. He says he likes that I smell different from him, and wants to keep it that way. He's strictly an Irish Spring guy, even using the bar of soap on his head (he maintains that his hair is too short to waste shampoo on it, and the soap works just fine). Whatever he's doing, it's working for me!
How much does a man’s personal scent affect you? What manly smells do you find alluring or downright intoxicating and, conversely, are there any eau-de’s that you find repellent on a man?
Man funk made me guffaw,
Man funk made me guffaw, Karen! :)
That man I live with won't use cologne but he does use a nice smelling shampoo and body wash -- but those scents don't linger. I like the way he smells, though.
I do like certain colognes, but then it's the perfume I like, not the man wearing it.
M
Read in bed!
www.meganhart.com
Man Funk
Hi Megan! Isn't it a funny term?? All those man-terms make me laugh (man-boobs, man-purse, manscaping, etc.).
When my husband and I were in college, he once overheard me say that I liked the smell of Polo cologne, so he went out and bought some. The only problem was, he didn't know how to apply it and completely overdid it. It was all I could smell. I didn't want to hurt his feelings, but the stuff was giving me headaches. So finally I just told him that I much preferred the smell of him over the cologne. I think he was actually relieved to get rid of it! I could never tolerate the smell of Polo after that. But every once in awhile, in an elevator or a meeting, I'll get a very light whiff of a man's fragrance, and think, "Wow,that's nice!" But I won't be telling my husband about it, LOL!
I always liked Drakkar
I always liked Drakkar Noir!
But my husband has never worn cologne as long as I've known him. He won't even try.
M
Drakkar Noir
Okay, I confess to being completely ignorant about men's cologne's...I think the last time I sat up and took notice was when Tom Brady (ah, poor Tom) did a Stetson commercial. I've never heard of Drakkar Noir, but I love the name!
Oh, how I wish...
I have almost no sense of smell. I can smell things if there's a drastic change, like coming in from the outdoors to a pot of spaghetti sauce simmering on the stove, but subtle stuff...not at all. It's depressing, frankly. People wax lyrical about how great their man smells...and I've got nothing. This also means I have to consciously write about scents, because they just don't occur to me.
The plus side is visiting Europe in the summer is no problem, and I can clean up diarrhea or vomit with equal ease. But I do feel a pang of loss when DH buries his nose in my hair and says, "You smell so good...like you," and I can't say the same.
Margaret
Oh my goodness, Margaret! I
Oh my goodness, Margaret! I only know of one other person who has no sense of smell, and that's the result of a severe head injury. I've never really considered what it would be like not to have my sense of smell...sometimes a certain scent will be enough to catapult me back in time to a particular place or event. But you're right that it also has benefits, like cleaning up icky messes, or tolerating noxious fumes. We had a guy come back from deployment to Iraq, and he'd been stationed at some place where there was no waste water treatment facility, just a cesspool. He said the stench was so bad that it would wake him at night from a sound sleep. I guess in a case like that, you'd actually want your nose to not work!
LOL
"I only know of one other person who has no sense of smell, and that's the result of a severe head injury."
I've heard that before. No one's told me I had a head injury...although it might explain quite a bit! Maybe I should just practice smelling things. I did crack my husband up this weekend, read something in Psychology Today about sensuality/scents and made him laaaaaugh by sticking my nose in his armpit and inhaling deeply. True to form, I didn't smell a thing.
Margaret
Okay, now I have to
Okay, now I have to ask...does it affect your sense of taste? Because that would so totally suck! Although goodness knows I could be a little less infatuated with food...
Smell/Taste
You know...I suspect it does. I do taste food but I rarely have those orgasmic "this is soooooo good" reaction to something, which may be why I'm addicted to cheap chocolate. I don't like extraordinarily spicy food and go for less subtle things - burgers with ketchup, mustard, pickles; cheap Chinese food, etc. My stepmother's a supertaster and a real foodie. I'm pretty well happy with Subway, LOL.
Food Preferences
Oh, that's priceless...I do love Italian food with lots of garlic, but otherwise I'm with you on the food choices! Mmmm, Subway...I'm addicted to their veggie subs with extra Chipotle sauce!
Manly-man
Hello, my name is Chelle...and I'm an addict. I have gone out with a man because he smelled...really good! Then I married the manly-man and hot damn...he smells even better when he comes in all sweaty. He is a primper though and will spend almost as much time getting ready to go out as I do.
But I've also had to leave a room because of a man's body funk. Maybe some men have it...some have the funk chromosome?
Funky Smells
Hi Chelle! Yes, I definitely think some men just have a funky body chemistry. My high school cross-country coach used to be completely soaked in sweat after a long run. I still remember the way he smelled, and it wasn't good. It wasn't even a gross body odor smell; it was a sort of funky, salty, weird smell. Can't describe it, but even after 25 years, I can still recall it.
Yuck!
LOL! It's funny how our memories focus on certain things. I can walk into a hospital and remember a grandfather that died when I was two. He died at home and the only memory I have of him is brought on by an antiseptic smell.
My hubby wore Candy's for men when we married but I think I last bought him Kenneth Cole's 'Black' before he left for base. But he smells just as good after a shower, without the cologne.
Man-Funk
I think you have definitely coined a new term, Karen! LOL
All the smells you noted about your husband are the ones I like too, so don't let me get too close... LOL (Just kidding).
I actually HATE colognes... God, a man wearing any kind of cologne makes me choke, I just hate it. I like clean, natural, hard-working man smell.
One of the best though, which is a mutual thing for me and my honey, is beach. You know, like in the summer after several days of wearing suntan lotion, and especially on vacation if you have been near salt water or sand... OMG. My nose is getting all turned on just thinking about it...
But you know, anyone who's been working *too* hard can get stinky, and that's just not attractive ever... and I don't particularly care for too much man-slime either -- sweat generated during the act is one thing, or just a fine sheen, but when someone is walking around all shiny and drippy, it kind of makes me ick...
Sam
Similar Tastes
Sam, it's freaky sometimes how much our tastes run the same! I absolutely love the smell of sun-kissed skin, with undertones of salt and suntan lotion! Yum.
Yeah...too much sweat is totally gross. I was watching The Matrix last night and one of the bad-guy agents was torturing Morpheus (played by Laurence Fishburne), who's sweating profusely. Then he slicks his fingers over Morpheus's bald, sweat-dripping head and says, "I hate this place. This zoo. This prison. This reality, whatever you want to call it, I can't stand it any longer. It's the smell, if there is such a thing. I feel saturated by it. I can taste your stink and every time I do, I fear that I've somehow been infected by it." Then he raises his fingers, covered with Morpheus's sweat, to his nose, almost like he's going to taste it; pretty revolting. Okay, that was probably too much.
"Man Funk" drew me in, too
Why were such stinky men in a conference room, together? Yarg!
Yes, there are men who have a wonderful scent. I think the word I am looking for is heady. I noticed it a lot more when I was dating. I'm married now, I shouldn't be sniffing other men. :-0
LOL...
I see nothing wrong with sniffing other men (as long as you're not on their lap doing it)--I think it's better than eyeing them up. You know, since you could get caught stealing glances and whatnot, but chances are you no one's gonna be watching your nose wiggle. At least I hope not...since I do it all the time.
I confess...
I'm also a covert sniffer!
One Bad Apple...
In response to ThatBrunette...Well, I think it was just one man, actually. I know who it is, and he's a very manly-man, former Marine type. I just don't think personal hygiene is at the top of his priority list (and maybe not even on it at all!).
My man is petrified of
My man is petrified of smelling bad--he seriously wears so much deodorant that I have to buy him new shirts every few months because the pits start to get gross. He used to wear what he called "fufu juice" every now and then when we'd go out, but he's since exchanged that for Old Spice body wash--now he smells heavenly all the time without any cologne. *sigh* :)
I do prefer a guy who smells of some kind of cologne, deodorant, or body wash (any kind--I'm not picky) to any natural scents, though I am with you, Karen--sometimes the man can come in from doing something manly outside...and well, let's just say his scent makes me feel awfully womanly. :)
Hmm...I wonder if he had a
Hmm...I wonder if he had a bad experience in grammar school or something?
It's funny how our associations with smell begin so early. I was complaining that something smelled like cigarettes and my 13-year old daughter made this "yummmm" face and said she loves that smell, because it reminds her of her grandfather (he's a heavy smoker). I was pretty horrified. Maybe I should get him a bottle of cologne!
Cigarettes
My mom smokes but I haven't lived at home for 18 years. I walked into my grad school advisor's office for the first time and said, "It smells really good in here!" It did! She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Do you smoke?" Then it hit me, and I saw the pack of Marlboros on her desk...same brand as my mom. It smelled like home.
BTW, I don't think any cologne could cover the smell that comes along with a lifelong smoker.
Ha!
Karen,
Part of your post made me laugh, and nod my head--yes, I think there are people for whom personal hygiene isn't much of a priority, and even if it doesn't show, the nose knows :)
I have a pretty strong aversion to most perfumey scents, so my husband doesn't wear one. I guess I like him best all clean, so it must be the combination of him, clean clothes, and whatever shampoo he happened to use.
And yes, working up a sweat is good (and sexy); dripping with uh, "slime" is gross!
My dh uses Dial soap and
My dh uses Dial soap and after shave.I cannot stand unwashed man smell.
Estella, that brings back
Estella, that brings back memories! I grew up with Dial soap because it's all my Dad would use. I think I was fifteen before I realized I could ask my mom to buy something more flowery! She had her own stuff that was off limits to me and my two sisters.
I can remember asking my
I can remember asking my boyfriend (now husband) what cologne he was wearing and he mumbled something. Wasn't 'til years later he told me he hadn't been wearing any - guess he was afraid to tell me lol.
I've also learned that many scents give me severe headaches so if he uses anything, it's very light.
I remember one of our friends had this boyfriend who stunk to high heaven. I think he had a real medical problem. What I couldn't understand is how this girl could stand to be with him. (she was over 6 ft. tall and lacked too many choices I guess but there is no way I could even stand to be in the same room with this person - yuk).
Too Cute!
Catslady, that is so cute that you thought he was wearing something, and he wasn't!
I do know what you mean about getting headaches from colognes and perfumes; when I was a teenager, my dad used to ask us girls (ages 15, 16, and 17) not to put on any perfume if we were going to be in the car together, simply because it gave him a headache.
I used to work with this guy who smelled soooo bad, that I could tell which elevator he'd taken even after he wasn't in it. He always looked okay, though, so it does make you wonder about medical conditions and such.
Cool topic
I hate that old Britsh Sterling cologne that every guy in high school wore on a date a million years ago. It made my nose itch and my head hurt. I do like Polo Black and Drakkar in small doses.
When my husband used to travel on his job, I would sleep in his T-shirt and on his pillow, so I could smell him. It made me feel better. I love man scent.