I Wear Men’s Cologne

Why do we even have gendered products?

I wear pink lipstick. I also wear Tom Ford eau de toilette as my everyday cologne. When I first tried it, I didn’t have my glasses on and couldn’t tell that it was a part of the for men collection. What I knew was that I liked the way that it smelled on me — not too powdery as so many women’s scents are, not too overly floral or sweet, but just a bit with some clean, spicy notes. The sales lady looked a bit scandalized when she pointed out that it was a men’s fragrance and I said that I’d take it anyway, but what do I care?

The scent is described like this: Distinctive spice accents, modern woods and a primal impact accord make Tom Ford for men a luxurious fragrance that is both elegant and modern. A reflection of Tom Ford himself, it was created for men who are refined, seductive and sophisticated. I aspire to be refined, seductive and sophisticated. I want to make a primal impact. Why is this a man thing? Every scent changes slightly as it mixes with your individual body chemistry anyhow and I have yet to have someone tell me, “Hey, you smell like a dude,” although I do get called sir occasionally. But that’s a totally different thing. Why does this have to be gendered?

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