Young man's first cologne

I'm acquainted with a young man whose family is rather down on their luck. I spoke with an intermediary to find out if there was anything he would like as he's approaching shaving age. The answer came back, cologne.

He knew that I'd asked so when we saw each other I said, do you want to smell like a man, or like a boy trying to smell like a man? (thinking Axe here) He picked the first. I said I take care of it.

I'm thinking something mild and mostly harmless...hard for him to overdo yet different from a teen's usual, as well as pleasant. Grey Flannel came to mind first. Any other suggestions?

 

Hmmm...
My knee jerk reaction says that Grey Flannel can be strong to my nose at times. I think I need to go peruse my scent cabinet and ponder.

I'm anxious to see what thoughts others will have.

And bravo to you for being the giver.

 

Grey Flannel is a pretty polarizing scent. He wants to smell like a man but also be appreciated by his peers. Depending on your budget, there are plenty of options that are safer but still in the man realm. Nautica Voyage is great in the $20 range. Tommy Bahama has some nice fragrances in the same realm.

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Mr. Blass by Bill Blass is a more recent take on old school. Great for about $25. Salvatore Ferragamo has some good budget frags. F Black is a particular favorite. Not so strong that it overwhelms, but always gets compliments.

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Whatever you decide, make sure to educate him on proper and acceptable use - when it comes to cologne, less is more.

 

Absolutely!

Grey Flannel has always struck me as rather innocuous and even timid, but maybe that's because I use those little spray bottles you can find occasionally. Maybe they're not the strongest formula.

Maybe actual Shulton instead.

 

You might consider taking him somewhere that he can smell some samples and get an idea of what kind of scents he enjoys. Once you understand his scent preferences, it should be pretty easy to pair him up with something solid without breaking the bank.

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After some sniffing...

Two you might consider in the less than $30 range.

Royal Copenhagen - readily available in gift packs this time of year

Aramis Havana - back on the market (presumably reformulated, maybe not). I bought some and the wife likes it.

 

It's a nice idea but he and I are not that close, there's nowhere in this area to smell samples of anything easily...apart from Dollar General...

 

Grey Flannel aftershave maybe instead of the cologne.

 

Never seen it around here. Ever, in fact.

Maybe the tried and true Wild Country?

 

Don't know where you live but normally this time of year I see gift packs of lots of different inexpensive aftershave/cologne in display racks at many major retailers like WalMart, Target, Burlington Coat Factory, Meijer, Walgreens, etc

 

Those are out now but I've never noticed the set for Grey Flannel. If I ever see one with an aftershave I'm going to get it for myself for sure.

Saw a British Sterling set for 10 bucks the other day but I'm not familiar with it at all.

 

I think Grey Flannel is a great choice. One spray of the EdT to start, and then he can work his way up only if he needs to. Another few choices would be Quorum, Azzaro Pour Homme and Lapidus Pour Homme. As stated earlier, stay understated!

 

Just remembered my dad sent me a full bottle of Black Suede. Tried a dab on one wrist and a dab of Aqua Velva Musk on the other. The AV smells much better but it'd be too potent for him.

 

Grey Flannel is a good choice.
A young man, particularly one who is athletic will need a good antiperspirant and soap. Arm and hammer makes a scent free deodorant/antiperspirant and Nivea cool is a great clean smelling soap. It's often best to start with a clean canvas before adding scent because scent on top of B.O. Is never attractive.


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Aramis Tuscany.... Fresh, manly, from the House of Lauder. Citrisy opening, drying down to a very soft masculine powder. Fresh and clean enough to keep up with the many aquatic, metal, bathroom sprays that are so popular these days but enough backbone to hold its own without smelling to dated. It's a confident fragrance. Less than $25 on many internet fragrance sites.

The products that are being packaged for the holidays, especially by Dana, imo, are a weak imitation of days gone by. I loved them in the late sixties. But they are not what they were back then. I got a gift set of Canoe, British sterling and English Leather last year that could not make it as a pillow spray.

Grey Flannel will probably work out okay. I think you might want to keep in mind this is a young man and he will probably have a younger man's taste with what may be around as peers. I wouldn't recommend something too dated or over powering. there's plenty of masculine scents with out breaking the bank.

Great juice. Paired it today with Bigelow Bay Rum. Usually by itself but was looking for more bay rum for today. Great pairing. Little strong for a younger man.
... to be continued...

Don

 

It's an Aftershave, but incredible.
Beach, by PAA. Always gets compliments.

Will last most of the day.


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Cool Water, smells like Green Irish Tweed at a fraction of the price. Nice fresh scent for a young man.

 

Without spending too much...I like Nautica and aramis.
I might suggest that you go on eBay, however. There are some ridiculously low priced cologne sample lots to be had. I gave also had great luck with some fragrance oil knockoff scents to the likes of aqua di Parma, Gucci envy, versace pour homme, and Prada Luna rossa (amongst others).

As a self -declared "cologne whore," I would suggest going with one of these routes.