I own several Aaron Terence Hughes fragrances including Odyssey, Water, Gin Sling, Red Fever, Supersonic, and Supernova, and I can honestly say this is one of my favorite independent fragrance houses. One thing I respect about Aaron is that he isn’t trying to be another inspired-by house or simply copy what everyone else is doing. Most of his fragrances have their own identity. Whether you love every release or not, you can usually tell you’re wearing an ATH fragrance. The quality is excellent. The materials smell natural, the blends are smooth, and the transitions are well done. They don’t smell like a collection of aroma chemicals thrown together just to create a loud fragrance. There is real composition behind them. Performance is one of ATH’s strengths, but I want to be clear about what I mean by performance. I mean projection and sillage—not just longevity. Many people confuse the two. A fragrance can project beautifully for three or four hours and still have excellent performance, even if it stays on your skin much longer. ATH understands how to make a fragrance work. What also impresses me is that Aaron isn’t afraid to take risks. Some releases are fresh, some are gourmand, some are darker, and some are completely unique. Not every fragrance is meant to please everyone, and I actually respect that. I’d rather see a perfumer create something with character than play it safe every time. If I had one criticism, it’s that some fragrances are so concentrated that they can become a little heavy in extreme heat. These are fragrances that deserve respect. More sprays don’t always make them better. I also appreciate that Aaron is transparent about his work and passionate about perfumery. Whether you agree with every opinion he has or not, you can tell he genuinely loves creating fragrances, and that passion comes through in his products. Overall, I would put Aaron Terence Hughes among my favorite modern independent houses, right alongside names like Lorenzo Pazzaglia, Day Three, City Rhythm, and a few others that continue to push creativity instead of following trends.

Gentlemen… I have again encountered a problem. All of the amazing niche fragrances I got to play with and get samples from Nordstrom I was in love. Creed, Parfums de Marly, Tom Ford, Initio, Amouage, Clive Christian, Louis Vuitton, and Xerjoff. I shared all of these tester strips with the Mrs. And guess what? She hated them. Made the stank face and everything. “Why would anyone wear that?!?!” I’m still developing my nose and figuring out what I like and haven’t really found anything yet I don’t like. All of this is still new and very exciting for me. I wear fragerance for me, for me to feel good in, for me to be a new person everyday. But I also want to wear something that impresses her. For lack of a better term I labeled her a “designer groupie”. The only time I have received WOW compliments is Art of Universe, Born in Roma Intense, and Nautica Voyage freaking Sport. FREAKING SPORT!!! I literally had a 500$ fragerance on my skin that made my head spin in a good way and she hated it. I wear Nautica and she wants to give me hugs and kisses. Why can’t I accept this and be comfortable with it? Am I a scent snob? All constructive criticism welcomed. 😬