I make this post partially humorous but also to seriously ask you what your biggest pet peeves that beginners or people not as invested in this hobby as us are. I say outsiders carefully as not to say it in a clique kind of sense. Because I’ve unlocked a pet peeve that’s so weirdly specific, to anyone outside of the bubble, I look psycho! So asking you guys, what are yours? And do any of you relate to this specific one that I have? My biggest, most frustrating issue is so irritating to me because of how ridiculously widespread it is, and it comes with the misconception of cologne, perfume, and gendered fragrances. It strikes a positively DISSONANT chord within me when someone refers to all men’s fragrance as “cologne”. Makes me like unreasonably irritated. Crazy right! But hear me out. One of the biggest misconceptions in fragrance is the idea of A), gendered fragrance, and B), men’s fragrance is all “cologne”. Traditionally, cologne is a concentration of alcohol to oil, and actually one of the weakest concentrations. Most fragrances nowadays for men aren’t colognes at all but Eau de toilettes and Eau de parfums! They don’t wear cologne! They wear perfume! Gendered fragrance in and of itself is a western marketing construct used by companies to get men to start wearing it, to make the market less intimidating and fit in with the stigmas and social values at the time. Along with that, the word “perfume” had a largely feminine connotation, and men at the time did not feel comfortable wearing something with the name of something that sounded so well… feminine. Considering there WERE popular men’s fragrances that were cologne concentrations like from Acqua di Parma, and the word “cologne” sounded rugged, masculine, and less feminine, so it became synonymous with all men’s fragrance. Now as to why this particular stereotype and misconception bothers me so much, I’ll get into that. A), I hate the word cologne. Always have. When I bought my first Versace my girlfriend at the time was like “how’s the cologne?” And bro it bothered me. I wasn’t mad at her or anything lol, but I associate the word with the absolutely terrible chemical bomb my dad would wear with his axe body spray. So when I hear “cologne”, I think of that. Even I look at my older posts and see myself use that word and I criiiiiiinge

I thought it would be fun and helpful for anyone just getting started / on a limited budget in this hobby for us to start a thread on top budget picks: anything you can find that’s at least 50ml for $50 and under. This doesn’t have to just include ME brands or clones, it can also include designers you can find at discounters. These should be bangers you actually love to wear that offer fantastic value for the price! Here are some that I’ve come across that I’m so glad to have in my collection: - Fragrance World Star Man Nebula - Versace Man Eau Fraiche - Lalique Ombre Noire - Jimmy Choo Man Ice - Rayhaan Aquatica - Givenchy Gentlemen Only

Match #11 in my 40-fragrance tournament is another battle of opposites: #9 seed Chanel Antaeus versus #24 seed Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio. Chanel Antaeus (1981, created by Jacques Polge) is a true classic, built around leather, oakmoss, patchouli, castoreum, and woods. It's bold, earthy, and unapologetically masculine. Performance is outstanding, and there's no question it's the more sophisticated fragrance of the two. Acqua di Gio (1996, created by Alberto Morillas) is the fragrance that defined fresh citrus for a generation. With lemon, lime, bergamot, mandarin, jasmine, and marine notes, it's clean, bright, and incredibly easy to wear. No wonder it launched what feels like five million flankers. This may be a bit heretical, but despite Antaeus being the more complex and better-performing fragrance, I'd still reach for Acqua di Gio on most days. It's simply easier to wear and fits my lifestyle better. So this one is an upset: Acqua di Gio advances, and the higher-seeded Antaeus heads to the loser's bracket.