And I only realized it today. :)
The thing is, I love my perfume collection and I love smelling strange perfumes and wearing them. But it seems I only wear those strange/loud/interesting/scary/extremely loveable things when in a private setting.
I never wear them to work.
This realization hit me when smelling Incense Extreme by Andy Tauer and thinking how this morning I wanted to put it on and wear it to work, only to stop myself considering the fact that there will be people around me who might not appreciate my new-found love of incense. Btw, I do plan on following this with a review.
So, even though I'm highly tolerant of dirty, lush, loud, strange (you get the idea) perfumes, my bottle collection seems to be mostly made of perfumes that are safe to wear to work. The rest are usually decants (ok, yes, occasional interesting bottle makes it into my collection but they are a small minority).
Now tell me, is there anyone else out there who is a bit of a coward or is it just me?
I'm not sure it's a cowardice behaviour - you're rather being considerate. A party or a night out is one thing. If anybody isn't enjoying your perfume there they are free to move away, sit elsewhere or even leave altogether. But in the office people are stuck with whatever others are wearing (or not wearing) or eating.
ReplyDeleteSo just find the right place to wear anything you like - be it in private or in a good company, - and have all your office-safe perfumes as well: after all, they all should be lovely too - right?
Well, undinaba has said what I was going to say. You are being considerate. I love the big '80s frags, patchouli, orientals, etc. etc. but don't wear them to work because the setting is just wrong for big perfumes. Workbenches, machines, hand tools, fluorescent lighting, mostly men...not really a great place to waft my vintage Shalimar & Opium; it would be as weird as wearing full makeup and jewelry. So yes, I am a little cowardly about it all. Maybe I care too much about what other people think of me, but there it is.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't call it cowardice or even consideration, necessarily. I think it's just part of being professional. When we are at work, we step into a certain role. Some people wear uniforms, and all of us in some sense wear costumes when we work. Partly, dressing appropriately makes it easier to do our job but it also signals to others what our job is. Consciously or unconsciously we choose perfumes to go with those costumes.
ReplyDeleteThanks Undina.
ReplyDeleteWell, I work in a spacious office and mostly with male colleagues who are pretty much like children and have an unusually high tolerance of odours and lack of oxygen. :)
I don't think they would say anything if I decided to wear sth strange but I'm also thinking they were never exposed to such perfumes so it might be a little too much for them.
I just wish I had more time to wear perfumes I love - work seems to take a lot out of my perfume-wearing time.
Queen, the only time a (male) colleague commented on my perfume was when I was wearing Shalimar - and it was something in the vein of, oh, you smell perfume-y. :D
ReplyDeleteThey are all young guys so I guess the most perfumes they got around to smelling are fruity-florals and aquatics.
Maybe I should give them a chance to experience something bold every once in a while... ;)
Really rarely.
Doc Elly, yes, you're right.
ReplyDeleteWhen I stand in front of my collection in the morning, I know which perfumes I can't wear to work.
But I would very much want to! :)
Oh well, there are still evenings and weekends after all.
I frequently sniff perfumes and thinks "wow, this one smells great" sprays some on and then realise it's a mens fragrance. I wish I had the courage to wear anything I like, I mean if it smells good it is good, right? But I do feel uncomfortable wearing very male orientated fragrances out of the house.
ReplyDeleteInes, I was shocked to find out that NOT everyone loves my extyreme and rare scents! Ha ha! I thought, if I picked something, everyone will love it, as I, well, usually make good choices about things like that. Eau De Protection was one of my early, different perfumes I was so proud to find, and my partner hated it! Hated! My former day-job was a scent free zone altogether, but since I do not like not wearing anything, I swithced to the botanical scents. That's what I wear daily now, and noone seems to mind.
ReplyDeleteFlavourfanatic, don't let masculines stop you! I don't. Btw, that keeps on happening to me too. :)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, those are all imposed notions of what is a masculine and what is a feminine, and I for one, refuse to obey them.
Wear what makes you feel great. :)
Jolanta, luckily, my boyfriend is very considerate when it comes to my perfumes. He might not like some but then, I don't wear them around him. It's not really that difficult as we both lead rather busy lives and by the end of the day, there is nothing to smell on me besides the samples on my arms, and those, he can always lie with.
ReplyDeleteBut I can understand being shocked by people who don't appreciate your absolutely wonderful choice of perfume and wrinkle their nose at you.
Happened to me when I told my girlfriends I love and wear Shalimar - oh, what shocked expressions on their faces along with thoughts what am I thinking wearing THAT?! :)