# Grossed out by perfume... anyone else? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 24, 2010, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247 "2010-04-24T22:05:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/1 "2010-04-24T22:05:34Z")
I hate perfume. HAAAAATE it. I can’t stand it when I’m in public and end up walking around in someone’s scent trail. I’m not allergic to it or anything, but I have a really sensitive nose and I can almost _taste_ it when I smell perfume. I once went to a post office and smelled perfume in the parking lot. When I got inside it was even stronger. I asked the clerk about it and he was just like “she was awful!!” Anyone else out there have a really low tolerance for perfume? ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/2 "2010-04-24T22:08:32Z")
No. And frankly, I really don’t understand it. I’m one of the most sensitive people I know, and I don’t freak out whenever I smell perfume. I’ve almost come to the conclusion that when people do, it’s a form of wanting to control others. I mean come on, perfume outside is a problem for you? Really? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/3 "2010-04-24T22:11:36Z")
People who trail perfume in their wake don’t know how to put it on. You should only smell someone’s perfume if you’re very, very close to them. I don’t care about it outside, but in confined spaces it’s gross. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/4 "2010-04-24T22:14:27Z")
Is it any amount of perfume at all that gets you out of joint, **Opal** , or just when it’s over-applied? I can get behind some over-applying hate, but I think people should be able to wear it if they don’t wear too much. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/5 "2010-04-24T22:14:39Z")
The perfume I mentioned outside smelled like someone had smashed the bottle in the parking lot. The smell was still STRONG and the woman had already been gone for 5-10 minutes according to the people inside. Someone who puts on just a little so you have to be very close to them, I wouldn’t have a problem with. If I can smell you from 10 feet away, that’s offensive. If you leave a wake, it’s TOO DAMNED MUCH. And like I said, it affects my taste buds. I can’t taste food properly if I’m eating in a restaurant and there is some scent-drenched person nearby. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/6 "2010-04-24T22:31:56Z")
The majority of artificial scents smell bad to me and give me a burning sensation in my sinuses and throat. So yes, I also don’t like perfume. Or cologne, or scented shampoo, or scented Kleenex, or anything like that. Which is really irritating since scented products are so ubiquitous and often not labeled as such. Given a choice between, say, gasoline and perfume I’ll take the odor of gasoline any day. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/7 "2010-04-24T22:39:17Z")
Yep - I hate it. I can’t wear any scents except Johnson’s baby powder, and I’ve gotten my husband to switch to no aftershave and unscented deodorant. Some soaps even gross me out. Lever 2000 is HIDEOUS! ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/8 "2010-04-24T22:55:49Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > People who trail perfume in their wake don’t know how to put it on. You should only smell someone’s perfume if you’re very, very close to them. I don’t care about it outside, but in confined spaces it’s gross. I like some perfumes/aftershaves when they are LIGHTLY applied. Scent should not be used as a marinade. I shouldn’t be able to smell it unless I’m within touching distance of the scented person, though. Most cheap scents smell horrid. Also, scent doesn’t cover up BO, it only combines with it and the combination smells worse than either would alone. If you’re gonna stink, don’t try to cover it up, you aren’t fooling anyone. I enjoy wearing scent myself, and I enjoy smelling good scents on other people when I’m sitting next to them. But leaving a trail means that you’ve got too much on. And I had to really educate my daughter about this, as she used to apply perfume with one of those roller brushes for painting walls, or so it seemed. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/9 "2010-04-24T23:11:21Z")
Yep. Before I was on my meds, strong scents were one of my big seizure triggers. I HATE it when people bath in perfume. A little dab goes a long way. I mean, I have my own perfume I like, but I only take a little tiny drop here and there. Don’t MARINATE in it, people!!! Gah!!! ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/10 "2010-04-24T23:19:00Z")
I don’t usually notice scents of people very much (this may be partly because I live in granola-land–usually if it’s really noticeable, it’s patchouli or similar). But I don’t like scents much, and I don’t really care for stores or homes where there is a lot of scent used. Some people love to have scented candles burning, and I really notice that. Yesterday I went in to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to get a wedding present. That place is _bad_. Every 10 feet there’s a new strong perfume–by the time I got out my nose was in shock. It tingled for a long time afterwards, but not in a good way. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/11 "2010-04-24T23:47:33Z")
I can’t bear musk in any form. It seriously confuses the heck out of me why anyone would want to take a shower, use deodorant, then apply something that smells like yak BO. Patchouli and sandalwood also bother me. Although I think I might like patchouli if it were possible to apply a small amount. This does not seem to be the case, however. Strong perfume is an intrusion, and is very aggressive IMHO. I don’t think objecting to it is so much a “controlling others” issue, as it is a “not being controlled” issue. Now, if you object to a light application of “Love’s Baby Soft”, then I agree with Alice. But maybe Opals point is self-selecting? After all, if the person had applied the scent sparingly, would Opal be aware of it at all? There is one fruity-sweet-citrus scent out there that I have been trying to find for years. Every so often I’ll come across a trail of it in an office hallway, or elevator. I absolutely love that scent, and would wear it for life if I could figure this out. I’ve spent hours (all told) testing perfumes in stores trying to nail it down. But I’ve never actually been in the presence of somebody wearing it, so that I could ask them. It’ll probably turn out to be some scented mop-n-glow type product. . . ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/12 "2010-04-25T00:11:28Z")
Don’t like perfume, never wear it, ask my honey not to use men’s cologne either. Even some deodorants get to me. It’s like I can taste the smell, and it’s an unpleasant chemical taste. Never thought of that as being a way of controlling others since I’ve never let it be known outside an intimate relationship with a guy who would just as soon not wear it either. I find out I’m more of a bitch every day of my life. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/13 "2010-04-25T00:19:19Z")
> [@](#): > > There is one fruity-sweet-citrus scent out there that I have been trying to find for years. Every so often I’ll come across a trail of it in an office hallway, or elevator. I absolutely love that scent, and would wear it for life if I could figure this out. I’ve spent hours (all told) testing perfumes in stores trying to nail it down. But I’ve never actually been in the presence of somebody wearing it, so that I could ask them. It’ll probably turn out to be some scented mop-n-glow type product. . . ] It might be this scent, [gloomaway](http://www.origins.com/templates/products/sp_nonshaded.tmpl?CATEGORY_ID=CATEGORY21494&PRODUCT_ID=PROD13151) i love it! ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/14 "2010-04-25T00:20:30Z")
> [@Rushgeekgirl](#): > > Don’t like perfume, never wear it, ask my honey not to use men’s cologne either. Even some deodorants get to me. It’s like I can taste the smell, and it’s an unpleasant chemical taste. > > Never thought of that as being a way of controlling others since I’ve never let it be known outside an intimate relationship with a guy who would just as soon not wear it either. > > I find out I’m more of a bitch every day of my life. Wow, who called you a bitch over it? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/15 "2010-04-25T00:29:17Z")
I prefer women who are smokers and who splash perfume all over them before they come into an enclosed space. Like a movie theater. Or a job interview. Or a football field. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/16 "2010-04-25T00:33:52Z")
Seriously people perfume is not the cure all for not bathing. I too have an intense hatred for perfume that is probably unfair but was earned by those who bathe in it and those who spray it in my face when I’m walking past their counter. The sad part is when people wear it correctly it’s perfectly lovely. There are either too few of those or I just don’t get close enough to them. ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/17 "2010-04-25T00:45:51Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > The majority of artificial scents smell bad to me and give me a burning sensation in my sinuses and throat. So yes, I also don’t like perfume. Or cologne, or scented shampoo, or scented Kleenex, or anything like that. Which is really irritating since scented products are so ubiquitous and often not labeled as such. > > Given a choice between, say, gasoline and perfume I’ll take the odor of gasoline any day. I’m fairly chemically sensitive, so it’s not all perfumes that bother me, but most of the ones that do have a high alcohol content to them (body sprays) or are applied so strongly that it goes straight to my sinuses. If it’s strong or certain scents and strong, it really bothers me. The worst reaction I’ve ever had was vomiting paired with my throat closing up, and the best reaction is normally just a sinus headache. However, this is a strong chemical scent thing, and happens with overuse of cleaners as well, especially bleach. I wear perfumes, but I generally don’t put much on and stick to oil-based perfumes that have to be applied with a stick rather than sprayed. It gives me a lot more control over how much I’m wearing so I don’t make myself nauseated. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/18 "2010-04-25T01:36:49Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I prefer women who are smokers and who splash perfume all over them before they come into an enclosed space. Like a movie theater. Or a job interview. Or a football field. Oh ick. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/19 "2010-04-25T01:46:23Z")
I can’t stand perfume, or most any type of scent like that, and I’ve even had to do things like move halfway across a movie theater to get away from the asshole doused in that shit. I also use products like detergent and shaving cream that are “dye and perfume free”. It’s also a bitch trying to find a deodorant I don’t hate more than the damned BO. ---
**Author:** ![Not\_a\_Platypus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Not\_a\_Platypus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_a_Platypus)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247/20 "2010-04-25T01:47:02Z")
I only have a problem when it’s over-applied, especially if I’m going to be around that person for a while. There’s a very good chance it would give me a headache in that case and I have the same problem with a lot of air fresheners, scented candles, etc. Hallmark is my enemy. Well-applied scents or lingering shampoo/body wash can be very nice, but if you’re leaving a trail of perfume I’m at least going to be concerned about a potential headache. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grossed-out-by-perfume-anyone-else/537247.md?page=2)