My friend Bruce is convinced that smell has a lot to do with dating attraction. He believes people exude a human pheromone of sorts, functioning as an attractant of the opposite sex. But since pheromone receptors have not yet been found in humans, what scent does attract us?
Some women believe perfume is an attractant, so they slather themselves with it. They don’t realize that most men abhor being with a woman who reeks, no matter how expensive the perfume. (Men can go overboard with cologne as well.)
In the 1992 film Scent of a Woman Al Pacino’s blind character is drawn to the woman he wants to tango with by her smell. This was so powerful, it became the title of the movie.
I’ve always thought a whiff of a subtle fragrance was appealing. The idea is to emit an alluring aroma that entices my date to get nearer. Once at the end of a first date, my dining companion and I hugged goodbye. When we disengaged, I noticed his eyes were closed and he took a deep whiff. “I love how you smell, ” he whispered.
I’ve wondered what scents that would be irresistible wafting toward my date’s nose. My ex loved vanilla, so I’d raid the kitchen cabinet and dab a bit behind my ears when I wanted to drive him crazy. Now I’ve come upon a different universally drool-inducing smell that gets most everyone’s attention. But I can’t find it in toilet water form. What is it?
Fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies.
When you pass a Mrs. Fields store, doesn’t the smell — which is purposefully fanned into the corridors — beckon you, just as the Sirens to Odysseus? Don’t you want to stop and buy, or at the minimum, just enjoy the smell? Most people do.
So why doesn’t someone package that smell? It would ensure you’d be followed by men — and probably some women — like a fish monger is trailed by cats. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about going to singles bars, speed dating, or online dating sites. You’d have a parade of men following you and you could merely pick and choose from among the masses.
Of course, you may have trouble shaking the ones you reject. You don’t want to encourage stalkers just because your scent is irresistible. Maybe you could carry a skunk scent aerosol can to spray behind the man/men you’ve chosen, to separate them from the riff raff.
So, I’ll let you know when I’ve developed eau de chocolate chip cookie. I’m sure you’ll want to buy it by the gallon.
(Epilogue: I was at a conference a few days after I posted this and discussed this concept with a male flirt buddy. He said he’d definately be driven crazy by eau de chocolate chip cookie. Serendipitously, a few minutes later the afternoon break refreshments arrived — chocolate chip cookies. I took one over to him and rubbed it clearly on my neck. He took the bait and started nibbling away — on my neck, not the cookie!)
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Comments
8 responses to “The scent of love”
This is along the same lines, minus the chocolate chip cookie scent:
http://doctoranonymous.blogspot.com/2007/02/sweat-aphrodisiac.html
LOL!!!!!
Actually, I read an article about 10 years ago on studies that said it was the smell of pumpkin pie that men were most attracted to most.
On the flip side, I’ve seen several references in the last year that said women are attracted to specific men by the scent in their sweat.
Thanks Traci for the plug. I think I like the chocolate chip thing better 🙂
“It’s cookies, he smells like cookies, and the smell gets stronger when he’s in heat.” One of my favorite quotes from “Michael.”
Ally, those studies hit home, I’m completely intoxicated by the intense and slightly acrid smell of my man’s underarm sweat that starts during, ummm, intimacy. At other times might offend, but at the right time it’s the ultimate aphrodisiac for me. Has to be the right person tho, as I disliked how my Ex smelled. With this guy, I even enjoy how the sweat smells on me later, tho’ others might crinkle their noses. But cookies are good too! In fact just baked a batch of toll house since you all made me long for the scent so!
There is actually an expression for the dislike men feel for women who use too much perfume – example “this elevator smells like a French whorehouse.”
Someone told me about a study done where women smelled t-shirts that had been worn by men and chose the one they preferred. The DNA of the participants was tested and it was discovered that the women chose the shirts from men whose DNA was most different than theirs.
So it really IS a case of opposites attract, perhaps. At least on the cellular level!
[…] And for women, what scent would be a sure bet? I’ve explained my nomination in “The scent of love.” […]