Scents to go with coffee shop smells

[taekwondeal]

Hey all, this is my first time posting here and I have a question. I know there is a thread on oils with coffee notes, but what I'm wondering is if anyone has any suggestions on scents that would go well with the smell of coffee? I work as a barista at a local coffee shop in Seattle, and what with all the grinding and shot-pouring I end up smelling like coffee pretty much all the time. While I don't mind this (I love the smell of coffee), it does make it hard to wear certain cents without them clashing with the coffee smell.

 

So does anyone have any recommendations? If it matters, I am a guy, so nothing TOO terribly feminine, though I don't need them to be particularly masculine either.

 

EDIT: Scratch that, I guess I have posted before. Must have been like 6 years ago when I ordered the imps that I have right now (I recently rediscovered them in a storage box of mine and have fallen in love with them again).

Edited November 26, 2011 by Galkar

[Gold Dust Kitten]

Baked goods always go with coffee! You're a guy so most likely you don't want to smell like a danish...

 

I've seen a few perfumes that combine coffee and leather, so maybe a leather-dominant blend will work for you? Perhaps wood and tobacco notes would work as well? I haven't had my coffee this morning so I'm at a loss for specific suggestions other than A Bachelor's Dog and The Arabian Dance (which has a coffee note), but there are a few threads here which may be nice for you to browse thru and check reviews on some of the suggestions.

 

Leather

Smokey + leather

Woodsy

 

Good luck and welcome back!

[Sabir]

I have to admit, the first thing that came to mind was Velvet Dogs playing poker (which is in a similar vein to A Bachelor's Dog). I also think the Phoenix in Autumn would work well.

 

For GCs I've got to say Ogun. I think it would blend well with the coffee smell, but it's strong enough to hold it's own and it's wonderfully masculine. I also think The Lion might work well with the coffee shop smell.

[alterosen]

Antikythera Mechanism & Port Royal would be worth trying - they're both assertive enough to stand up to the coffee without being overpowered & have a little bit of sweetness to them (admittedly, they are also among my most favorite scents on the men-folk so I would probably think they smelled great regardless )

[Circaea]

Atlas - Mallow, oak bark, coffee bean, hinoki wood, and khus. Or Boomslang - cocoa and Snake Oil. I think Banshee Beat's vanilla would hold up well with coffee (but might be too sexay for work.)

 

So, tell us, Galkar, what are your imps that go with coffee and still smell good after six years??

[Ashmedai]

Great recs here! I think anything with woods, especially oak, would be fantastic with coffee shop smells. Besides the ones already mentioned, I'd also rec Storytime at Dark Delicacies, Oak King v4, Tree of Life and The Gorroble. The last three are LE, but I've seen bottles and decants around. Also there's Dorian from the GC and Al Azif, which has a great woodsy, maple-syrup type note. Edit: oh, and Miskatonic University too.

Edited November 27, 2011 by Ashmedai

[blu°]

I'd go for cinnamon or cocoa/chocolate. Cinnamon especially often makes me follow my nose straight into bakery and coffee shops. I suppose that's why they use cinnamon in bakery goods in the first place.

 

Don't know if maybe Chimera is not masculine enough for you. I'd say it's gender-neutral, but a tad on the sweet side. Delicious cinnamon that makes heads turn.

 

But also chocolate scents. I found The Seekim to be rather feminine, but opinions seem to differ and it is still available. Other than that, Wulric, the Wolfman from Carnaval Diabolique, which is supposed to come back, and Enyalios, which should be gone for good but might be found in swaps or on Ebay.

 

From the GC:

Velvet and Vice might be too feminine, maybe Velvet could still pass as gender-neutral.

How Doth The Little Crocodile might work.

 

Snake Oil should work, and if you can handle it, Boomslang (which for me is a bit too heavy and sweet).

Also, WILF which is a bit woodsier and might work better for guys as far as Snake Oil versions are concerned.

 

I've also liked the coffee-bitter wine combo in The Zadok Allen Vinyard (LE). Maybe Centzon Totochtin from the GC might work for you in a similar way (cocoa-wine).

Edited November 27, 2011 by blu°

[orata]

The Ta-Ta! Coffee, carnation, and leather

[halation]

GC: Tezcatlipoca! Incense, leather, cocoa and sexiness. So good. And whenever I'm making coffee while wearing it (which is often, because I drink coffee like whoa) it smells even more awesome than usual. The floral hint makes it a little sweet but not flowery or feminine. You might also look for blends with tonka -- it's sweet, but not foody, which would probably compliment coffee well. I think Dee smells fantastic on everybody, and the tonka and leather might work well for you. Sort of a different direction, and it might be a little too light, but you could try Perversion. Tonka, leather, and a little something like coconut, but again, not foody.

 

LE: Seconding the Atlas rec -- it didn't like me, but if it likes your chemistry it would probably smell amazing with more coffee. Weirdly, the drydown of Night Hag Visiting the Lapland Witches (one of this year's Weenies) smells like a version of Atlas that works with my skin, at least on me. There's probably no good reason for that, but the woody/smokiness plus nutmeg might go well with coffee.

[taekwondeal]

Thanks so much for all the great replies, everyone! Also, as I mentioned, while I am a guy, I certainly don't need anything that is Man Scent or anything like that. In fact Cheshire Cat and The Dormouse are two of my favorites, and they don't strike me as particularly masculine. Anyway, on to the individual replies. But then again, Fenris Wolf might be my favorite, and that strikes me as a fairly masculine scent, though this could be dead wrong since I admittedly know nothing of scents or perfume/cologne.

 

I also think The Lion might work well with the coffee shop smell.

The Lion looks FANTASTIC. I am definitely ordering one of those in my next imp order. Thanks for the rec!

 

Antikythera Mechanism & Port Royal would be worth trying - they're both assertive enough to stand up to the coffee without being overpowered & have a little bit of sweetness to them (admittedly, they are also among my most favorite scents on the men-folk so I would probably think they smelled great regardless )

Antikythera Mechanism looks quite nice and my GF (who I just introduced to BPAL after digging out my imps and surprising her by wearing Fenris Wolf to her first opera) loved the idea of steampunk-themed scents, so I might have to try this.

 

Atlas - Mallow, oak bark, coffee bean, hinoki wood, and khus. Or Boomslang - cocoa and Snake Oil. I think Banshee Beat's vanilla would hold up well with coffee (but might be too sexay for work.)

 

So, tell us, Galkar, what are your imps that go with coffee and still smell good after six years??

After doing a couple of swaps way back when I bought these, I have imps of:

White Rabbit

Kostnice

The Dormouse

Morocco

Viola

Tweedledum

Malice

The Jersey Devil

Magus

Cathedral

Chimera

Incantation

Bengal

Snake Oil

Fenris Wolf

Bon Vivant

and Cheshire Cat

 

I'm not really sure if any of these would go well with coffee though, except for maybe the spicy ones. As I said, I just dug them out so I haven't had a chance to test them all out yet. But they all still seem to smell about how I remember them except for Snake Oil which has gone slightly powdery/play-doh-y, and Morocco which seems to have completely lost all of its scent (though this may just be because I loved it and so used it the most, causing there to not be a whole lot left).

 

Great recs here! I think anything with woods, especially oak, would be fantastic with coffee shop smells. Besides the ones already mentioned, I'd also rec Storytime at Dark Delicacies, Oak King v4, Tree of Life and The Gorroble. The last three are LE, but I've seen bottles and decants around. Also there's Dorian from the GC and Al Azif, which has a great woodsy, maple-syrup type note. Edit: oh, and Miskatonic University too.

Thanks for the ideas! I already plan to buy both Dorian and Miskatonic U in my next imp batch!

 

I'd go for cinnamon or cocoa/chocolate. Cinnamon especially often makes me follow my nose straight into bakery and coffee shops. I suppose that's why they use cinnamon in bakery goods in the first place.

 

Don't know if maybe Chimera is not masculine enough for you. I'd say it's gender-neutral, but a tad on the sweet side. Delicious cinnamon that makes heads turn.

I love Chimera and I don't have any problem with it's masculinity or possible lack thereof. And yeah, cinnamon seems like a potential winner in this case.

 

 

And a couple of unrelated questions if anyone would care to answer them related to the age of my imps. Do these scents change much with time? As I mentioned above they all seem to smell how I remember them, but I don't have the best nose or memory so who knows. Also do different oils tend to have different consistencies? I've noticed that some of my imps like Morocco or The Dormouse seem pretty flowy and not very viscous, whereas some like Snake Oil and Cathedral look like maple syrup in the bottle because of how thick they are. I wonder if this is just a natural difference in the oils or if it has something to do with their age.

 

Again thanks to everyone for your great replies and I would love to hear some more input as well! This really is a wonderful and helpful community!

 

EDIT: Another unrelated question that perhaps you guys could help me with: is there any place that has a description of what every individual note smells like? I am a total fragrance newbie and so when I read things like vetiver and civet and myrrh and I have no idea what they mean

Edited November 29, 2011 by Galkar

[Ashmedai]

Thanks so much for all the great replies, everyone! Also, as I mentioned, while I am a guy, I certainly don't need anything that is Man Scent or anything like that. In fact Cheshire Cat and The Dormouse are two of my favorites, and they don't strike me as particularly masculine. Anyway, on to the individual replies. But then again, Fenris Wolf might be my favorite, and that strikes me as a fairly masculine scent, though this could be dead wrong since I admittedly know nothing of scents or perfume/cologne.

 

I also think The Lion might work well with the coffee shop smell.

The Lion looks FANTASTIC. I am definitely ordering one of those in my next imp order. Thanks for the rec!

 

Antikythera Mechanism & Port Royal would be worth trying - they're both assertive enough to stand up to the coffee without being overpowered & have a little bit of sweetness to them (admittedly, they are also among my most favorite scents on the men-folk so I would probably think they smelled great regardless )

Antikythera Mechanism looks quite nice and my GF (who I just introduced to BPAL after digging out my imps and surprising her by wearing Fenris Wolf to her first opera) loved the idea of steampunk-themed scents, so I might have to try this.

 

Atlas - Mallow, oak bark, coffee bean, hinoki wood, and khus. Or Boomslang - cocoa and Snake Oil. I think Banshee Beat's vanilla would hold up well with coffee (but might be too sexay for work.)

 

So, tell us, Galkar, what are your imps that go with coffee and still smell good after six years??

After doing a couple of swaps way back when I bought these, I have imps of:

White Rabbit

Kostnice

The Dormouse

Morocco

Viola

Tweedledum

Malice

The Jersey Devil

Magus

Cathedral

Chimera

Incantation

Bengal

Snake Oil

Fenris Wolf

Bon Vivant

and Cheshire Cat

 

I'm not really sure if any of these would go well with coffee though, except for maybe the spicy ones. As I said, I just dug them out so I haven't had a chance to test them all out yet. But they all still seem to smell about how I remember them except for Snake Oil which has gone slightly powdery/play-doh-y, and Morocco which seems to have completely lost all of its scent (though this may just be because I loved it and so used it the most, causing there to not be a whole lot left).

 

Great recs here! I think anything with woods, especially oak, would be fantastic with coffee shop smells. Besides the ones already mentioned, I'd also rec Storytime at Dark Delicacies, Oak King v4, Tree of Life and The Gorroble. The last three are LE, but I've seen bottles and decants around. Also there's Dorian from the GC and Al Azif, which has a great woodsy, maple-syrup type note. Edit: oh, and Miskatonic University too.

Thanks for the ideas! I already plan to buy both Dorian and Miskatonic U in my next imp batch!

 

I'd go for cinnamon or cocoa/chocolate. Cinnamon especially often makes me follow my nose straight into bakery and coffee shops. I suppose that's why they use cinnamon in bakery goods in the first place.

 

Don't know if maybe Chimera is not masculine enough for you. I'd say it's gender-neutral, but a tad on the sweet side. Delicious cinnamon that makes heads turn.

I love Chimera and I don't have any problem with it's masculinity or possible lack thereof. And yeah, cinnamon seems like a potential winner in this case.

 

 

And a couple of unrelated questions if anyone would care to answer them related to the age of my imps. Do these scents change much with time? As I mentioned above they all seem to smell how I remember them, but I don't have the best nose or memory so who knows. Also do different oils tend to have different consistencies? I've noticed that some of my imps like Morocco or The Dormouse seem pretty flowy and not very viscous, whereas some like Snake Oil and Cathedral look like maple syrup in the bottle because of how thick they are. I wonder if this is just a natural difference in the oils or if it has something to do with their age.

 

Again thanks to everyone for your great replies and I would love to hear some more input as well! This really is a wonderful and helpful community!

 

EDIT: Another unrelated question that perhaps you guys could help me with: is there any place that has a description of what every individual note smells like? I am a total fragrance newbie and so when I read things like vetiver and civet and myrrh and I have no idea what they mean

 

I only know about essential oils because I've worked with things like aromatherapy a lot, but from what I understand, BPAL oils are made up of (mostly?) essential oils. These do change with time. Some, like resins or woods, actually improve with age and become deeper and more harmonious - they just smell a hell of a lot better aged. Others, especially citrus oils, tend to fade with time. So it depends on the oil - some get better, some fade, but I wouldn't worry since they don't fade very fast, so if you're constantly using the imps, they'll be used up long before they go bad. In fact I have a few citrus blends that are six years old and they still smell good, if a little bit less "citrussy". In general I've noticed BPAL oils just start to smell really good after the six-month mark or thereabouts, which is why I always let lab-fresh bottles sit for 6 months to a year before I use them regularly. HOW they change depends on the blend, but usually the wood or resin components will become deeper and citrus or floral components will blend into the scent more with time.

 

Yes, different oils have different consistencies. Floral or citrus essential oils aren't usually "oily" at all, they're very thin and watery as pure essential oils. Resins or woods, or oils from cocoa, patchouli, etc. are much thicker (vetiver, tolu balsam or oakmoss essential oils, for example, will become almost a solid paste over time, and some are even gummy and pretty solid to begin with. Not talking about the BPAL blends themselves, mind you, just the pure essential oils - there's a huge difference in their consistencies. But that's why BPAL containing thicker EO's will be more thicker, and things like fruit or floral blends will be quite thin).

 

I'm not sure if there's a thread about how each oil smells on its own. I'd check the internet, and sites like these (which I found typing "essential oil scent description" as keywords in a search):

 

http://www.auracacia.com/auracacia/aclearn/ar_directory.html

http://www.aroma-pure.com/eodescriptions.htm

 

These are very basic, though. For specific or less common components, I'd probably use "what does XX smell like" or "XX scent description" as keywords in a search.