Is there a “youthful perfumery”? And what role does perfume play in the development of a teenager’s personality? Expert opinion.
The smell of childhood, the smell of rebellion or seduction – teenagers have their own relationship with perfume. What role do fragrances play in the development of their personality, and how is “youthful” perfumery different?
The very first olfactory memories for us are the smells of infancy – mother, home and everything that surrounds the child when his sense of smell awakens. “Smells like Moscow!” – remarks 4-year-old Grisha, returning to the apartment after a summer holiday. “Why did she steal her mother’s scent?” – 5-year-old Olya is indignant, recognizing familiar spirits on someone on the bus. “Let’s stand, let’s eat this delicious air,” Vasya dreamily suggests three and a half years old to the nanny, standing near the candy store. We smile at these naive words without thinking that they reflect the awakening of the conscious sense of smell. It is at such moments that the child begins to perceive smells in themselves, and not just as part of an object or person. The world of fragrances for a long time will be divided for him into “tasty – not tasty”, “pleasant – disgusting”, familiar and alien. But it is these childhood associations that will largely influence the perception of perfumery in the future.
Spirit of change
Usually girls and boys get their first perfume today at 11-13 years old. (This is not about those children’s perfumes that are produced more to amuse the vanity of parents.) “You should not rush with such a gift,” psychologist Maryse Vaillant warns *. – This can deprive the girl of the opportunity to know herself, to feel the transformation of her body and its smell. A certain female image is being imposed on her, while she has yet to find her own.
During puberty, adolescents experience fluctuations in hormone levels. “This often enhances the sense of smell or, conversely, provokes a partial loss of it: adolescents may feel that they smell too much, or they may lose their sense of their own smell,” the psychologist continues. And in both cases, perfume comes to the rescue, blocking body odors that a teenager cannot control. That is, at first, perfumes are more hygienic than sexual overtones. The fragrance gives the teenager confidence in this disturbing and attractive world. He, like an invisibility cloak, envelops the body, hiding his calls from prying eyes. Or rather, noses.
Own opinion
For teenagers, their own aroma often follows the “call of the pack”. Buying perfume, especially from girls, is a collective matter, like many actions at this age. And the choice is determined not so much by the fragrance itself, but by its name, frame, advertising and, of course, the opinion of girlfriends. The times when before a disco they begged for their mother’s elegant jacket and secretly used parental perfume are long gone. Today, young people have their own fashion – for clothes, makeup, haircuts and, of course, fragrances. Realizing this, manufacturers have developed a storm of activity: over the past decade, almost all famous brands (Chanel, Dior, Prada, Guerlain, Givenchy …) have a “youth direction”. And some, such as Cacharel and DKNY, have completely refocused on the teenage audience. Perfume for the young has all the shades characteristic of this age: a touch of recent childhood, the spirit of rebelliousness and, of course, light notes of the restless theme of sexual development. Brands offer youth fragrances with emphatically protest names: Loverdose, Diesel; Amor Amor Forbidden Kiss Cacharel. What is one “killer” brand Juliette Has a Gun (“Juliet has a gun”) with a whole clip of hooligan perfumes worth! Fragrant calls to defiance sound from the shelves everywhere – each manufacturer is looking for its own ways to reach a youthful audience.
Fragrant World
Sweet lovers, teenage girls involuntarily look for mouth-watering notes in perfumes, choosing candy-fruity smells. Perfumers are betting on this, saturating youthful aromas with all sorts of gourmand ingredients: cherries, strawberries, caramel and popcorn at Miss Dior Chérie; apples and pralines at Nina, Nina Ricci; almonds, cherries and licorice at Little Black Dress, Guerlain. Each set of notes sounds like a description of a delicious dessert. How to stay here! The final chord is usually white musk – an animal note that gives a special “second skin effect”: the girls seem to find themselves again in their mother’s arms, for which they keep nostalgia, despite the desire for independence.
In young men, fresh smells are in the lead. They create a feeling of cleanliness, which is so necessary for an active teenager whose sweat glands are working at maximum capacity. By the way, unlike their peers, boys are happy to use their father’s perfumes. “At the age of 12, my dad gave me half a bottle of his Chrome, Azzaro,” recalls 18-year-old Yuri. “In stressful situations, this familiar smell calmed me.” It is no coincidence that father and son are always present in the Chrome advertising campaign: the right strategy allows this perfume to remain popular for the second decade.
But the young men will not “wear” the parental fragrances for long. The desire for independence will lead them to the perfume counters: the initiation into their own world of fragrances will be completed.
* M. Vaillant “Sexy be she” (The links that liberate, 2012).