That smell is what?

[notalwaysright]

Okay, this is partly my fault, but I'm putting it here because I thought the customer overreacted. Useful info: there are some mosquitoes here, but not that bad, except for near the nearest lake where there is lots of marshland. Also, I'm not good with fragrances. I'm not allergic, I just don't seem to smell the same thing others do. I will literally hold my breath to avoid certain fragrances that others really like.

I'm helping this customer and she seems fine, but there is this terrible REEK and I know it's from her since it started just as she walked up, there wasn't anyone near her. Anyway, we're chatting, and I say something like "so, going out to the lake today?" and she just gives me a look, so I say "because of the bug spray, I know it gets bad out there." She is silent and I finish and ask if she needs anything else and she just glares. She grabs her stuff and flounces off, and as she goes up the aisle her husband (or whoever, it was a man) joins her and I hear her say "That was the rudest employee! I can't believe..." couldn't hear more, she was too far away.

At this point I look at my co-worker next to me, and she's a really outspoken lady and she's nearly keeled over trying not to laugh. "That was perfume!"

..... So okay, I should have just kept my mouth shut but seriously I never, EVER, would have guessed it was a smell that she LIKED. Like I said, I'm not a huge fan of perfume, but I can always tell that it's perfume. It was an honest mistake, I thought that was clear. Those of you who wear perfume, would this have offended you?

[Evannah]

I probably would have been a bit offended to be honest. She didn't know that you perceive certain scents differently to other people. However, if we didn't put our foot in it every once in a while, we wouldn't be human! It's obvious you didn't do it out of malice, but again, she wouldn't have known. Don't take it to heart. I'll cheer you up with a similar story of my own.

I was working in Land of Quid. I was on the tills. This youngish woman came to my till with the most prettiest set of false eyelashes I'd ever seen. I was gushing. I said to her, "Wow, those fake eyelashes look so pretty! Where did you get them from? I'd love to wear those!" She ignored me. Her face was weird... like an expression of anger, disgust and upset all rolled into one. I actually thought she was going to burst into angry tears. The rest of the transaction was silent on her end. And afterwards she just flounced. I didn't know what I'd said. Then it hit me: the eyelashes she'd worn weren't... extravagant. As in, they were made to actually look real. A coworker of mine also wore fakies so I knew the difference between real and fake. But I realised that this customer didn't WANT people to think they were fake. And there I was, gushing over her fake eyelashes... lol.

[Enjis]

To me, most perfumes for both men and women smell like bug spray. Always have.
Thank goodness my hubby does not like cologne...I could not have married him!

[notalwaysright]

*sigh* Okay. Normally perfume smells heavy and cloying to me, but this was sharp and chemical-y. If I'd known what to apologize for, I would have. And I suppose there are worse foot-in-mouth comments. There's always the notorious "when's the baby due?" Which I thankfully have never uttered. As for fake lashes, all I can think is GLUE near my EYES.

[wagegoth]

I have pretty bad allergies, and it does screw up my sense of smell. I never comment on an odor unless it's causing a flare-up. It's just safer that way.

[Evannah]

*sigh* Okay. Normally perfume smells heavy and cloying to me, but this was sharp and chemical-y. If I'd known what to apologize for, I would have. And I suppose there are worse foot-in-mouth comments. There's always the notorious "when's the baby due?" Which I thankfully have never uttered. As for fake lashes, all I can think is GLUE near my EYES.

Don't worry about it. There ARE definitely worse ones out there I've had the 'when's the baby due?' comments before. I've also had people I've not seen for a long time saying "Oh, you've lost weight!" when it's clear I've put about 2 stones ON. And of course you get the ones who just come straight out with it. "Oh, you've put weight on."

[MoonCat]

Meh, don't worry about it. I have a co-worker who wears the most god-awful fragrance I've ever smelled. It's heavy, I can't even describe it, it's like some kind of animal musk but not like a typical musky perfume, just a nasty, thick, cloying smell. It's not floral, spicy, citrusy, none of the usual perfume smells. And it arrives before she does....She really overdoes it.

I've never said anything but I've been tempted to ask her what scent she wears, just so I can make sure I never buy any.

[Soulstealer]

Don't worry too much, not everyone has the same reactions to scents. I have some chemical sensitivities to perfumes, colognes, sprays like febreze, spray deodorants, do you see a pattern here?

Anyway, my sense of smell shuts down and I start coughing, funnily enough I do taste it.

[Seshat]

I like woody perfume scents; which are actually fairly rare and not often sold. Sadly, my husband is allergic to perfume bases - the whatever-it-is that they add the fragrances to, that's supposed to be 'neutral'.

People with especially sensitive scent perception can smell those 'neutral' scents, and that often smells really chemical to me.

I suspect she may have been wearing a 'wood' perfume - which is why you didn't recognise it - which uses a particularly chemical-smelling base.

[sirwired]

It's kind of funny... my wife stopped wearing perfume because I didn't notice it, but I can't even walk by one of those candle or soap stores in the mall without wanting to gag.

[vikingchyk]

At this point I look at my co-worker next to me, and she's a really outspoken lady and she's nearly keeled over trying not to laugh. "That was perfume!"

Most perfume smells like bug spray to me.

[vikingchyk]

Meh, don't worry about it. I have a co-worker who wears the most god-awful fragrance I've ever smelled. It's heavy, I can't even describe it, it's like some kind of animal musk but not like a typical musky perfume, just a nasty, thick, cloying smell. It's not floral, spicy, citrusy, none of the usual perfume smells. And it arrives before she does....She really overdoes it.

I have several co irkers (male and female) that walk around in scented clouds. Never scents I like. I try to keep my distance. If I sat right next to them, I'd talk to them about it. The newest member of the team, I swear, his cloud is the worst of them all - it radiates a good 8 feet from him. His desk is 10 feet away, but if he comes over to talk to another co irker early in the morning, blurg. I turn on my desk fan, and that helps disperse it a bit.

What's worse is the guy who shares a Keurig the next cube over. His favorite coffee smells like feet to me, and I have to smell this stuff brew 2-3 times a day.

The absolute worst was when someone elsewhere in the room (where exactly, I could not identify) brought in what I can only describe as vanilla napalm "room fragrance". It would spread over the entire room, and trigger my migraine. The second time it happened, after I complained to my boss the first time and I thought it was done with, I set our office OSHA[1] rep on to ferret it out, so hopefully it won't return.

[1] Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[South Texan]

When I was in grad school one day, I noticed the woman who sat next to me in class looked particularly nice that afternoon. Her skin had a very healthy glow and her features were softer. She and I were on friendly terms, so I thought it would be OK to give her a compliment. She gave me a very odd look in response, and after an awkward silence, stated bluntly that she was not wearing makeup that day. I wanted to crawl into a hole.

I learned right then to NEVER assume or say anything about someone's appearance.

[purple]

I like woody perfume scents; which are actually fairly rare and not often sold. .

I think it is a popularity thing. Lush had a perfume the smell reminded me of bbq kettle frys, woody and warm. It was ny fav of their scents but I was thw only one out of the 5 of us who like it at all.

Commenting on anyone you don't know well can be a tricky one but as other have said it is not the worst by any means.

[notalwaysright]

Yeah, it wasn't a brilliant comment, and I don't normally say anything regarding smells or anything personal. It's probably the only time I ever have, in fact. I posted it in another thread, but I usually make extremely safe conversation, just commenting on the fabric. "This is pretty fabric. It's warm outside." Etc.

One quarter in school a guy who sat next to me smelled awesome. I have no idea what he wore, and I wish I had asked, but it smelled like spicy orange. Mmmmmmm. It's literally the only cologne I've ever liked.