Gender Bender: Kenzo Homme (…pour une Femme) (1984)

by: Dr. Marlen Elliot Harrison

This is another in a series of fragrance reviews that asks, “Can a guy pull off a women’s perfume?” Leave a comment below for your chance to receive a sample, shipped anywhere in the world, free!

Hello and welcome to my new column here at Fragrantica: “Gender Bender”, an exploration of aroma, gender and scented freedom. Though by no means do I prescribe to fragrance having a gender, sociocultural stereotypes about masculinity often prevail at the fragrance counter. Join me as I explore some of the 20th century’s masterpieces of perfumery in my quest to address the familiar question, “Can a man successfully wear a women’s perfume?”

Summary: My favorite Kenzo fragrance is still the mossy, green, wet bamboo forest chypre that I shared with one of my best teen gal pals—1991's original, Kenzo pour Homme. Having already looked at three fragrances marketed to women, Patou Joy,Revlon Ciara and Chanel Coco, we’ll now turn our attention to fragrances marketed for men … and the women that wear them.

Perfumer: Christian Mathieu

Try this if you like: Dry greens such as vetiver, fir and pine; aquatic and ozonic scents (think calone); sandalwood and cucumber as perfume notes; scents that are neither gourmand nor fruity; chypres as a genre; tea scents.

Pros & Cons: For those who enjoy dry scents such as Ivoire de Balmain, Paloma Picasso, Bottega Veneta, the current Balenciaga (2008), or in the men’s genre fragrances like Cacharel pour Homme, Guerlain Vetiver, Prada Luna Rossa, or Spazio Krizia Uomo. The added “sea accords” (calone) with the dry greens create a true to life smoky green tea aroma. I always think I smell cucumber although none is listed, again might be the calone. The lack of sweetness and focus on “fresh” tones will be a revelation to many who are tired of the sweet candy, fruity, and gourmand paradigms at the women’s counter. Might come off a bit too barber shop for some.

Notes: “Top notes are mahogany, sage, bergamot, lemon and sea notes; middle notes are nutmeg, carnation, juniper berries, orris root, peach, jasmine, caraway, lily-of-the-valley, rose and pine; base notes are sandalwood, amber, musk, balsam fir, oakmoss, vetiver, cedar and labdanum.”—Fragrantica.com

Reminds me of: Diptyque Eau de Lierre, Aliage Sport by Estee Lauder, Clinique Wrappings, Krizia Uomo, New West Skinscent for Her, Acqua di Gio for Men, CK Escape for Men, Bvlgari Thé Vert, Creed Erolfa, Iceberg Homme (original), Bobbi by Bobbi Brown, Avon Mark Earth.

Designer’s Description: “Fragrance creator recognizable among all, forerunner fragrance, unique and timeless KENZO HOMME is a classic. Built around the water and blue bamboo, it is inspired by the world and makes it closer to distant horizons. An original fragrance, woody and nautical, timeless. Watery tones combine with floral sea spray for immediate freshness ... prolonged by a solar accord where sage is warmed up by the spicy accents of nutmeg and clove ... before the strength of sensual woods is revealed, carried along by the harmony between oak moss, vetiver and velvety sandalwood. THE DESIGN: The bamboo shoot, a favourite Kenzo men emblem, takes on bluey-grey hue enlivened by a dash of red to carry this fresh invigorating fragrance."—KenzoParfums.com

Number of times tested: 100+ over the last 24 years.

Number of sprays applied for this review: Two sprays to the back of hand from a current bottle I purchased online (2015).

Fragrance strength: Eau de Toilette

Development: (Linear / Average / Complex) Despite the massive list of notes, I find Kenzo pour Homme to be rather linear in its overall effect; the composition washes over its wearer like the aroma of rain on the breeze. In fact, I oftentimes smell just that.

Longevity: (Short / Average / Long-lasting) I agree that earlier formulations had a greater depth, but my current EDP lasts a good 8-10 hrs on me with only minor application.

Sillage: (A Little / Average / A Lot) I think earlier formulations had a greater depth, but my current EDT lasts a good 4-6 hrs on me with a little extra application.

Note about the packaging: Vintage Kenzo pour Homme was a carefully sculpted, glass bamboo branch housed in a striking gray and white box printed with a woodblock motif. Nowadays it is a simplified, smooth bamboo branch with inset leaf cuts and housed in a blue and white carton with a photograph of bamboo in blue.

Where can I buy it? Found online at retail $83 USD for a 3.4 oz EDT spray and at discount sites for less than half of that.

The Bottom Line: Born in a time when the aquatic was the new rage, Kenzo pour Homme, from the Japanese turned Parisian designer’s label of the same name, offered something decidedly different in the genre, like a step in time betweenAcqua di Genova and Acqua di Gio. As such, there is little of the modern sweetness but a lot of the old school. However, it is exactly this touch of modern that unlike similar scents of its time, e.g. Cerruti’s 1881, allows it to be still relevant today and completely without gender connotations.

When first intrigued, my friend Alyson and I shared an original mini back in high school. At times I found it just a little too sharp and dry as compared to my other favorites of that time, my CK Eternity and her Cacharel Lou Lou. On Alyson’s, skin however, Kenzo Homme became greener and earthier and she loved the Japanese provenance and references. So when I got about half way through my mini, on it went to her. And so we passed fragrances up and back over the years, and still do today.

With summer approaching in the Northern Hemisphere (I’m in DC), I find that nothing in my wardrobe quite speaks the same language as Kenzo pour Homme: dry, green, fresh, aquatic and airy. No matter how many times I approach fragrances marketed to women in the similar genre, I find them to be overly sweet or fruity…or reliant on violet leaf.” The packaging is pretty unique, the price is rather affordable, and at least here in the USA, the fragrance isn’t exactly ubiquitous. Overall, I think it will make a fine gift for Alyson when she comes to visit.