His and her fragrances. This is an appealing trend and one whose time has come. It would be so much more practical to have one bottle of perfume on the shelf, and time would be saved when my husband and I are getting dressed to go out. Our scents would blend rather than clash. For less money than we spend to buy our individual perfumes, we could have a good quality perfume that we would both use.

The closest thing to a man's fragrance that I've actually wanted to wear has been Armani's White. Our daughter gave her dad a gift of it when she was traveling overseas, and he wore it (sparingly) for a couple of years. Occasionally, I would sneak a spritz of it because it was so amazingly sensual. It was nothing wishy-washy or lame - it was a spirited fragrance that definitely captured the imagination. It was masculine enough for him, but also soft enough for me.

One would think that the men's version of a fragrance and the women's version of the same brand would be very similar. However, that isn't always the case. Depending on body chemistry, Halston for men and Halston for women can be very different, if not altogether at odds with one another. Perhaps these differences are being addressed by perfume manufacturers now, but I have yet to find a perfume with one version for men and one for women that actually works well when both of us are wearing it.

Another scent we have both used and that actually doesn't change with body chemistry, is the natural oil, patchouli. A friend of ours uses it exclusively, and I developed a love of it. I put a little on my husband, and he seemed comfortable wearing it, as well. Because it's an oil, very little is needed - just a tiny drop. It can be obnoxious if overdone, but in small amounts, the subtle spiciness of it is effective. If we are both wearing it, there's no competition of fragrances and nobody's nose has objected, so far. This oil is not one to be overdone, though. One must be very careful with it. Not everyone is in love with patchouli in forceful amounts.

Obviously, if we share one bottle of Armani, we share the expense of it, as well. It isn't cheap. And of course, the Armani brand name ensures that we don't need to use a lot at one time. It is potent enough that a tiny spritz lasts the whole day. The result is that when we go out, we're in sync, and my Opium perfume isn't fighting with his Armani. I'm perfectly comfortable in his fragrance, and vice versa. Patchouli isn't expensive, but works the same way for us.

These particular fragrances wouldn't be everyone's choice, but perfumes meant to be worn by both genders is a trend that will continue and grow in popularity. A couple shares many, many parts of life. Why not share the same fragrance? The noses of the people you as a couple encounter will thank you for using one scent instead of two.

Learn more about this author, Arabella Kelly.
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