Aftershave cologne: A thousand-year-old history

And this year’s FiFi award goes to… You may not recognize this name, but there is an entire culture behind fragrances, perfumes, and off course, aftershave colognes. Having arrived to the point in which awards are granted to the best smell produced, tells me a lot of what this event has caused among societies.

To better understand where aftershave colognes come from, we need to know first the thousand-year-old history behind perfumed substances.

In terms of men aftershaves, aftershave colognes are the best in their category. Not only do they provide a smooth aftershave sensation, but they also accentuate your good looks with a killer scent coming right off your face.

The first record that exists of perfume usage comes from Mesopotamia and Egypt, nearly 4000 years ago. These civilizations were pioneers for the fragrances that we smell today. They distilled oils, flowers, herbs, spices and other aromatic substances; from there, they would create the more rudimentary yet effective perfumes.
Many other cultures must also take credit in the invention of such product. The Arabic countries and India can take pride of saying that they contributed a lot in what we know now as perfumes, and aftershave colognes.

A couple of hundred years later, Europe realized that these substances existed, and then the whole cosmetics world changed for better. Hungary was the first country that started experimenting with lotions, waters and aroma. After that, countries like Italy, France and Germany began innovating in this industry, and some of them are still a major influence in terms of fragrances today…

At what point did perfume and shaving come across?
I’m not going to start with the entire history from prehistoric times. We all know that shaving has been around for millions of years. As we know them today, these two probably made their staring debut around 1770 when a French barber wrote what seemed to be the shaving bible. ‘The Art of Learning to Shave Oneself’ by Jean-Jacques Perret became a beloved treasure in Western civilizations, as it gave advise on proper shaving practices, use of aftershave colognes and use of other shaving equipment and products.

As the cosmetics industry advances, new shaving techniques appear, as well as new tendencies. The sky is the limit when it comes down to products and shaving knowledge: Aftershave colognes, aftershave gels, aftershave lotions, aftershave balms, just to name a few. Now that you know how the industry has evolved, don’t settle for any men aftershave. You need to go out and try all different classes that are available in the market, depending on your skin type, color, degree of oil, grease and sensitivity.