Does your laundry hamper hold the key to true love?

Could you find the love of your life by smelling a dirty T-shirt?

A new dating experience - known as Pheromone Parties - offers willing singles the chance to huff a worn T-shirt in a bid to sniff their way to romance.

The events have been held in New York, Los Angeles and London, but Thursday's party in Auckland will be Australasia's first brush with the phenomenon.

American artist Judith Prays invented the concept in 2010 based on science suggesting that pheromones, a chemical excreted from a number of parts of the body, play a part in who we pick as our partner.

"It's a way of biologically knowing if someone's compatible for you," says head of the FindSomeone dating site, Lou Compagnone, who's organising the event.

Ms Compagnone said she had wanted to bring the concept to New Zealand as it had a quirky edge she thought would get people's attention.

"With online dating we provide you with everything but the spark. But this is almost the complete opposite because it starts with pure chemistry."

But while she's hoping it will be love at first whiff for the 120 singles equipped with their pheromone-covered T-shirts, her main aim is for everyone to just have a good time.

"It's putting strangers in a room together and giving them a reason to bond over the fact that gosh, this is a pretty strange experience.

"It's almost like an ice-breaker for them."

And if sniffing T-shirts isn't enough of a conversation starter, there'll also be a man in a giant nose costume - paired with heels.

Those who missed out this time around don't need to give up hope: Ms Compagnone's hoping to hold more parties for people outside the 20-30 age range, in other cities, and for gay and lesbian singles.


HOW IT WORKS

* Singles sleep in a T-shirt for three days so their pheromones are on it

* T-shirts are placed in plastic bags with a number on them

* Party-goers smell the T-shirts and take pictures with the ones they like the smell of

* Pictures are projected on the wall

* If a party-goer sees someone holding up their T-shirt, it's the green light to talk to them

* A Facebook album with all the party-goers is created later so people can contact matches they missed after the party.


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