Betsey Johnson Parfum

Wacky fashion designer Betsey Johnson, known for her whimsical clothing, as well as costuming Edie Sedgwick in Ciao! Manhattan, and turning cartwheels at the end of her fashion shows, brought out her Parfum in 2006.

It is obviously a indulgence in fantasy. Ms. Johnson, currently in her mid-60s, never looked as good as in this extravaganza of the airbrush featured in advertisements for her scent, one of the currently popular fruity floral blends so often marketed to the younger crowd.

Notes: grapefruit, tangerine, blackcurrant, pear, freesia, lily of the valley, apple, cedarwood, sandalwood, amber, musk, praline

Parfum is an almost (ok, not almost) obnoxiously-sweet fruity floral, the fragrance equivalent of a bowl of Fruit Loops. A cacophony of sweet scents jump out at once - pear, citrus, blackcurrent, praline - and despite being rather ordinary fruits, the freesia and muguet give them an air of the tropics. Exactly the type of fruity floral I cannot abide.

After the initial Fruit Loop blast settles a bit, the fragrance more resembles a girly umbrella drink, still fruity and still very sweet, but at least not as strong. And the drydown is actually quite pleasant, still fruity, but tempered with a soft musk and hints of woods. Not my cup of tea at all, but those who are not affected by cloying scents (and those under the age of 14) will probably love it.