Donna Karan (1992)
by Donna Karan

I am reviewing the one in the amusingly over-the-top phallic bottle. I'm a bit confused if this is aka "signature". Mine is a parfum concentration. Yes, a plummy fruitchouli that reads rich suede and is similar to SL Daim Blond. There's a bit of bad girl/ cigarette smoke in this as well. There is no development. It's nice, but I'm slightly irritated by the overlay of fruitchouli...it's not horrendous and cheap as in many modern scents, but it does hit those shampoo-alert buttons. This seems to be a soft oriental type of fragrance that just plays its one chord - the sweet plum suede uniformly.

7th January, 2011.

The reissued Donna Karan opens on a rich, plummy spiced fruit accord that’s as dark and sweet as molasses. Equally sweet florals, including jasmine, rose, and orange blossom, soon join the fruit and spices, and all are underpinned by tangy patchouli and a subtle leather note. In its use of fruit and leather Donna Karan presages scents like Parfum d’Empire’s equally plummy Cuir Ottoman and Christopher Sheldrake’s apricots-and-suede Daim Blond for Serge Lutens, but Donna Karan is darker, spicier, and hence more oriental in feel than either of these much later introductions. I also smell a very strong family resemblance to Donna Karan’s own Chaos here, though Chaos is a more transparent scent, perhaps because it emphasizes a brisk cedar note instead of leather and patchouli in its foundation.

Once the spicy-fruity patchouli oriental and leather structure is assembled Donna Karan drives a linear course for several hours of wear, with moderate potency and projection and modest-but-detectable of sillage. The drydown fully exposes the patchouli and smooth leather, which are balanced in a manner that's at once sensuous and civilized. I come down with the unisex crown on this scent, and it seems no less “masculine” to me than any number of unisex fruity leather niche fragrances, or even such fruit-heavy designer masculines as Magnetism and John Varvatos. This is not only a pleasant, versatile, and wearable scent, but historically significant as an innovative early entry in a genre that has since spawned several significant fragrances.

11th December, 2009.

love it ..but i dont see it on a man.....i have a mini and it smells to feminine on me....altought gorgeous...

7th February, 2009.

This is exactly what it sounds like - a gorgeous, rich, soft oriental suede. There is nothing else I've smelled like it. The suede is so soft and convincing that you will actually think you are smelling the most wonderful, refined suede in a shop, etc. The lasting power is very good, and sillage is medium. I get compliments on this whenever I wear it. The oriental aspect of this fragrance is very similar in body and structure to Boucheron femme, but with a the very nice suede note riding on top. If you like Boucheron, you will most likely enjoy this fragrance. Definitely for cooler weather - it might be a bit heavy in hot summertime.

12nd December, 2008.

Mmmmmm....I'm at a party and every man in the room is talking to me, and every woman is wondering why? Guess which perfume I'm wearing? Warm, rich, sinfully sensual, and yet not an obvious come hither perfume. No woman could accuse of you of being a tease because you wear this (although they all want to).

21st December, 2007.

I've loved this scent since the first time I smelled it on a co-worker. Just bought another bottle for the holidays. According to the Donna Karan rep, they bring it back out over the holidays. Sexy, oriental, a bit leathery, sandalwood.

15th December, 2007.