DKNY Women (1999)
by Donna Karan

Bitterly effervescent, this unique combination of weird yet wonderful notes is compelling. I'm not a complete fan, but admit there's something delightful about DKNY Women. What I love about it is the way the topnotes stay "fizzy" smelling - for a long time. If I didn't know any better, sniffing this blindly, I might suspect it to be a Keiko Mecheri frag. To my nose the blood orange citrus comes off a bit like grapefruit, which includes the pith. Obviously one could never pinpoint "freshly laundered t-shirt" or "wet pebble" accords when trying to deconstruct this mix. Definitely not sweet. Not soapy either. Impressive for a 'designer' offering, I must give a thumbs up!

My new "top 5" favourite!
(Others include "Faubourg 24" by Hermes, "Ivoire" by Balmain, "Paris" by YSL - the original formula, and "Scherrer" by J-L Scherrer as well as "Chanel nro. 19" - but HATE "Nro 5" with passion, just so you know ;))

There's no need to go into details - after all, the ingredients are no secret. All I can do is to add my own impression on how it smells on ME. (Let's face it: this is basically about voicing one's delight, which is what we like to do when we find a fragrance that we fall in love with. ;))

After years of rolling my eyes and developing headaches over gooey-melony-vanilla-chewing gum (with the possible addition of moth balls in more than one case... :), concotions, it was a HUGE - and most welcome - surprise: clean, crisp, yet remarkably assertive and individualistic. I don't smell orange - to me it smells like LEMON, which, I suppose, is what adds the sexy edge to it. (Somebody remarked it is "not sexy". I beg to disagree: it is, very much so, but in a fresh, crisp and - literally - "breezy" sort of way.)

What I ADORE about it is that on my skin it develops (after an hour or so) into a fragrance remarkably reminiscent of sea breeze (you know: the smell of your skin after a lenthy walk on the beach?)

Somebody else remarked that it's not full-bodied enough. I can understand that.
But from experience I can tell you: you can turn DKNY - a delightful fragrance such as it is - into a series of easonal drop-dead-gorgeous aromas by adding a few drops of certain essential oils. (Try Ylang-ylang - or Jasmine - and hire bodyguards to protect you from the admiring noses following you around... :))

Well done, Donna Karan.
This one is a keeper. Definitely!

I used to love DKNY Women, I have received lots of compliments. I remember that sb told me that it smelled like spring...!
The last 2 or 3 times I bought DKNY TO GO ( 30ml), thinking that it was the same one.(that's what the saleswoman told me....) The truth is the smell was a little bit different, but I thougt that maybe this perfume did'nt suit me anymore and that I should find a new one.
Is there a difference or not?

This fragrance is quite unique as I have never smelled anything like this before. The actual smell of this perfume is very distinctive. From reading about this fragrance, the main scents in it are: Citrus, Orange, Tomato Leaf, Waterlilly, Green Coral Orchid, Vodka Tulip Tree, Daffodil, and White Birch. To me, it is a citrus fragrance (smells like lemons and oranges with a twist to me) with the twist coming from the tomato leaves. The tomato leaves mellow out the citrus but make an unusual addition to this fragrance (It doesn't smell like tomatoes at all, it kinda smells like lemon grass to me). I do not smell vodka at all in this one or any form of alcohol).

I didn't like DKNY at first because it was way too sharp for my taste, but after about 20-30 minutes the sharpness mellowed out to a nice clean, fresh and kinda sweet, somewhat feminine scent. This fragrance is not sexy or sensual. It is a clean zesty citrus scent that could very well be unisex. This is a nice fragrance that reminds me of Summer and seems suited for warm weather. I live in Florida, perfect Summer weather (hot and humid) almost year round, but personally I would not wear this everyday. I actually prefer this one at night (I think it's a little too strong for the day). It's not exactly subtle! Maybe that's just me? This lasts throught the night although you may want to refresh it, especially if you like the really fruity top notes. I quite like it once it has a chance to mellow out and the feminine qualities kick in.

Beautiful fizzy pop soda that smells like an avant garde concept. This literally bristles with humour and intelligence. I would say though that this is nothing like L'Eau D' Issey because it avoids the tiresome Calone note that defined the 90's. Excellent!

Vodka and orange. Simple as that.