Flowerbomb (2004)
by Viktor & Rolf

Dear Flowerbomb,

I have tried, truly tried, but I do not understand you.

In spite of your listed notes, you are no floral. You are Boston fruit slices in a bottle, assorted penny candies liquified, a poor rose swimming in simple syrup.

Descended you are from Angel, Lolita Lempicka, Euphoria, Coco Mademoiselle and Juicy Couture JC, yet they manage to be interesting while you twirl your hair and drool. How is it you are so astonishingly popular? I am shocked by it. I wonder if today's girls simply find no discernible difference between flies and men.

Poor Flowerbomb, a classic of perfumery you are not. You are to Coco Mademoiselle as Giorgio was to Poison. As your simple charms lose their appeal, your formula will cheapened, reduced to a 40 dollar EDT in Wallgreens for our daughters to buy discounted for their "naughties" theme parties, where the teenage girls of 2030 will dress like hipsters, dance to "Sexyback" and say "I can't believe Mom used to wear this!"

21st January, 2012.

I smelled this on another woman and loved it. On myself, it is less impressive, but I don't know why. It's a well-balanced floral with sweetness, and creaminess, with no particular note standing out. And it must have patchouli, or I wouldn't give something in this genre a second thought. It's beautiful, but it's not outstanding enough for me to be sure that I would stay interested enough throughout the duration of a full bottle.

17th October, 2011.

Initially rough because of the first whiff of earthy tea and citrus this one turns out as an oversweety cocktail of flowers, patchouli, amber and in my perception sandalwood and musk, too monolithic, sugary, powdery and boring for my taste. The outcome is a rose-jasmine-patchouli scent with a musky cloudy-dusty temperament almost gourmand for its sweetness that reminds a bit the dusty effect of eliotrope. The smell is not enough changing and multifaceted for my taste. The combination of citrus-patchouli and flowers with the addition of some aromatic-boise' notes reminds effectively the aromatic-floral smell of Coco Medemoiselle which is anyway a far better and more complex fragrance, surely more luxurious with its reinterpretation of vintage-retro' that takes on a paradoxically more futuristic smell with an angular-fresh starry patchouli that reminds Angel in some stages of its development. Flowerbomb  owns a faint longevity and a discreet projection under my nose.

29th August, 2011. (Last Edited: 25th September, 2011.)

I was impressed with this perfume. I thought the bottle was very creative and unique and the scent equally as creative.

Although this fragrance doesn't really appeal to my tastes in perfume, I can appreciate Flowerbomb for what it is.

Flowerbomb is a strong floral with beautiful hints of vanilla. The scent is sweet and powdery without being too overpowering and is warm and soft on the skin.

This fragrance is along the lines of Angel by Thierry Mugler in the way it has been uniquely composed and in popularity. Like Angel, this fragrance either grabs you or disinterests you.

I might have considered purchasing this perfume if it wasn't so expensive, however I understand that Viktor & Rolf are an exclusive brand and wish to be noted in same league as Chanel and Guerlain.

26th April, 2011.

Smell this blindfolded and 100% that you won't be able to distinguish it from other millions of generic sweet floral perfumes of the last decade or so. Awful!

25th April, 2011. (Last Edited: 14th May, 2011.)

On first whiff, I too get a little girls sugar n spice and all things nice vibe.
Interestingly this fragrance brings back memories of my first experiences with buying and trying fragrances for myself as a new teenager. Victor & Rolf's FB is the expensive version of a range of Impulse body sprays aimed at teenage girls. I would give anything to remember the exact name of the Impulse body spray. However, I wouldnt be surprised if the exact same one I remember from ten years ago has been repackaged as something else. Who knows, it could be FB aimed at those grown up teenagers who fell in love with the Unilever sugar water scent.

EDIT : I went back to the pink, fluffy, sugar water scent and I was converted. Its almost as though its catnip for tweens. This stuff has an oddly addictive snuggly side (a little bit like Lush's rockstar - which I was also initially sceptical of at first whiff). Pleasantly surprised or perhaps seduced by the addictive girly catnip fragrance.

14th October, 2010. (Last Edited: 3rd February, 2011.)