Ma Dame (2009)
by Jean Paul Gaultier

From reading the many positive reviews of Ma Dame, I really expected to love this scent. I'm no hater of fruity florals, and the notes sounded quite delicious.

However, today I finally got myself a sample and spritzed liberally to find... ugh... lemony cucumber? As far as I can tell, there isn't supposed to be a cucumber note in Ma Dame, so perhaps that's just how my nose is perceiving the vinyl/plastic note to which others refer.

Anyway, this cucumber hater is glad to have just bought a sample and not a whole bottle.

26th December, 2011.

Very sexy, confident and open.

14th April, 2011.

Quite subversive and fun! Opens as a fizzy citrus; the grenadine is present but not overly sweet, it's really quite bracing. MaDame then proceeds to dry down into a pleasant plastic rose with citrus undertones- I agree with others here that it was intentional! The dry down is actually pretty delicate and soft..good fun overall.

3rd February, 2011.

This is a rather nice frag for summer use from the house of Jean Paul Gaultier. Its like having a tasty fruit salad out in a garden of roses during summer time, so fresh, so fruity, so nice. This is most definitely UNISEX & I will be purchasing a bottle & wearing it for spring/summer months of next year! If you fellas can get pass the fem bottle, you will be treated to something nice.

26th October, 2010.

The fizzy lemon top note is a bit like 7-Up or Sprite, right down to the sneeze-inducing, bubbles-up-your-nose sensation. It’s really rather entertaining. The citrus can’t sustain itself at this intensity for too long, but some of its tart effervescence remains as Ma Dame develops. There’s a chemical edge to Ma Dame’s central citrus, herbs, and green floral accord that some have described as “plastic” or “vinyl.” This effect is so blatant and conspicuous that I have to conclude that it’s intentional: perfumer Francis Kurkdjian cocking a snook at conventional ideas of beauty in fragrance. In this case the joke works, perhaps because the cheerfully crass packaging and the goofball top notes provide such an ideal set-up. That, and the fact that unlike some other irreverent scents – Sécrétions Magnifiques and Skarb come to mind – Ma Dame still remembers to smell appealing between all the kooky gestures. The clean musk laundry detergent base notes are something of a letdown, but the rest is a hoot while it lasts.

And yes, despite the name and the pink bottle with boobs, I think this would work just as well for men.

27th May, 2010.

Somewhat feeble lemon cupcake with somewhat bitter vinyl-neroli icing. Not really sweet, thankfully, and wearable, but not compelling in any way. A very young crowd may find it witty. Not heinous, but no more than competent. Lovely bottle!

27th January, 2010.