Parfum d'Été
Kenzo (1993)

The smell of an ever-warming spring. May is fast approaching and soon the ground cover will include that of lily of the valley in bloom, but also that of the less-celebrated but beautiful smelling Canada mayflower (Maianthemum canadense) with their aroma reminiscent of laundry taken in fresh from the line and imbued with light indoles. Also in May, there blooms the starflower (Lysimachia borealis) on the woodland floor, which have little fragrance of their own, but would make for a great spring floral fantasy note for their beauty and adjacency to the aforementioned.

Parfum d'Ete (1993 version) smells to me like all three flowers together, quite watery, crisp, and brisk. I also smell a peony accord, smelling fresh, plump, on the verge of overripe, with rosy overtones. Truthfully, it's one of the best peony representations I've encountered thus far. I can almost envision the industrious little ants scurrying around their blooms, taking part in the mutualism between the two organisms. The peony provides and the ants protect. Parfum d'Ete is really a garden taking us from the height of spring into summertime, hinting at the humidity, dew, and fecundity of the season.

There is a languid quality that persists through the dry down, the lily of the valley carrying all other flowers like a chaperone into ever growing heat and restlessness of the approaching summer. As they begin to wither, they pass their reign to ever fleshier, leafier, abundant woods, fading into moss, roots, woods, and undergrowth, swallowing all until next year, growing ever more humid and sensuous. Moments of the dry down are reminiscent of honey and beeswax scented soap. Sadly, this version was replaced by a 2002 version that, while nice, has nowhere near the impact as the original.

Parfum d'Été is a fresh, crisp, piercing lily of the valley, with lots of green. It's almost too piercing for me. LOTV is a white floral that, in the wrong hands, can tend to smell high-pitched and screechy. Parfum d'Été just skirts that line for me. I can wear and enjoy it a few times in the Spring when its bracing crispness is welcome, but if I wear it too much, or at the wrong time of year, it feels shrill. It definitely has a late 80s, early 90s vibe.

I prefer my LOTV's a little softer and more floral, but I still think this deserves a thumbs up.

Doe-eyed fruity pink floral, with
sour green muguet and woods.

Parfum d'été starts off quite well, with plenty of nuances, but after that it doesn't go on to explore the contrasts between the two halves.
Instead, it takes the safe route to floral cuteness, and - by dumbing down - fails to meet it's full potential.

More dissonance would have made it a more interesting perfume, in my opinion.

Breezy. Light green vibe. Faint fruitiness. Smells "clear". Spring bouquet that's blended all together, in the beginning.
Lily of the valley shines here. The other flowers remain mixed as one bunch. It's fresh, spring-like, even summery. It reminds me of the early 90's, no doubt. It's in the vein of Laura Ashley or Jessica McClintock. A Martha Stewart wannabe, would have worn this, back in the day. Jasmine becomes pronounced later, as well.
Woods move in with the flowers. It's a nice fragrance; nothing obnoxious about it.

I'm reviewing the current version, as I haven't smelled the original in twenty years.

Breezy and fresh in a very 90's way, with Lily of the Valley playing the diva, and Hyacinth and Freesia singing backup, it's in the same genre as Gucci Envy and Cristalle Eau Verte: a green floral revival. I tend to think of it as Diorissimo modulated for Generation X.

This review is for the old version. I am not familiar with the new version.

I love this green floral. The lily of the valley, the hyacinth and the rose are blend so well. It has good staying power too.

The leaf shaped bottle is beautiful. I will never understand why they changed it.

I didn't realize it had been reformulated and put in a very ordinary looking bottle. Must go in search of another of the older bottles.