"Normal" People Review Tommy Girl Perfume

Having heard that Luca Turin considered Tommy Girl radiant and was giving it five stars in his new book, I wanted to sniff what all the fuss was about. I sprang for a bottle a few weeks ago, and have been smelling it repeatedly ever since.

My reaction to Tommy Girl was/is quite negative (I'll share it below). Given Luca's (and wife Tania's) positive reaction to it though, I wondered if perhaps I was missing something. So I decided to bring in a few experts of my own.

I asked 20 people to sniff Tommy Girl blindly then give me their honest impressions. I also asked them to rate the scent on a five-star scale. I didn't tell them what they were smelling, only that it was a commercial perfume.

These were "normal" men and women (i.e., non-perfumistas), ranging in age from mid-twenties to late-forties. I sprayed the scent on cards and let them sniff and talk while I watched and took notes.

Their reactions were quite varied, but a few things definitely "popped" as researchers like to say. Some surprised me.

For instance, I was amazed to hear that out of 20 people, seven thought Tommy Girl was something their grandmothers would wear! JS called it "antiquish." PS thought it smelled like "old ladies caked with body powder." TA said if he smelled it while nuzzling a girl's neck, "it would throw him off." And MS said it smelled "like you hugged your grandma."

Four people found Tommy Girl to be "too flowery." DF found it to be "very floral and possibly overpowering." JD wrinkled her nose, pushed it away and said it smelled like Estee Lauder Beautiful to her. HS had the impression of a flower garden and "fresh green stems broken open" but said he could only tolerate Tommy Girl outside, during the day.

The three people who thought they smelled fruit in Tommy Girl liked it. The two people who liked the scent best thought Tommy Girl smelled crisp and fresh. SM called it "the perfect summer scent." JS said it was refreshing and felt like "running through a meadow in Springtime." No one smelled any tea notes.

Only five people said they liked it enough to wear or have their significant others wear (three men, two women). And only one person, SM, lit up and said she "absolutely loved it."

Among the men there were quite a few references to other scented products, including candles, air fresheners, laundry detergent, potpourri and bubble bath. NG called it "more Glade than French perfume."

The men who liked it didn't seem terribly excited by it, calling it "above average" and "very nice." EM said it would be "okay if a woman wore it." Only one man obviously enjoyed the scent (he couldn't stop sniffing the card) and said he would "definitely" ask out a woman wearing it (he also said he'd ask out a woman wearing Brut).

Four men told me they absolutely would not want to smell Tommy Girl on their wives or girlfriends.

It was interesting to see everyone's body language in response to the scented cards. Only two people kept sniffing at them contentedly. The rest put them down after a couple of sniffs, pushed them as far away as possible, or tried to give them back.

And I was a bit surprised that out of 20 people, only one person, NS, recognized it as a Hilfiger scent and finally guessed it was Tommy Girl. She said she used to wear it, but never finished her bottle and now thinks it "smells kinda cheap."

The most colorful reactions came from BR, who generously gave Tommy Girl two stars because "one star would be like poop," and NG, who said that if he were the father of a young daughter, "I'd buy Tommy Girl to keep the boys away from her."

Together these twenty brave reviewers gave Tommy Girl a rating of 2.75 stars.

The first time I smelled Tommy Girl I would've given it a single star. Now that I'm used to it, I'll give it two stars. Not because I like it any more but because I don't hate it as much. Its shock has begun to wear off.

I now expect its screechy, bitter first bite and almost look forward to the cheap-smelling dry down that reminds me of hippie oils at Whole Foods mixed with feminine hygiene products.

Maybe I'm missing something here - some beauty that's right in front of my nose - but I don't believe so. And having heard the reactions of my intrepid reviewers, I know my reaction to Tommy Girl isn't all that strange.

What's your take on it? I hope you'll take the time to check out what other perfumistas are saying about Tommy Girl at Helg's Perfume Shrine and Perfume Posse.

Comments

[perfumeshrine]

Now there! Sceintific almost and taking into consideration all tastes, ages and sexes.
I think the results speak for themselves: the impression I get is that many functional products do smell like it (whether that is because they copied it or because it has an inherent link with smells we tend to associate with such products is besides the point), which diminishes its pleasure factor.

Excellent survey, dear M and a stellar post :D

[scent signals]

thank you, dear H! well, as scientific as it could be, considering! everyone did a great job of sniffing and putting their reactions into words. of course, the facial expressions and pushing away of the cards often said more than the words. it was good for me to hear what some of the non-perfume-obsessed had to say. and i've wondered the same thing - are those products copying these popular scents, or is there naturally a common link? for example, i now smell what seems to be SJP Lovely in a popular feminine hygiene product.

[perfumeshrine]

There is definitely the trend of functional products following specific bestsellers's scent (I can attest to at least one, which couldn't ever possibly be the reverse: Baygon spray green for cockroaches having elements of Poison ~fitting choice for inspiration for a poisonous substance, one would argue! LOL)

But there is also a category of smells which really smell like grooming: I put coumarin, powder, some musks, some moss, chamomile in that category and I believe since they evoke images of grooming to others as well they became the preferred scent for hygiene products at some point.

Interesting problem though :-)

[Le critique de parfum]

Very interesting and witty post! I think Tommy Girl is boring and spineless, but doesn't the guy love Beyond Paradise too? LOL!

[Rappleyea]

Just discovered your wonderful blog and have been enjoyably reading for the last hour! Super writing! The Tommy Girl survey cracked me up - LT will never live this down on the blogs/boards! Also printed out a copy of your beautiful poem, and am ROTFL at the "Proustian Rush" article! But...I hesitate to become such a fan of a FL Gator!?! I bleed U. K. blue! JK (not about the bleeding, just about the hesitating).

[scentsignals]

merci, m. le c.! now i have to go test THAT one! ha ha!

rappleyea, if it makes you feel better, i'm no gator... i saw the light and became a 'nole! (hope that's better for a UK fan!) regardless, i hope you will come back to visit often. and thank you for noticing my poem!

[Rappleyea]

Much better, thank you. I'll definitely be back - this is one of the best blogs I've found!

[Kathy]

Thanks for your comment on my book review post, and thanks too for leading me to your blog! I wasn't impressed with Tommy Girl either, not giving it much past a cursory sniff. But...what do you think about the 5-star Badgley Mischka? I gave it another sniff on Monday and wasn't all that thrilled with it either.

[scentsignals]

hi, kathy, thanks for coming over! i didn't hate the badgley, but i didn't want to buy it, either. and i actually remember liking the flanker a little more than the original. but honestly, i'll have to retest both before i can offer any specific reactions. it's been months since i tried them both. did you like the flanker?

[Heather]

What a great project you took on here, and an excellent resulting post! Last week, I performed the same experiment albeit with just one person - my husband. We went to Kohl's to look for some clothes and I spotted the TG bottle and sprayed it on a card for him. He found it "sexy" and I found extremely average, extremely forgettable. I get no tea in there, and I wish I did because I think that could only improve it. I read the review in Perfumes: The Guide with amusement, having never smelled the juice before. Now I re-read it in bafflement.