Perfume Review - Lady Gaga Fame

As I've mentioned before, I am a huge lover of perfumes and love owning at least 2 bottles at a time. Of course, I wouldn't mind more! However, celebrity fragrances never appealed to me and I'm not a major fan of Lady Gaga. Fame was never launched in India either so I never got a chance to smell it. How did I end up buying this perfume? Read on...

From the day I read that Fame would be a black perfume that sprays clear and becomes invisible once airborne, I was very fascinated by the concept. It is the first perfume ever to utilize such a technology. The packaging lists the perfume's notes as "tears of belladonna, crushed heart of tiger orchidea with a black veil of incense, pulverized apricot and the combinative essences of saffron and honey drops". Instead of the pyramidal structure used in most perfumes, Lady Gaga Fame uses a "push-pull technology", where the ingredients demonstrate aspects of each note without precedence. Rather than utilizing top, middle, and base notes, the perfume is based on three accords – "dark" (containing the Belladonna notes), "sensual" (containing the honey, saffron, and apricot notes), and "light" (containing the Tiger Orchid notes) which come together to produce a floral, fruity scent. 

The perfume references the allure of fame and fortune with its sweet scent and gold crown, while the inclusion of the poisonous belladonna, along with the black liquid, represent the dark or destructive side of fame. The packaging says the perfume is "black, like the soul of fame". Great metaphor. Well designed and put together I must say. 

I'm noctural so the 6-8am slot is pretty much my bed time (its 7am right now and I haven't slept yet) and at a time like this about a month ago, I came across a blog post reviewing Fame. After reading lots of good reviews, I was intrigued by the perfume's description. Of course, I read up about it in detail on Fragrantica to see if I would like it, as the site shows you suggestions of perfumes similar to the one you're checking out.  When I checked out an online store in India, I was delighted to find the perfume at a highly discounted price. I had never bought perfumes online and was very skeptical about whether it would be fake, but thankfully a few days later, as the package arrived and I opened it, I was relieved to see that it was a genuine product.  

Housed in an egg shaped glass bottle with a gold claw lid, this inky black perfume looks really gothic, totally like something  Nancy from The Craft would wear. Did I ever mentioned that I love goth fashion and of course, that movie? Surprisingly, the black liquid doesn't stain your clothes. Getting to the main part now, the fragrance. Unlike most reviews I read, I don't really find it sweet. There's nothing overpowering about it that makes it unwearable or overwhelming. To me, it's more like a slightly spicy floral blend with a lot of incense.  There’s a richness to it that makes it a great night time fragrance. The sad part? It doesn't work with my body chemistry and doesn't last for very long on my skin. However, do I regret the purchase? Not at all, I got a great deal, a cool looking perfume and though it may not last on skin very long, its great on clothes and hair!

Have you smelled this perfume? Have you used any other celebrity fragrances? Let me know in your comments below.