Hey there ULGers, Many of you have been along term perfumistas and will get that this bottle is an icon. For the newbies amongst us, Chaos Donna Karan is a 2008 reboot of a 1996 killer perfume that broke all the feminine fragrance rules wide open. A spicy aromatic woodsy amber. It hit all the previous tones reserved for men and did it better, cooler, more sophisticated and in winning style. Instant hit. The original bottle was designed by her late husband: artist and sculptor Stephan Weiss and was a shard of crystal. It was modern and monumental. My 2008 bottle was part of a series, an insta line with a couple of reboots, Chaos was the standout. It’s also the only one I didn’t move on. The only bottle I can see of it on eBay is $800! Whoa.

Chaos by Donna Karan 2008 reboot

These featured notes are given:
Spices, Coriander, Exotic Woods, Sage

Super spicy. I’m going with ginger, cinnamon and black pepper with maybe some paprika. The exotic woods are dark, charred and smoking, a bit like forking through the still coruscating left overs of a bonfire. Also, I get a BarBQ sauce back draft. The greenery is very low key for me, maybe it’s mixed up with the smoke and char.

Through to the heart and dry down, as the major fireworks settle, Chaos becomes balsamic, resinous woods. There is still the smoke but now it feels like incense burning near a food market. Eight hours later, I still smell of hot, spicy woodsmoke. It’s calm, sensual and zen.

Totally unisex. Excellent sillage and longevity. Could Chaos be the reason we are now inundated with beast mode, smoking woods and scratchy ambers? If only they made them with this much love.

Did you ever get to sniff Chaos?
Portia