Tilly is the second fragrance from Rosie Jane; I still haven’t tried the first fragrance, Leila Lou, but I recently came across a sample vial of Tilly and decided that this was a good time to try it, since Tilly is a perfume oil that “effortlessly captures the essence of summer” with notes of grapefruit, pineapple and tropical gardenia.

My experience of Tilly reminded me of my usual experience with the season of summer itself. On my skin, Tilly starts off like a freshly mixed fruit-juice punch — grapefruit and pineapple, yes, plus something like mango. It’s fun, the way a summer cocktail should be. (Remember L’Artisan Parfumeur Ananas Fizz? That was a wonderful example of the fruity-cocktail-as-perfume genre.) Unfortunately, after I’ve enjoyed the sensation of that seasonal refreshment, with its promise of long days, festive evenings, cute floral dresses, you get the picture — things go awry for a while…

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