Gap Simply White
Introduced: 2002 (discontinued)
Top Notes: Japanese Cymbidium Orchids, Golden Sundust Orchids, Morning Dew Honeysuckle.
Middle notes: White Lily of the Valley, White Hydroponic Spring-Jasmine, White Osmanthus.
Bottom notes: Kashmir, Sandalwood, Soulful-Musk, White Birchwood, White Amber, Myrrh.
My Description: Clean, Winter, Cool.
Smelling this perfume evokes powerful memories in me, and I'll start off fully admitting that whatever I say about this perfume is colored by my own sentimentality. I remember the Christmas of 2003. I remember how cold it was that December. I remember going to the mall...red and white sparkly lights everywhere, the cutest clothes on display. For personal reasons I won't go into details about why that particular holiday season was so special, but...I can tell you that I didn't have many clothes and I took a particular sense of pride and gratitude with every comfy sweater or cute pair of shoes I bought. And then I went into Gap. I've always loved their clothes, and that season was no different. I remember running across Simply White at some point, smelling it, and falling head over heels in love with it right away. Something about its cool sophistication, something about its elegant, effortless femininity, drew me in right away and made my eyes sparkle. I had to have it. And I've never regretted that purchase for a single instant at any point since I bought it.
Simply White is a floral among florals, of this there can be no question. It's like smelling a bouquet of white flowers, stuffed thick with honeysuckle, lily of the valley, and all kinds of orchids. No fruits to be found anywhere, and only a hint of musk deep in the base, like a distant star you can only see way out in the country. But....there's a sweetness to it....just a hint, once the florals have hit you and passed, there's something that remains in the base that almost feels like a smile. It's probably the combination of sandalwood, giving it allure without any musky warmth to throw off the blend, and white amber to keep it feminine. The amber is the elegant, pretty smile at the base. I'd wear this just for the base notes alone.
Everyone knows of a perfume that constantly gets attention (and many women own one) - "Wow...what are you *wearing*?" Gap Simply White is the attention whore of my collection...it gets more attention than any of my more famous, expensive perfumes. And to me, it's a winter perfume as well. Maybe it's just the association in my memory of Columbus's lonely chill that winter, or maybe it's that this is such a "white" perfume with so many cooler notes, but to me, this will always be an eminently wintertime fragrance, and that's okay. I like winter. And even though it's a cooler smell, the sweet promise this perfume evokes always seems to create friendliness and good cheer wherever I go.
I desperately hope Gap brings this fragrance back, even in limited quantities. I can't imagine a life where I couldn't turn to Gap Simply White as a basic staple of cold weather cheer.
