If you're old enough to remember the days when Calvin Klein was truly shocking (think Brooke Shields! think Obsession!), you're probably older than the target audience for the new CK One Shock for her. CK One Shock for her (along with its male counterpart, CK One Shock for him) is a flanker to the unisex CK One, which was innovative, if not exactly shocking, when it was launched in grunge-era 1994.
The Calvin Klein website describes CK One Shock for her's composition as having top notes of passionflower, pink peony, and poppy flower; mid notes of liquid chocolate accord, blackberry, narcisse, and jasmine; and base notes of vanillin, patchouli, ambers, and skin musk. It's billed as a "juicy floriental," but it's really more of a fruity gourmand. As you can tell from the list of notes, it does not have anything in common with the original CK One's green-citrus freshness. On the other hand, you won't confuse it with Schiaparelli Shocking, either. CK One Shock for her opens with a tart, synthetic blackberry note and possibly just a hint of lemon. The heart of the fragrance is more fruit, of the pink-and-purple variety, if you know what I mean: sort of plummy, sort of currant-like. The base of the fragrance emerges after a half-hour or so and blends with the purple fruits. It's the kind of dry, powdery cocoa accord that, as Kevin recently noted, seems to be appearing everywhere these days. The "skin musk" of the dry down is very light and clean.
Overall, CK One Shock accomplishes what it sets out to do: it's a flanker for a popular youth-oriented fragrance, geared towards female customers in their teens and twenties who enjoy sweet berry-dessert fragrances but might be looking for something a little higher-end than Bath & Body Works. It's smoothly blended. It's reasonably priced. And, despite its gourmand aspect, it won't overwhelm the wearer (or anyone she passes in her high-school hallway), because it has low sillage and mild staying power.
The oddest thing about CK One Shock, for me, is how dated it already feels. Its video and print ads resemble a rave party from the mid-1990s. Its fruit-flower-musk combo is yet another olfactory grand-child of Thierry Mugler Angel. Even the hot-pink lettering of the bottle design reminds me of the "Stephen Sprouse for Louis Vuitton" collaboration (originally launched in 2001, reworked in 2009), in which Vuitton's classic bags were "spray-painted" with the kind of graffiti-style writing that Sprouse had started using back in the 1980s. Then again, for many members of the CK target audience, the 80s and 90s might have the romance of something they weren't quite old enough to experience firsthand.
Finally, CK One Shock left me thinking how much more difficult it is to shock the average consumer in 2011 than it was in 1994. Well, I was wearing romantic fruity-florals (Romeo di Romeo Gigli) and transparent green fragrances (Kenzo Parfum d'Été) in the mid-90s, so maybe shock value was just never my thing, even then. Here's a poll-type question or two to round off this review: what fragrance were you wearing in 1994? or, have any fragrances shocked you recently?
CK One Shock for her is available as 50, 100, and 200 ml Eau de Toilette.
Nice review, Jessica!
I DO remember Calvin Klein being shocking, firsthand. I was young enough at the time of the Brooke Shields jeans ad to actually gasp out loud the first time I saw it on TV. I was in college by the time that the David Lynch ads for Obsession started to air (and I found them embarrassing, too, especially in a dorm lounge full of other people’s boyfriends).
By 1994, I was married and scrimping, so I expect I was down to the last dregs of my Revlon Xia Xi’ang and Coty Aspen for Women, and I think I had finally thrown away my ancient, kept-on-the-dresser exposed to light, almost-empty bottle of Karl Lagerfeld Chloe.
cK One Shock for women doesn’t sound all that appealing to me, but then I really hate chocolate notes in fragrance. I seem to remember I’ve heard good things about Shock for Men, however. Did you run across that?
I was just young enough *not* to understand why the Brooke Shields ad was controversial, hah!… but I do remember being a little embarrassed by all the Obsession magazine ads of semi-nude men that some girls taped inside their locker doors at my high school! and then I felt unsettled by some of the Kate Moss TV and print ads in the 90s (which I now really admire, in retrospect).
I haven’t tried the male Shock yet… I need to “cross the aisle” at Sephora!
Oh, 1994. Let’s see, that was junior/senior year of college (whoops – dating myself!), so I think that was the end of the “marine” phase – probably CK Escape, Diamonds and Sapphires, maybe Issey? Ugh. I don’t think I got my bottle of CK One until 1995 or 1996. And probably some TBS Dewberry, White Musk or Juba oil. I sure loved the 90s. Don’t think I’ll like this though!
Oh, The Body Shop…! I was an Ananya fan in the mid-90s. Almost forgot about that one!
Kind of strange to now have a man and a woman version of a fragrance that was unisex.
Sell 2 bottles instead of 1 bottle shared by 2 people I guess?
You’re right…the “shared” aspect of the original CK One was what made it so interesting!
Great review. And I had a bottel of CK One at that time. I also remember I had a bottle of Cristalle EdT and L’eau de Monteil. It seems indeed that a lot of new perfumes to have a blackberry and a chocolate note.
Well, that was English for beginner. Sorry………..
Don’t be silly, Tulp! Your comment was fine. 🙂
One of my friends wore Cristalle… I really liked it on her.
1994 was probably the eve of my journey into perfumista-hood and the discovery of niche fragrances beginning with Annick Goutal and Guerlain. Up until then, I had and wore: Guess, Safari, White Linen (all gifts from then BF); Laura Ashley No 1, Coco edp, and the original NR Nina; and possibly Penhaligon’s Blue Bells…
I was surprised at CK One when I first took notice – so clean and pretty, and that – guys liked it!
I wore Safari and Laura Ashley no. 1 in the early 90s, too! I think I’d still like both of those… too bad no. 1 was discontinued.
Very sad indeed, but I discovered recently (via some MUA reviews) that Chanticaille’s Tiare holds a striking resemblance to LA No 1. I got some in a swap – Not perfectly, but pretty close.
Thanks for the tip! I’ll give that one a try.
I think that was about the time I bought The Vert by BVLGARI. It was available only on the Men’s Counter.
I didn’t know it was originally positioned as a men’s scent! How funny. I know so many women who wore/wear it and love it, of course.
Oh yes, and I felt so liberated and radical buying it. I was disappointed when it was reclassified as a woman’s scent. For someone who knew nothing about fragrance, I was being very modern.
Hm. I was 8 in 1994… so I’m guessing I wasn’t wearing anything. My first perfume was Ralph in middle school though, about four years later?
This one doesn’t really interest me. The latest perfume that I’ve been shocked by… would be TokyoMilk’s Honey & the Moon – and not so much by how it smells but by how incredibly long-lived it is – could still smell it really well on my wrists a day and a hot shower after I put it on!! Shock before that… would be how JM Vintage Gardenia, while absolutely marvelous grounded with Black Vetyver Cafe or something equally dark and woody, by itself has a very interesting ripe banana note on my skin. Not a huge fan of banana. ;_;
We can be shocked for all kinds of reasons! Thanks!
I was 9, so year, fragrance was not even within the realm of my experience at that point, haha.
🙂
I find all the Toyko Milks I’ve tried so far share this long-lasting quality.
I was 8, too, but I clearly remember sneaking sprays of my mother’s Poison and Tendre Poison. I thought I was being clever, but I’m certain she could smell it on me…she eventually gave me the bottle of tendre poison, which I wore to school. I probably shocked my teachers.
Although this CK One Shock for her seems to be at a comon place, its notes sounds a little good. I think, not certain, that I was wearing Azzaro pour Homme (urrrgh!) at that wonderfull time of (how good resemblance, girl!) 1994! I hate Azzaro nowadays. Recently fragrances chocks me more by them beauty then by their weirdness. I think I’d be shocked (in a weird way) if I tasted some Comme des Garçons fragrances…
Hah! Loved your “grunge-era”- it was so important for the culture!
I found this funny article about the commodification of grunge, from 1992 (!):
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/15/style/grunge-a-success-story.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
Thank you so much for the indication!!! I’m “discoverying” the 90’s again: listening to Smashing Pumpkins and PJ Harvey old albuns, searching my Nirvana albuns (excerpt for Nevermind, wich I don’t like)… When I read it I’ll give you a reply!! And sorry for the English mistakes. I’m reading my text again and Jesus, what have I writen??
I liked too much NY Times article. But there were some mistakes; per exemple: Hole wasn’t an all-woman band; there was Eric… Thanks!!!
We can be shocked by beauty, too! I was sort of shocked when I recently smelled some vintage Evening in Paris. It’s so lovely, to my nose… and it used to be a pretty commonplace fragrance, not “niche” for its time.
I was 14 and in 8th grade when the original came out. Everyone in my middle school was wearing it at the time. It was then that I was getting interested in not smelling like everyone else and I wore Sunflowers, one of the first real perfumes my mom got me!
Dilettante, I always wanted to be different at that age, too. 🙂
I was so surprised by the commercial for this one — just like you said, it seemed totally dated to me. Perhaps you’re right that to a younger generation it seems cool in a retro way, but still, if you’re not shocking your parents, I don’t see how cool it could possibly be (?) This reminded me of the futility of Tommy Hilfiger Loud, or Burberry The Beat, or other so-called rock n roll fragrances made by old people.
Ha! You’re exactly right. That commercial really feels like it’s trying too hard. Not very “authentic,” as everyone is saying these days. I read some article about the whole CK One Shock campaign, on some beauty-business website, trying to make the whole campaign sound very risque’ and edgy…but really, who exactly will be “shocked” by it? Pretty tame stuff.
Glad to see a NSTperfume writer replying other NSTperfume writer. So fun!
I’m also a 90’s kid, love those times! I was 8 in 1994 and I remember my mother wearing, among others, Tresor. I hated it. She also wore a perfume from Carven called (i think) Guirlandes or something like that which for me, as a kid, smelled like mosquito-repellent. The third I remember was a cheap thing called Mata Hari which she had received as a gift.
I recently found her old collection of empty minis which includes Christian Dior Dolce Vita, Tendre Poison, CK Eternity, Ysatis, Oh la la and also a mini L’Heure Bleue. The minis date from 1993 to 1995.
I’m personaly thinking of buying a bottle of Dolce Vita, but I have to sniff the reformulated version first. What do you guys think about it?
Brioche, how wonderful to have come across that collection of mini bottles! I like her taste.
I was 6 so maybe I was wearing Love’s Baby Soft. However, one of my good friends wore CK One in highschool, so I guess it was still resonating with that age-range 10 years later.
I bet the original CK One still sells pretty well!
Hmm 1994 was sophomore year in college so Safari, White Linen, Shalimar ( always), Obsession, L’air du Temps, Gap Om ( discontinued, grrrrr). One of my closest friends spent that year drenched in Eternity- good thing I love her!
Another Safari fan!
I remember Om… that whole fragrance line sold at the Gap was pretty good, and ahead of its time.
My only gift from 93 xmas was a bottle of Eau de Rochas pour Homme , It lasted me almost till summer 94. We were going through a rough period moneywise, I was at college and my mother suggested me that fragance cause she liked very much. I already got Armani ph and Eau savage at previous xmas. I guess coming from there I could only find One as “a nice everyday frag”, something you can get at a drugstore for 2€/1 litr. Later when I started working (1996), it used in a daily basis.
I remember appreciating and worshipping that Rochas, now I look to my frags collection and I probably would only save 5 of them if I have to
I can imagine that CK One didn’t seem particularly exciting after you’d been wearing that Rochas for a while!
And with reference to being shocked: lastly I’m only shocked for the lack of originality of new launches. I’m shocked at their idea of houses pretending We buy something new when only the new is the name.
It’s often disappointing, I agree!
Even without looking it up I said, “1994? That’s the year I found DK Fuel for Men on that trip to Toronto!” And I was right! God, that was awesome stuff.
Some other things launched that year (according to Basenotes) that I bought and wore obsessively: Catalyst for Men (still have a bottle, because it never goes out of style), Clinique Chemistry (ditto), Dalissime, Earth and Grass by Gap (oh, so good), and L’Eau D’Issey Pour Homme (I still have the original bottle, about a third full, and it still smells good!). And of course I was still wearing all the other, older things….
Grass! That was my favorite of the Gap line. I also liked Dream, but Grass was more unusual.
I was heading towards marriage to my now ex-husband, and he did not like perfume much. It was one of those unsaid things. (Plenty more emerged later … ) So I wasn’t wearing much, and it’s hard to think what it would have been. I bought Paloma Picasso in about 1992, so I guess I was wearing that. And I had a lot of stuff from earlier days – Chanel No 19, White Linen, Magie Noire, Paris … Later when Pleasures came out I wore it constantly. I loved classic stuff even then, and would have been suspicious of Cakvin Klein as a vulgar upstart! Snob that I was.
As for shocks in fragrances – my first order from Sonoma Scent Studio, which was a purse spray of Jour Ensoleille, and a few samples. It was my first niche fragrance experience, the first time I smelled fragrance NOT developed for the mass market. That was a shock; I hardly knew what I was smelling. And JE is a shock on its own, regardless.
The shock of realization that there is a whole other world of fragrance out there, beyond the perfume counter at Macy’s!! yay!
In 1994 I was in high school (freshman/sophmore year). I think I was just about to discover some of the Victoria Secret vanilla perfumes (strictly edp in the vein of Comptoir de Sud- vanilla caramel, vanilla banana, vanilla apricot). Before that, I had asked for a bottle of Ralph Lauren Safari unsniffed, after reading an article about vanity tables in Seventeen magazine. The article suggested buying beautiful cut-crystal bottles, such as Safari, to decorate a vanity (which I also wanted). Another example of effective product-placement consumerism! I didn’t love the perfume, but I did adore the bottle. Kinda wish I still had it actually, as well as that article (filled with pictures of changing vanity styles throughout the ages).
That does sound like a great idea for an article. I loved Seventeen when I was a teen. I’d probably still enjoy it, hah…
1994: I was 17 and in grade 12. I have a feeling I jumped on the CK One bandwagon around that time, but ultimately didn’t finish it (it came in gigantic bottles, if memory serves) and my dad ended up wearing it.
I think my main fragrance around that time was Eternity – I had been stealing it from my mother until she finally got me my own bottle. I also remember wearing some Designer Impostor version of Liz Claiborne, and Sunflowers.
I remember smelling Cristalle in a magazine ad and falling in love, but I don’t think I actually acquired a bottle until much later.
*whispery voice* Eternityyyy…
I was ten in 1994. If I was wearing any fragrance back then, it was a Bath and Body Works splash. Juniper Breeze and Plumeria were my favorites.
The last time a fragrance shocked me….I was shocked that I actually liked Prada Candy! It’s too sweet for me, but I do find it very well-done.
Yes, me too. Can’t wear PC, but like the scent. That was perhaps not a shock, but a certainly a surprise. It was the sort of thing I expected to hate.
I’l need to stop at Bergdorf and try Prada Candy! And, for a 14-year-old, a B&BW spray seems just right. Juniper Breeze was one of my favorites, back in the day!
I had a 3 year old son in 1994, and as I decided to be a stay at home mum until he went to school, the only perfume I liked & could afford was Revlon Fire & Ice (the red one). I still like it!
Shock value perfume was Womanity and while I know there are many that dont like it- I do! Im going to wear it today!
Oh just wear it and enjoy it! I like Chanel No 19 Poudre even tho’ it has had dismal reviews.
Thanks Annemarie, I will-but I am very light handed when spraying it on! Are you enjoying the warmer weather too?
It’s been delicious here. Warm but not hot. Just right for some spring gardening, and just right also for the Queen’s visit to Canberra. Although I hear she finds even warm weather rather trying.
A royal visit! Fun. 🙂
In 1994? Well I was in my early 30s. My go to would have been Eau Dynamisante by Clarins, and I also was a huge fan of Dior’s Dune at this time. I remember loving everything about L’Eau D’Issey when it came out and buying a bottle. Also Body Shop Tea Rose EDT and their Neroli oil blend which I wore as perfume.
Shock value perfume was Elie Saab le parfum and how it morphed into a poison cloud on me, despite a promising beginning.
Hey, you can’t go wrong with Dune. I liked the Body Shop Tea Rose oil, now that you mention it…
Thank you for reminding me about Eau Dynamisante! I now remember owning it in the mid-1990s and layering it with Femme.
In ’94, I was favoring some things I had already been wearing for years. I still had some Pavlova in its pretty little bottle, still wore the original Chloe sometimes, a fruity scent called Byblos that was in a cool blue bottle (which I still have with a smidge of perfume left in it). I had a few other vintage old school style scents that I wore [Fidji, L’Air du Temps, Isadora & others). I was starting to tire of Calyx, but hadn’t stopped wearing it altogether yet. I think I wore Cabotine most of the time in ’94. Also, I was wearing a lucious body cream that I had purchased @ Bloomingdale’s – pale pink in color and it sparkled a bit when applied as it had crushed pearls in it and had a spicy Oriental scent. It has frustrated me for quite some time now that I can’t remember the name of it – I also wore it on my wedding day. The pale CK One and that type of scent didn’t float my boat. Writing this list makes me realize that I’ve always been a perfumista of sorts, but who knew? 😉
I have the same realization when I look back! 🙂
I remember smelling Calyx on other women around 1992-94 and liking it very much.
I was really kind of hooked on Calyx back then until I finally got tired of it. I have no interest in wearing it again but when I get a whiff of it, it brings a smile.
I had a bottle of Byblos too! If you’re missing it, I found that Missoni Aqua is pretty similar – at least that’s what it reminded me of, it’s been a long time so who knows if I’m right?
Thanks Odonata! I don’t think I would wear Byblos anymore, but if I ever get a hankering, the juice that’s left in the bottle still smells fine. I’ve usually kept it in a cabinet and along with the colored glass bottle, it hasn’t turned! I wore that during my fruity-floral days. 😉
CK Shock doesn’t sound very shocking unless one could be shocked by how many other recent frags it sounds like it resembles. But the cocoa note gets me every time and I’ll have to at least try it. Sometimes I want sweet, fruity and gourmand, especially when in a ‘comfort frag’ mood and just want to smell good. 😉
When the original CK1 launched, I still had the average high school budget (I had summer jobs but not one during school) so did lots of spritzing clothes at perfume counters and finding decent enough dupes of the frags I couldn’t afford. I loved some of the classics like No. 5, Obsession both for men and women and Loves Baby Soft. But I really liked CK1 since it was so new to my budding perfumista nose. I do recall liking Pleasures, an l’Interdit flanker and Black Pearls very much as well but couldn’t afford them at the time. My mother got me the l’Interdit flanker as a gift for my seventeenth birthday and it was the most expensive perfume I’d ever owned at that point. I felt like a princess. lol
I don’t remember the Brooke Shields ads, but do remember the CK print ads with Kate Moss and wondering what all the fuss was about. But my friends and I were perusing the Versace coffee table books in the shops at that age so that probably didn’t make it easy for us to be shocked. Hehehe.
Was it Fleur d’Interdit? I had that as well – used to love it!
I guess the Kate Moss print ads were shocking for their nudity… also, she looked so fragile, and so unlike most models of the preceding decade. The TV spots were really haunting… a few of them are floating around YouTube, but not all of them.
I was only three in 1994 so… no fragrance?
I like chocolate accords mainly because they smell good on my skin. If it didn’t smell so good mixed with my skin chemistry, I would avoid it so I wouldn’t smell as if I forgot to wash off a spill of a chocolatey dessert.
I’m interested in this cK One Shock for Her mainly because of the chocolate notes, but I’m worried about the fake berry (smells bad on my skin) and patchouli (smells bad to my nose). I also like the price (40 USD for 50 ml and 50 USD for 100 ml).
If anyone knows more about the fake berry and/or patchouli, please tell me about it. Oh, and other good chocolate-accented perfumes (but I don’t want to smell like a dessert! I just like the richness that’s added).
Thank you! 🙂
How about Dior’s Dune? I get bitter chocolate in that, even tho’ you might not find it listed as a note. There is a a lot of richness there, to my nose, but nothing dessert-y, I assure you!
You could sniff out Bond no. 9’s So New York, the original Missoni (red bottle), Les Parfums de Rosine’s Rose Praline (I really should review this one!), or Angel, of course… and some lower-priced fragrances that have chocolate are really not bad… I remember liking Avril Lavigne’s Black Star more than I expected to!
It’s so much fun to read what everyone was up to in the nineties!
I was in high school (class of 96!), and somewhere between grunge and drama queen! I remember buying my scented oils and custom scented lotions at a little hippie/liberal shop downtown. My favorite was an herbal essential oil called “dragon’s blood,” but I also wore an mix with rosemary and something else.
I can’t think of anything recent that I found shocking. Maybe I’m too cynical? (or too much of an “urban hipster,’ as one of my students accused me this week!)
Or maybe it’s because the fragrance market has been fairly cautious for a long time now, lol!
By 1994 I had discovered Annick Goutal – I read about her in a wonderful defunct magazine call Connoisseur. I also had two tiny bottles of Caron Tabac Blond and En Avion, which I gave away when I moved overseas, unfortunately – what I wouldn’t give to have those back! I discovered the Carons and also Agraria Bitter Orange potpourri via the Sunday New York Times – the precursor to the internet 😉
Nozkoz, I remember Connoisseur! My parents had a subscription. Also, love your description of the Sunday NY Times as “the precursor to the internet.” Where would we have been without it?
In 94 I was 17, that was in my pre-perfumista days (my parents have never been fond of perfume, so I wasn’t really “exposed” as a child!). I dimly recall that I owned bottles of Chloe Narcisse and Pleasures around then, but they didn’t move me much. My perfumista-career started about three years later when I picked up a bottle at the perfume counter named Mitsouko (because of the japanese-sounding name). Instant love!
Narcisse did have a gorgeous bottle! I almost bought it just for that reason.
It makes me feel young. I’ll be 37 so in ’93-95 I was partying my arse off at University. Last night I bought it along with the new YSL for me for me. Taking YSL back today and getting either the new Escada, another chocolate shock, or lé Instant by Guerlain or whatever the name it is. I’m a sucker for Guerlain. My insolence is my signature scent along with MITSOUKO. Neverhavr I owned so much perfume even some Patou, Lucien Lelong and Amouage in there. It’s all about the weather out here in the desert. Keep smelling good peeps!
You must have a wonderful collection! I’ve sniffed a couple vintage Patous and loved them.
Thanks for the great review Jessica. My daughter wore the original CK One as one of her first childhood perfumes – the other was Samsara. She then moved on to L’eau d’Issey and wore that one exclusively for YEARS. She currently wears Daisy. I remember mostly wearing Rochas Femme during the mid-1990s. However, its last reformulation ruined it for me. Have not tried any of the CK One flankers. In fact Calvin Klein really hasn’t appeared on my fragrance radar since I really got interested in perfumes. I don’t know why, other than there are too many new releases each year to try them all.
As far as Calvin Klein goes, I love Obsession on other people (now that it’s not the 80s anymore, and I’m not smelling too much of it everywhere!), and I was a fan of Truth when it was released. Nowadays, I do own Euphoria, which feels like a comfort scent to me.
Thanks all for the stroll down memory lane. 1994 was about Chantecaille’s Tiare, YSL’s In Love Again (VERRY berry), Nina Ricci’s (?) De-ci De-la, and the end of a too-long affair with J. del Pozo’s Duende.
I went through a bottle of CK One quite easily, but didn’t want another. Half of NYC seemed to reek of it at the time. One of the things that made it unusual was the marketing – it was sold in places like Tower Records as well as Bloomingdales. I recall a bar in the East Village where you could get it from a vending machine.
I was 8 in ’94 and my older sister wore ck one and exclamation! (which brings back a ton of memories. I just remember ck one smelling…metallic-y. It’s no wonder Chrome smells similar.
Ugh…Exclamation…i could never hear a friggin word my sister was saying over that loud and obnoxious perfume….