Calvin Klein Obsession, A Blast From the Past

There are some perfumes that are pretty distinct to my nose and Calvin Klein's Obsession is one of them. The full bottle that I have is from either 1996 or 1997. So it can probably be considered vintage and I haven't smelled the 80's version. But I am not commenting on the 80's version.

When I got my first Obsession bottle in either 1996 or 1997, it was part of a gift set. When I got it, I was in high school. Even though I loved it, it was incredibly strong and didn't really wear it too often. I was usually wearing Cucumber Melon from Bath and Body Works or Clinique Happy during that time period. I did wear Estee Lauder Pleasures as well but not as often. Most of the time, I could only afford Cucumber Melon on a regular basis. A big bottle of Cucumber Melon body mist wasn't more that $10 in the 90's. So for two and a half hours worth of pay, I could mostly keep myself just in Cucumber Melon. And my other wasn't the biggest fan of Obsession. She said that it was too old for me. Maybe it was or it could have been the fact that so many women in the 80's wore heavy hitters and Obsession was one of them. So that bottle of Obsession that my grandparents gifted me for my birthday languished in the back of my perfume storage. Rarely do I take out the bottle to do a tiny spritz. It still is fairly strong and just like I remember. But this time, I am a little wiser to how I want to wear my strong perfumes.

When I was poking around Fragrancenet, I saw that there was a mini available and I figured that for $10 and some change, I will give it a whirl and see what has changed. Turns out, a fair bit has changed. I mean, it still smells like Obsession but it's thinner, has less projection and doesn't seem to last as long. It's just not the same and I am a little bummed. I know that reformulations happen all the time but even though Obsession is dirt cheap through discounters, it's not worth buying, even if it is a mini. It is sad when something that is more of a legendary perfume like Obsession doesn't smell like it should.
 

CK One Review

I think that it's time for a blast from the past. When I was in high school, the girls (myself included) mainly wore Happy, Pleasures and Bath and Body Works Cucumber Melon. But then I remembered that CK One was something popular. CK One didn't seem to be hugely popular with the girls in terms of it being worn but seemed to be popular with the guys. Even though it's marketed as unisex. For some reason, I find androgynous a better term and a little classier than unisex.

When I was looking for a list of notes, I found that it was launched in 1994, shortly before I  hit middle school so maybe that's why I didn't smell a whole lot of it. I do remember seeing a ton of Calvin Klein ads for this and a few other offerings that were unleashed at this time. Black and white commercials in the age of color TV is pretty memorable.

CK One starts out with a whole lot of fresh cut lime on me. Which is pretty unusual since I can't find lime listed anywhere on the official list of notes so it's probably the pineapple and bergamot creating that note. After a couple minutes, I get hints of of cedar and maybe a little musk but the biggest thing that I noticed is how green in was and how linear that it is. There is no development One is pretty much the same from when you first apply it to when it peters out into nothing on skin. I don't remember ever owning a bottle but I might have but I think that my sister did have a small bottle of it that I snuck a small squirt. So yes, not a whole lot of change from the beginning to the end. It's pleasant, easy to wear and dirt cheap on FragranceNet and maybe a little pricier on Amazon but the 6.7 ounce is the most bang for your buck no matter what. For an EDT, the lasting power and projection is pretty decent, about five and a half to six hours on skin. I'm not impressed enough to own a bottle, even for old times sake but a decant will do.

Calvin Klein Obsession for Women EDP

Obsession for women is one of those perfumes that people either love or hate. Yesterday, I had a hankering for Obsession due to the fact that I was reading Janet Fitch's White Oleander. One of the characters, Starr, was Astrid's first foster mother that wore Calvin Klein's Obsession. I do find that Obsession is a very fitting perfume for Starr who was a recovering alcoholic and a stripper that was obsessed with her married boyfriend and who felt threatened by Astrid's presence. I search for my 12 year old Obsession bottle (is that considered vintage?) and spritz some on. It still smells like what I remembered. Obsession is one of those perfumes that I can smell from a mile away and recognize immediately.

Calvin Klein's Obsession was apparently a huge, no, massive hit when it came out in the '80's and still somewhat popular today. Obsession is loud and heavy perfume. It's not to be applied with a heavy hand, so I apply with a very light hand and Obsession lasts all day and all night. I smell a lot of spices that are toned down with vanilla. As time goes on, the creaminess does come out and it softens the vanilla and spices. As I mentioned, there is a great staying power. I would not go recommending this for spring or summer but find this to be a fall or winter scent. I'm not sure that I will buy Obsession again but my 12 year old bottle is mostly full.

I believe I have become jaded

I really do believe that I have become jaded with my perfume choices. I have become the type that is not keen on mainstream perfumes. What I consider mainstream is Chanel, Calvin Klein or anything that you can easily get in department stores. Most perfumes in department stores are starting to smell alike and I am having a hard time wearing any of them. Maybe it is because I am 28 and there are not too many perfumes that are geared for people in thier late 20's and early 30's. I am not of a certian demographic to teens and early 20's were there is a market for fruity florals or mid 30's and up where there way too strong or isn't quite my style.The new perfumes now just seem to be made from the same cookie cutter. It may have been that way for many years but since I have really started to pay attention to perfume, they all seem to smell alike. Nothing in the mainstream that is new is grabbing my attention to ask. There are some popular perfumes in my perfume collection stable. Some of them I am not fond of, some I love to no end. Chanel no 19 is one example. I cannot cuss Chanel out for issueing out no 19 in perfume form this past winter because it is divine. I have mentioned before, I don't go for eau de toilette versions because they fade so fast on my skin and they have the tendancy to smell like a chemically treated pile of mulch that stinks like it is about to go out of fashion. I hope Chanel decides to make the eau de parfum version a permanant thing and not make it so it may come out once a year or every couple years. Vera Wang's Sheer Veil is another one that I love that is a mainstream. It doesn't evolve into a fruity mess or any kind of mess on my skin.