Shocking: CK One Shock for Him/Her

By Tom We've discussed many time CK One and the various flankers that have come since. So seeing a new one in my local Sephora pretty much was met with a big yawn. However, shock of shocks, I actually found myself liking them. My first encounter was with the hers (the Sephora at the Beverly Center only had the hers for some reason); it's a sweet little floral with a little chocolate note to it and some of the cereal element that I love in Lostmarc'h Lann-Ael. Just at the point where I get sick of it (about three hours) it's gone. Macy's next door had the mens, but ask for a sample at Macy's and they'll look at you as if you suddenly your request was made in Urdu, or perhaps interpretive dance. So it was off to Sephora in Century City. Shock Him is a lot more conventional: a freezer-blast opening citrus and green that warms to a rather staid clean 'n fresh ambery patchouli. It's something you will no doubt be smelling on the young guy who brings the mail in your office. On me it's also gone in about 3 hours. Also on the shelf at Sephora was the original CK One, a scent that I liked back in the day. I don't know if it's the fault of reformulation or my advancing years, but testing it was a bit like running into a person you had a mad crush on 20 years ago. You look at them without the chemical attraction that made you weak when in your presence, and you wonder what it was that was so fascinating about them in the first place. CK One, we're done. These are both $40 for 1.7oz, $50 for 3.4oz and him has a whopping 6.7 ounce bottle for $65. Available practically everywhere. I tested at Sephora.