Contradiction Calvin Klein 1997 Eau de Parfum

Contradiction (Eau de Parfum) by Calvin Klein

Bottle Design:
Fabien Baron

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7.1 / 10 252 Ratings

A perfume by Calvin Klein for women, released in 1997. The scent is floral-spicy. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Floral

Spicy

Woody

Fresh

Oriental

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Peony

Lily

Lily of the valley Orchid

Orchid

Rose

Mock-orange

Heart Notes

Eucalyptus Jasmine

Jasmine

Blackberry Lilac

Lilac

Pear

Base Notes

Tonka bean

Sandalwood Musk

Musk

Perfumer & Creative Guidance

Ann Gottlieb Product developer

Videos

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Ratings

Scent

7.1252 Ratings

Longevity

7.0189 Ratings

Sillage

6.4169 Ratings

Bottle

7.5178 Ratings

Value for money

8.246 Ratings

Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 07/06/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Contradiction Parfum

Cindy Crawford

Lights

Innocence

Aqua Lily

Escada Collection Parfum de Toilette

Reviews

4 in-depth fragrance descriptions

09/01/2023

8
Pricing 9
Bottle 6
Sillage 7
Longevity 8
Scent

MrsGuerlain
442 Reviews

MrsGuerlain

2

Not the typical CK fragrance

Eucalyptus… it really makes a difference. First time smelling I was intrigued by this unknown and very strange note. It made the whole scent smell like watermelon. I must say that I found it so interesting that I bought it. I have not worn it a lot of times since but this does not mean that it is a bad fragrance. It is close to your skin, and it lasts for 4-5 hours. And the scent is lovely. I think it is a great contribution to the perfume world.
The top is a softly smelling bouquet of flowers. Very understated and delicate. It takes you gently into this strangely smelling eucalyptus note which is accompanied by jasmine and blackberries. We stay there for a couple of hours and finally we hit the base - lovely sandalwood and tonka bean with a whiff of musk. All in all a well composed fragrance. Beautifully done by Ann Gottlieb.
The bottle is somewhat in the same spirit as a lot of other CK scents - but this has more character. I adore the minimalistic metal cylinder, which adds attitude to this - almost male impression - and the colour of the juice is so well fitted to this product. This is not a winner - it is an outsider with loads of potential.
51/365

03/22/2012

5
Sillage 5
Longevity 6
Scent

Missk
1357 Reviews

Missk

Very helpful Review 5

Contradictory to the mass market; check this one out.

You don't hear too much about Calvin Klein's Contradiction these days, as it is often overshadowed by newer releases like Euphoria, CK IN2U and CK One. While I don't find it to be anything overly amazing, I fear that it may be the first fragrance to be discontinued in Calvin Klein's current collection, which would be such a shame.

Contradiction is a pleasant enough blend of delectable florals and powdery woods. The eucalyptus note in the heart, is possibly what causes some to refer to this fragrance as being metallic. I quite like the uniqueness of the eucalyptus note. I'm an Australian, from the country, so this particular note reminds me of home and the bush, which perhaps in turn makes me a fan. Escape for Men also gives me the same nostalgic feeling.

There is a definite powderiness to this fragrance, which is a good or bad thing depending on each person's personal taste. One review of this fragrance on MakeupAlley, likened Contradiction to the scent of a warm photo-copied sheet. I quite like that description, I think it is very apt and truthful.

I'm on the fence with Contradiction, while I like certain aspects of it, particularly the floral powderiness, the woodsy notes just don't work for me, neither does the lasting power which is relatively poor.

After a while, Contradiction becomes tiring and somewhat generic. The eucalyptus and the odd paper smell, is what keeps this fragrance alive and different. Every now and then it shows some similarities to Armani She.

01/05/2012

7.5
Longevity 7
Scent

Sherapop
1239 Reviews

Sherapop

Very helpful Review 6

Nuages Verts-Grisâtres

It has taken me about, let's see, fourteen years to figure out Calvin Klein CONTRADICTION, but I do believe that I just had a breakthrough: this perfume is an aromatic pseudo-chypre! This evening I decided to pull out from the back of my armoire the long languishing cylinder hiding quietly in its sleek matte aluminum sheath, having been reminded of its existence by a soothing eucalyptus-spearmint bath courtesy of the BBW Aromatherapy line. Since I even used the eucalyptus hair conditioner, which remains fragrant long after rinsing, my compatible perfume choices were severely limited. But then it popped into my mind: Calvin Klein CONTRADICTION, the only perfume in my collection with a significant eucalyptus component.

There's probably a reason why perfumers do not often reach for eucalyptus, and the mixed reception to this creation, the sole member of the classic CK collection to have been discontinued (at least to my knowledge...), may have a lot to do with it. CONTRADICTION is so unexpected and just plain weird that I strongly suspect that were it poured into a Serge Lutens bottle with a new label slapped on, say, NUAGES VERTS-GRISATRES, it would be sought out and perhaps even worshipped by countless niche-ees (no, not Nietzsche, though my understanding is that he did spend some time in Eze, along a path that I myself walked to Grasse—so who knows? Perhaps he, too, really loved perfume and his pilgrimage to the environs of Eze led to the perfume capital of the world as well? On ne sait jamais.) But I digress...

While coming to terms once again with CONTRADICTION, the donning of which is always an event in itself because it is so very ODD, it dawned on my that the extreme eccentricity of this composition reminds me very much of SJP COVET. No, not the notes or even the structure of the compositions: the two are completely different. But they are united in their extreme, obstinate refusal to respect the orthodox genres of perfume, in addition to their fundamentally "challenging" demeanor. It takes some time to come to an appreciation of these perfumes. Those who are looking for instant gratification need not apply, because these creations are really quite demanding. I have no doubt that many a sniffer gave them a quick whiff and then summarily dismissed them, relegating them forever to their own private dustbin of olfactory history. In the case of CONTRADICTION, the orchid, lily, eucalyptus, and about a million other notes together produce an utterly unique creation, like nothing else I've ever smelled. Yet it's not the perfumic equivalent to a garbage pizza. No, not at all. An appealing chypre texture and strangely harmonic effect ultimately arise out of what might at first seem to be sheer cacophony.

Surprise: I was delighted to discover just now (after having compared the two C's in my mind...) that the perfumer who produced this radically other perfume is none other than...drum roll...Ann Gottlieb: the creator of COVET! Brava, cara! I am truly impressed!

Ordinarily, according to my own explicitly stated evaluation criteria (in my profile at Creednotes), I would only be able to give a thumbs up to a perfume in my collection which I had every intention of replenishing, but my 100ml bottle of CONTRADICTION remains one-third full after, well, fourteen years. No matter: I'm going to contradict my own evaluation scheme in honor of this splendidly original perfume.

02/16/2025

10
Pricing 6
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 8
Scent

Minigolf
547 Reviews

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Minigolf

Helpful Review 7

Certainly not a "cloudy cup fragrance"...

...but wonderfully colorful with a flower pattern on a woody green background. Like the wonderfully old-fashioned English cups from which people like to drink tea. There are some that look exactly like "Contradiction" smells. Decorated with roses, peonies, lilies and lilies of the valley, green leaves, sometimes mint, which has been replaced in the fragrance by exciting eucalyptus.
Sometimes even the inside of these drinking vessels is decorated, often on the bottoms, where it then shimmers through the honey-colored tea. This can be a blackberry or a pear, corresponding to fruity flavored teas. There is even so-called "lilac tea" or violet tea... to name just a few more decor options.
It smells very "vintage", as if the "launch year" was not 1997, but 20 years earlier. Although the 28 years that the perfume has been around are quite a long time.
One more remark, which is due to my nose... In the beautiful base of the fragrance, which joins it in the "heart" and lingers for a long time, I can clearly detect vetiver as well as sandalwood. Practically as a "grassy-rooty" addition, which is not indicated above.
Although the fragrance can be rated as "floral", there is not much sweetness here. It could even be described as rustic-elegant, which is a bit of a contradiction in terms. So the name was chosen quite rightly.
The eucalyptus with late summer fruits also creates a nice tension. And the different seasons in which the flowers bloom. So by no means a "cloudy cup fragrance" .... this review could just start all over again. But I'd rather not, because now you know what I mean :-))