Carnival of Souls

The act of linking scent to cinema is so interesting. I keep fantasising about having a VHS/DVD collection with their corresponding bottles perched in front of each case. I’m trying to place what i’m smelling into the context of its film: it feels like the protagonist alone in her quiet, comfortable room for tea and cream, while something waits outside her window. Something inevitable and persistent. It’s a pleasant, moreish scent, and quietly odd... perhaps that distinctive violet smell is carrying the salt-scalded rust of the pier, dangling gently amidst the sweetness? Something in this perfume is sharpening the violet, making it acidic and subtly startling, and I wish I had the kind of nose that could tell you what. As time goes on it gets sweet and heady, sort of intoxicatingly, seductively sweet, then it fades to a gentle memory that I keep trying to re-smell. What a sad strange film, what a sad strange perfume

Whatever it smells like I'm pretty sure I'm gonna end up buying that perfume. The hand of the water on the bottle creeps me out (for those who know the movie, you will understand) ... I need it. Edit : I got my sample and this is definitely on my to-buy list. This is what I wanted Moth Zoologist to be. Sorry, I love niche fragrances but to me Moth is not wearable, unless you're going to goth dance clubs or an Halloween party. Carnival of Souls is not that. It is soft, slightly sweet and smoky at the same time. It definitely has some sort of vintage style. Think powdery boudoir fragrances but "mysterious" and darkened by incense. It's special enough to be a colder temperature signature fragrance and friendly enough to be worn at the office. I'd totally wear this one :) I need it soon ...

Not beating the unsettling yet wistful bpd baddie allegations with this one. Picture dark circles and powder pink cheeks, steamy breath in an early morning garden covered in dewdrops running from the girls home, bed rotting with all of your ball jointed dolls and blind box plushies keeping you company. It is insanely addicting to me, i cannot stop huffing myself when I wear this. It envelops you in this saccharine and disturbing cloud of cream mixed with that sweet vanilla plastic babydoll smell from your childhood. Not floral, not spicy, not overpowering. completely haunting and the only thing that could be improved is the longevity...but I'm happy to spritz myself throughout the day to keep that weird girl cloud wafting around me

I thought Flaming Creature was my favorite MZ (along with Tragedy Oil, it’s a tough call) but Carnival of Souls is quickly becoming my daily scent as someone who does not ascribe to a signature fragrance. Carnival of Souls is deep, mysterious, beautiful, complex, and I’m still trying to understand it. Like the film, it is something I go back to over and over again because I can’t figure it out but I am addicted. I adore this scent. I didn’t think I’d like a perfume line more than Frederic Malle, but MZ may be my favorite. Another masterpiece by Marissa Zappas.

Carnival of Souls is spooky and spectacular in every which way. I sampled this at Scent Bar in NYC and immediately purchased a bottle from Marissa Zappas webstore after spending a couple hours with it on my skin. The ode this conjures to one of my favorite films of all time depicts its story with masterful thought and intent. The creamy mimosa paired with incense is nothing I ever smelled before and my nose yearns for it. I can’t wait for my full bottle to arrive. MZ you’re a goddess within your craft. Bravo!

The milk cream note intrigued me so I went out to buy it and was pleasantly surprised! I don't really know what I expected, but whatever it was, this perfume exceeded my expectations and more! I like it a lot and it's also very floral and sweet, a bit powdery but the other notes override the powder scent and make it undetectable, at least to me

smoky sweet incense powder with a kiss of saffron. Marissa Zappas tends to have a vintage/old world style to her fragrances that I find fascinating. the haunted doll comparisons are spot on. it’s waking up clouded, wanting to return to a fever dream you were once trying to escape. what a darling strange masterpiece!

I’m in a romance film and carnival of souls is my lover. This perfume speaks to me in ways no perfume has yet. Sweet and haunting and aching and a little unsettling, it mirrors me. Quickly became my signature scent ♥︎

My husband adores this perfume on me. To me, it smells like coconut and earthy richness, and the scent stays with me until the next morning after I apply it.

This smells soft, sad, and beautiful like a gentle ghost. Its damp and powdery with a touch of sweetness and I'm in love with it!

Perfection. Dank, dusty, floral, and feminine. Adore.

weird and off putting just like me

Carnival of Souls brings together three of my favorite things: perfume, film, and being from Utah. It’s a scent inspired by a film I adore that was shot on location in Salt Lake City and at Saltair - a long abandoned dance hall on the shore of the Great Salt Lake, where my great-great-grandparents once danced and swam - before it burned down. The eerie history of Saltair is very present here. Some might associate the notes in this scent with the car crash in Carnival of Souls, but for me it evokes the smoke and dust of a long-forgotten (and most definitely cursed) place. I get a hit of ammonia at the top, but it burns off almost immediately. The drydown is soft powdery florals, cream, and just a tinge of incense haunting the background. Some reviews categorize this as bizarre and ultra-niche, but I don’t see it. And I don’t think I’ve strayed so far from the light of designer fragrance that I wouldn’t clock it. It’s just a pretty and interesting scent! Lastly, Marissa Zappas couldn’t have planned this, but I love how closely the colors of the notes mirror the movie poster: Mary Henry’s mimosa-yellow hair, the violet background, the black incense-y lines of the dancing ghouls. Even Fragrantica's “milk cream” note with its whipped cream and cherry perfectly echoes the poster’s red and white. Cute! Smells like: sweet spectral smoke Looks like: an abandoned lakeside pavilion Sounds like: a sinister organ dirge

Rich, eccentric, and slightly spooky – the kind of scent I feel I have to wear a floor-length fur with. This is scalded condensed milk, ladled to your lips on tarnished silver. Nurturing but intimidating. It makes me want to re-read some Lemony Snicket. There’s a wealth of notes here: leathery saffron, smoky incense, dainty violet, sweet vanilla, etc... but carefully blended, with no one element overpowering another. Patchouli usually scares me, but it plays nice in Carnival, adding a layer of shadow to the picture. The cream is leaden, just beginning to caramelize. Divine. It’s also got that “antique shoppe” dust accord I love so dearly (see Byredo’s Bibliotheque). When it comes to performance Carnival is a slow, steady burn. Doesn’t leave much of a trail, but lasts a good four hours on skin and all night long in a fur coat. Mental Snapshot: You’re an orphaned waif trembling in the foyer of your long-lost great-great aunt’s estate. It’s a dagger-gabled Victorian, painted in shades of shadow and curtained in ancient brocade. Your aunt’s face is obscured by an enormous raven-feather fascinator but she greets you in a Transatlantic croon – “Crumpet! Darling! Pet!” – and swaddles you in her mink. “Thank the stars you’re here. I just put a kettle on.” She won’t say what’s in the kettle, but whatever it is smells intoxicating. tl;dr: A Series of Fortunate Scents 🕰️🕸️

At first whiff, this just smelled like old lady to me. Upon revisiting it I get a little more of the original vision- it's ghostly and cold, reminding me of dead, dry, colorless flowers with a hint of sweetness from some coconut tea cookies. The coconut is there but not tropical at all. The musk is maybe what gives it that stale abandoned-grandma's-house quality, and I don't get a ton of the mimosa cream on my skin unless it's the thing conveying a very subtle sweetness. I think it's a very interesting and haunting scent but am still unsure of if I want more than a sample.

I like this perfume more than expected. The coconut really adds interest to a perfume that would otherwise not intrigue me due to being so heavy on the florals. The milky note, saffron, and incense come together beautifully. It has a faint pleasant powdery note that reminds me of a newborn. The only things stopping me from wearing it is the unsettling feeling other people report when smelling this. I'm not sure I want to give off "creepy" when I'm out running my errands.

Very strange. It has the softness of innocence which reminds me of the dolls from my childhood. But there is something that feels a bit melancholic in there. The violet is blended very well imo, without being like those violet pastilles that I always get from other violet perfumes. It's sweet but mellowed out from the whipped cream. I dont even know how to explain it. I like it but its not necessarily me. Especially cozy for bedtime.

Doesn't smell bad but its really reminescent of someones grandma or mom. It lasts a good long while. Very sweet and floral but dimmed with the best powder scent. I usually steer clear of florals and sweet scents but the powder calms those harsh scents down. It's very very grandma-like though which isn't a bad thing.

So haunting. Coconut is usually an anti-perfume for me, however the coconut lingering in this offering feels cold and dry-lactonic and slightly unsettling instead of like a pool party. I’ve been reaching for it as a melancholy foggy morning scent.

Violet milk and incense. Weird, whimsical and smoky. There’s something nostalgic about it that I can’t quite put my finger on... it has a vintage cosmetics quality to it. Like putting on old makeup at a dusty vanity while incense burns nearby.