Violette Hay

I encountered Violette Hay on a failed mission to acquire a bottle of Maison Violet’s Un Air d’Apogée from my local niche perfume shop. Sold out, unlikely to be restocked before the holidays. Well, what’s the point of that for dry, rustly, Indian summer fragrance like UAA? Luckily, the shopkeeper directed me toward the Marissa Zappas table, a new brand for the store. I hadn’t put together that Marissa Zappas was THAT collaboration-prone perfumer who had lingered so tantalizingly on the periphery of my perfume consciousness thanks to the iconic Nose Candy podcast, but I knew that Violette Hay was something worth my attention at first sniff. As the hay cart on the bottle indicates, this is indeed a harvest fantasy, more humidly fecund than UAA but certainly checking the same boxes. Violet is not a favorite note of mine, often sharp or cloying, reminiscent of grandmothers and not in a cool way. But the violet accord here is wonderful, soft, crepuscular. It is misleading in some ways for me to mention it first—it is neither the first note to emerge, nor the real star of the show. But the treatment of violet hooked me intellectually. Known to be a tricky accord to master, it’s wonderful showmanship to make one this lovely and then make it part of an ensemble. Another intellectual hook- many other reviewers are remarking on how feminine this perfume is. In fact, it is very close to being a traditional masculine fougère. Switch lavender for violet and you’re there. The pairing of the very masculine coumarin hay and the very feminine violet is a study in androgyny that could be convincing on someone of any gender. Violette Hay opens with carrot seed and coriander, aromatic and slightly funky in a way that many seeds can be (I am reminded of sweaty cumin, celery seed, and fenugreek, although none of these are present). There is a sense of the field and of the barnyard, and you realize hay has been a part of that impression all along. I will admit that this hay, to my mind, has been soaked in urine, but what could be more wholesome or natural? Violet and apricot join the scene. The soft violet wedded to dusty coriander and the just-present apricot note (think vintage, I wonder if it is one of the so-called fruity aldehydes at play) give the impression of glaucous globularity. More Dutch still life grape than apricot in overall effect, the scene here feels more an allegory of autumn than summer, when the early apricot (its name derives from the same root as “precocious”) is at its peak. But I betray myself — hay too is a summer crop. Nonetheless, Violette Hay seems best to fall. Perhaps it is the haze of the vernal time-traveler violet that tears us out of a realistic sensory world and casts a purple elegiac light over the composition that brings to mind shortening days. Violette Hay does not project intensely, but that feels right both because it is a study in subtle shades and because of its inheritance of restrained masculinity of the fougère genre. Overall, an extremely interesting, provocatively androgynous twist on both the fougère and the contemporary “agrestic” genre.

when the earth finally burns up like a matchstick, i want to be lying in a pile of violette hay. i don't care if the ground turns magma red beneath my toes, or if my fingers turn grey when i touch them to my lips, covered in ash. beyond the fear of the moment is always an unassailable belief in beauty, and violette hay is as beautiful as a cream white dove. yet my superstitious nose picks up mostly on the perfume's blackened, twilight notes — the leather and the smoke. violette hay makes me feel these melancholy things, like i'm surrounded by wet suede, sifting through a charred flower field. where i am, every violet's heart is made of bone. mice nibble on tender apricot blossoms and saffron, mixing their soft grease with the plants' sticky honey. it's dirty, and i am unreal. we are vampires. we are animals bleeding on the inside. our warmth, which also comes from within, stops us from losing it entirely. even still, i think i'm close to giving in to the flames on the floor. then i notice a puddle of wild violets up ahead. if i squint just right, it's as gold as heaven.

This is the first time I've put on a perfume and immediately thought "This is it. This smells how I feel most of the time." It's almost alarming because I've been searching for a decade for this without really knowing what to look for. I can definitely understand why some people might complain about how light and self-contained it is. Sometimes being inoffensive is offensive. The first time I tried it was a few hours before bedtime. So light and watery (smells like dew throughout on me) that I thought the story would not play out, but all the notes gradually unfolded. The violet and apricot are reassuring together. In the morning my wrists still smelled faintly of dewy hay with a bit of suede. A skin scent for sure. Gentle and quiet. I think certain personalities are going to gravitate toward this and others will be bored or even irritated that they got a sample. As fun as Marissa's scents are, I definitely wouldn't blind buy any of them. This isn't something I'd wear at work or for a night out. It's just for ME. It's what I'll wear during days at home.

From the bottle, this opens with a beautiful photorealistic suede note and a clean hay, reminiscent of a consignment store leather jacket. Leathers and leather-adjacent tend to pull very pickle-y on my nose, but this is the first one where it just doesn't. Wonderfully done. It moves smoothly into a sweet, fresh, almost baby-powdery tone. I'd compare it to Glossier You after a few hours of wear or the faint sillage of Mugler's Alien, but almost fluffier and whiter. There's an afterthought of spice, but a fresh, aromatic one, likely from the coriander. I found this perfume warms up on the skin, with the powdery notes almost giving way to a sweet, nutty scent, like a rice milk or a mild marzipan. Gorgeous perfume with a stunning bottle. Simple enough to wear during the day, but classy with juuuuust enough of an edge to wear out at night. My girlfriend sprayed it on herself before she left for work, and hours later, I'm still smelling it as I sit in the bedroom.

This is a mystical and entrancing scent. It’s light but there’s a beautiful glow to it more than a brightness. The carrot seed and coriander stood out to me on first spritz then sauntered in the violet note. It really caught me off guard because it wasn’t truly floral it was a sort of spice and earthiness to it which I attribute to the carrot and coriander, then the dry down and middle notes played a more sensual role, I get more of that apricot and saffron which really made it earthy and juicy. Then the grounding with suede and musk. It’s a bewitching experience. I couldn’t stop smelling it, I would consider this full bottle worthy. I’m eager to smell petrichor as I hear violette and petrichor are almost like sister scents and I love to pair.

returning to this one bc I've been rationing out what precious little is left of my sample, and thinking hard about how it feels aside from the immediate association with xiangbao. Violette Hay smells like an impressionist painting. Really. I feel like I’m inhaling the sweet air of daydreams while slumbering in a bed of soft hay. The hay tickles the nose; it’s warm and fragrant like a quilt fresh out of the dryer. i don't know how violets smell (or anything else tbh) but here it is: the sweetly curving stems, the darling petals, the wonder in its heart as it peers out at the world. so lovely.

"she will come, clad in blue and surrounded by fields of gold......" oh my god. this is the exact scent of the 香包 sewn by my 四老姨 when I was in middle school. I'm 11 years old again, cupping in my hands a tiny cotton doll whose head smells of: red silk brocade, golden thread, puffy mandarin-shaped pillows, tins of herbal candies, PVC mosquito curtains, sleeping on bamboo pillowmats, being plied with herbal medicine, and opening the door to someone I love dearly. Precious, homey, and a little sweet. 虽然我对她并没有什么记忆,但这香味儿永远印在我心间,to me this is the scent of familial love and warmth ... (≧_ ≦)

Soft and snuggly but still a bit bright. It’s a powdery, musky hay that feels like a lightly saturated ochre yellow hue. There is a little sweetness, apricot and violet? Is that you? But mostly it’s snuggly powdery hay and musk with an herbal fluffy edge. There is a peppery edge too, like the way a carnation is peppery. The more I wear it, the more it grows on me. It’s supremely comforting and reminds me of soft rabbits bounding in the summer sun and kicking up hay, carnations, and grasses as they nibble on carrots.

i mostly get apricot and suede here (which i love) and despite it remaining a skin scent for the majority of the time i can still get whiffs of it every now and then. nice for weather that’s a little bit warmer and more crisp; i think this would theoretically also be a perfect summer scent, but i haven’t gotten to test it in hotter weather yet. plush and creamy with only a hint of fruity sour-sweetness, and the more spicy/musky/earthy notes shape this into a floral that i would actually wear...

I throw off my leather gloves after a long day at the stable and lay on a bed of hay, watching the still, sleeping lake. The moon shines overhead, casting a delicate silver glow that shimmers on the water and reflects against a million dewdrops clinging to the grass and flowers. A cold breeze carries through the brisk Autumn air, yet I am wrapped in an inexplicable warmth. And I hear nothing but the nocturnal chorus of katydids. Heaven on earth — by way of Violette Hay.

I cannot believe how much I love this one and how long it has taken me to finally get a sample. Petrichor’s little sister. She is more powdery and sweet, whereas petrichor is more earthy and dark. Goth daughter vs only wears pastels daughter. It changes incredibly fast in my nose and the spicy kick of the start quickly becomes a wet pile of hay in a misty mountain surrounded by dewy violet flowers. Soft and shy, classy and intriguing!!!

the opening is so effervescent, which I can probably attribute to the apricot, saffron, and coriander. violette hay draws you in with its softness, like nuzzling into the crook of your loved one's neck while dawn trickles into the bedroom. the hay and suede are more textural than anything else, whereas the musk pulls strong for me. easily in the top 2 of my fave releases coming out of the garden collection!

Oh...I adore this. I am a huge violet fan and this is all candied violet with an earthy spice underneath to keep it from being too sweet. I get no powder like I do with La Violette and zero hay. It projects well on my skin and I keep sniffing my wrists.

Nice subtle pretty scent that sticks close, possibly a good work fragrance for summer. It's probably not something I would wear Going Out, but it's quiet and gentle and not too loud. (I got a 2 ml sample sprayer from the perfumer's website fyi)

I'm a fan of fresh, sweet innocent violet scents -- this is not that, and I love it all the more because of it. This takes violet in an earthy direction that is uniquely alluring. IG: @personal_scent_bubble

An ideal bedtime fragrance for me. It is warm, comforting, and mellow. Clearly floral and powdery, with a subtle note reminiscent of vintage rubber toys.

This went on the FB list pretty quickly.

I blind bought a full bottle of this because I Never Learn. I've been on a hunt for the perfect hay scent and after reading an abundance of reviews I convinced myself this was it. For reference I don't generally seek out powdery scents. I also don't have much experience with violet being a main character, so it's presence here certainly felt like a brand new experience for my nostrils. On the first spray I got pure baby power. The scent faded pretty quickly, so I reapplied in hopes of catching some of the other notes. On the second application I did get more of a candied sweetness, I can find a subtle fruity tang from the apricot, the earthiness of the carrot seed. Hay nowhere to be found. It's definitely quite feminine and reads to me as a clean earthy smell. My main hangup is that so many people seemed to agree that this was giving like, an almost uncomfortable amount of hay. I am crushed to report I detect virtually no hay... And I, once again, am reminded how differently we all perceive what we're smelling, and how differently things smell on each of us.. It wasn't love at first sniff for me, but I am intrigued and it continues to grow on me. I find myself searching for the scent as it starts to become more subtle, which is under an hour for me unfortunately :(

Sunlit mist. Dewdrops on lace. Jane Eyre in pastel chintz. I wasn’t in love with the first accord – a damp baby wipe ionone akin to L’Eau d’Hiver – but within a minute it turns earthen and green. That olfactory 180 is perhaps one of the most bewitching I’ve encountered. The hay is young, just beginning to yellow. Alfalfa-y? And there’s the most incredible raw suede note, like the underside of a well-worn bridle and reins. Once a horse girl, always a horse girl. Violette Hay is like the outdoor version of Dream Sequence’s greenhouse garden. It has a pensive, spectral quality to it, longevity included. If it stuck around any longer than two hours I'd buy a full bottle just for bedtime. Mental Snapshot: A morning hack through wildflower meadows. You’re riding a dapple grey cob, with a plaited mane and silvery fetlocks. A unicorn in full tack. She grazes on the dew-stippled rushes, and you drink straight from a whispering stream. Memories of pony club, though a lavender lens. tl;dr: cottagecore petrichor 🎠🌾

Violet AND Hay? Why, bust my buttons, count me in! I am entirely new to Marissa Zappas and her work but this is a relatively strong entry for me. I love both violet and hay accords in fragrance, and Zappas does, for the most part, deliver on her word here. This pastoral pleasure includes a carrot seed that adds a certain 'salt of the earth' effect. My only gripe is that for all its aquarelle beauty, it eludes a bit too soon for my liking—and I am by no means obsessed with performance. It leaves me wanting more: maybe just a bit more density, just a slightly sharper outline to the sweet-grassy scented hay. The apricot and suede pairing does remind me of the ravishing Daim Blond from Serge Lutens, but here they are diaphanous even compared to DB. Be that as it may, I am open to exploring more from Zappas.

This was highly intriguing the moment it went on skin. Dainty is the word I would use to describe it, but there was also something else that stood out for me -- the hay was a lot bigger than I thought. I was hoping for Sova-style hay, but it wasn't to be. Look, this review is half-finished. I'll come back to this later... ***EDIT*** This is a wonderful mix of three or four components; carrot seeds, violety-iris, hay and fruity peach. All four wax and wane throughout the lifespan of the scent, with some versions really speaking to me, and others not so much. I'm gonna try this one, on its own, sometime in the next few weeks and make my final decision on it then. I mean, it's weird, unique, quirky and totally like nothing else, and I like it, but I'm not sure how much just yet...

The card that came with my sample of this perfume describes it as "soft, pixie-like." I'd have to agree. Although it isn't sweet, per say, there is a girlish mischief that radiates from this scent (and from all of the Marissa Zappas scents I've tested, for that matter). I picture a tiny pixie, dressed head to toe in light purple suede garments of her own making, prancing around a field in the dried grass while looking for the perfect place to set down her picnic basket and eat the apricots she's brought with her. To me, this smells somewhat similar to ELDO's Putain des Palaces - mostly due to the powdery florals and the suede/leather notes being the most prominent in both scents. They are not the exact same, though - Violette Hay has a bit more mystique to it.

The sun-drenched afternoon to Petrichor's misty morning. The two feel like sister scents in their sweetly outdoorsy realism. But Petrichor (to me) is the demure Cinderella to Violette's lady-in-waiting. Violette Hay's carrot, coriander, and violet notes sparkle in the opening, which is a flash of herbal-floral brilliance wrapped in tactile suede. I thought it was love, but it gradually dried down to "like." The hay—grassy, sweet, HD hyper-real hay—gets harsher as the flowers fade and ends up a touch too sharp, like an actual hayloft on a hot dry day. Fades the fastest of all the MZ scents I've tried, which made me sad. I truly did savor it, especially those opening notes.

The perfect confluence of violet, sugary musk and hay. All three elements are in perfect unison with each other, but not all the way through the scent's lifespan. At times, the musk overpowers, and then the violet, and then the hay, but one thing is constant in this; neither of these elements ruins or destroys the scent. It's subtle, nuanced and has a lot going on in the background. I'm a BIG fan of this scent -- I love it and look forward to using it for the rest of my life...

such a gorgeous and serene scent. like others said, this lingers for quite a while but does not have much projection. it reminds me of the color silver- beautiful suede notes are complimented by sweet apricot and a soft carrot seed top note. to me, this scent is creamy, sultry and sophisticated- a modern, metallic and edgy take on a classic violet profile<3

Imagine: A beautiful fragrant stack of dusty, violet perfumed hay that has just been shat on by a very healthy horse. Wow! Lots of alfalfa in her diet! That’s what this perfume smells like and I love it. Being a farm girl it’s extremely nostalgic but something about it gives me a sinus headache. Must be hay fever.

Juicy apricots, sweet violets. and powdery carrot seed against a suede backdrop create a thin, diaphanous veil of fragrance over the wearer. This is a pleasant little pastel perfume. Pair with: bare feet, a long braid down your back, farm girl fruit stands, silk chiffon peignoirs.

This is soft piles of hay warmed by the sun, falling asleep in a field in the late afternoon, smelling the skin of someone you love at golden hour, the sweetness of a natural linen pillow. It’s beautiful. It does stay very close to the skin but on me it does linger for 3+ hours.

the saffron, apricot and suede combination summon a dusty antique quality to this that's honestly very pleasant to sit with, in the same vein as Pleasure Portrait by Universal Flowering. i wouldn't full bottle this but i liked spending time with her

Its nice. Reminds me of a countryside gift store. Unfortunately it lasts less than 5 minutes on my skin. Highly disappointed about that...

Within minutes the top and mid notes vanished on my skin so it's giving a little liiiike... horse stall that needs to be shoveled. 🫣 I want to like Marissa Zappas and this is the first fragrance of her's that I've tried. And of course I decided to take a risk and sample something that wasn't as popular as Carnival of Souls or Annabelle's Bday Cake. I'm not entirely discouraged though, I don't hate it and will revisit it. Worst case scenario I can try layering with something.

Eau de violette hay. I can barely smell it on my skin since it's so weak. I mean, I love the smell, it's nice, it has everything I like in a perfume but I can barely smell it. I blind bought this one. I am disappointed but I can always wear it in situations where I don't want to smell perfume :) Reminds me Honore des Pres Sexy Angelic. Barely detectable soft scent ...

I would have loved to have an atomizer for my sample- the opening on me as is is sharp (the coriander and carrot seeds), almost reminded me of the opening of Glossier You- my nose tickles. The dry down is a gorgeous fresh violet, very much a skin scent though. Faded after three hours.

This just smells like the base of many MZ perfumes to me....

A soft violet that quickly becomes overshadowed by the earthy aspect of whatever is being used here to represent hay. A whole lot less of that might have worked.

Unfortunately it smells exactly like a freshly sanitized doctor's office table ☹️

Too earthy, dry, and leathery for my taste. I'll pass.

I can tell this is pretty, but it's so thin that I just don’t get much from this. I have a dabber vial, so I feel like I’m just getting a fragment of the experience. This feels like something that you have to spray on in order to really feel it, so I’d steer any interested parties away from doing so through Luckyscent samples. They’re a fantastic resource, and I’m thankful they started carrying Marissa’s line, but sometimes the lack of atomizers on their vials makes it harder to suss out a scent. What I can pick up from Violette Hay’s ultra-light sillage is a classic Parma Violet skin scent. Like Annabel’s Birthday Cake, it’s both old-fashioned and modern, and candied without smelling saccharine. A very airy everyday floral that’s true to its name. Super green opening that briefly focuses on the hay before settling into violet. A solid unisex that’s not super unique to my nose, but again, I just imagine this would be so much more interesting if I could spray it on. Wish that sillage was bolder! EDIT: Moved my sample to a refillable atomizer I'd found laying around, and my suspicions were correct. Very much a skin scent, but it's easier to actually smell this if you can spray it on, so avoid trying it as a vial if you're looking to sample it. I could pick up the carrot right away after two spritzes on my wrist, and heat adds an interesting depth to the hay. Definitely more of a perfume to wear for yourself than to make a statement. Light, approachable, and very polite. EDIT 2: This is solid for layering! After I tried on a perfume that felt a touch too masc for me, a spray of Violette Hay grounded it with a nice femme je ne sais quoi. I've tried it with a couple of different scents by now, and it really sings on top of something deep and smoky. Probably pairs great with the kind of incensey perfume oils you'd get at a headshop. It took me a while, but I feel like I get the appeal of this now. I'm not sure I'd buy a whole bottle, but I will be bummed when I run out of my sample, which will be very soon!

I just received this today!! So, my initial review may change. I’ve had this on for about 15 minutes & so far I am in love. It is mostly unlike anything else I’ve tried apart from Côté Maquis L'Objet. It does slightly give the same vibes & that is a wonderful thing as I feel that fragrance is a masterpiece. Violette hay starts off very earthy on me with the carrot seed & hay coming through. I feel like this is really well blended where I can’t particularly pull out separate notes. I can tell the apricot is warming it up & giving it the perfect amount of sweetness. This is definitely earthy feminine. Almost a bit musty like the smell of mushrooms in the forest (in the best way possible). I can see why this would be seen as a woodland fairy type of perfume. I am utterly in love so far & SO ecstatic with my blind buy. I read this is considered a sister scent to Petrichor which I have & love. I knew I needed this too & I can see why it would be considered a sister scent. Definitely the same vibe but also its own thing. It is not redundant at all to have both in your collection. I also need to add: this should be tested on skin. You can’t get the full beauty of this fragrance on paper. The warmth of my skin really brings out the sweetness of the apricot , violet, & hay & makes this truly delicious.

I can't believe I tried this one last. I have sampled all of The Garden Collection now, and each one took me on a beautiful journey. I now own Petrichor and Smoked Jasmine Black Tea. However, I am so sad that I don't own Violette Hay now upon smelling it. (I can't keep giving Marissa all my hard earned money lol) The blend of violet, apricot, hay and suede that I am getting right now is truly divine. It is a very intimate scent, like most of the collection. Perhaps the most intimate. People aren't going to smell this unless they give you a hug. It feels musky, powdery and like someone else mentioned "misty and silvery" like vapor or something. I'm going to keep sniffing my wrist and reapplying as needed because this is curing some childhood trauma within me I didn't know I had. Edit: I now own it! Wearing it right now and feeling happy :) Decluttered Smoked Jasmine because I have too many tea scents... but Violette Hay is my favorite of the line and a lifer.

Such a delicate, intimate fragrance. creamy lace hanging on a clothesline. the way the dew sparkles on a spider's web. wildflowers and cleaning your feet in the hose before coming inside. Dried flowers pressed between pages. the soft smell of a ladies powder room decorated in florals. when something is just a little bit translucent. this is so, so beautiful but a little fleeting and wears very close to the skin with just the slightest hint of something a little musky and dirty lurking just beneath the surface. love it

Violets, a sweet grassy hay-like note, drying to same with some nice plush apricot underneath. Fairly simple, almost two-tone, but I really like this one. On final dry down, it’s VERY like BBW Black; violet, vanillic base and smoky notes. It has more hay notes than Black, but they are alike enough that I don’t need both. Still, this one is a great light grassy violet mood with some layers to keep it interesting.

This one changes quickly for my nose. First spray, it’s all carrot seed, very earthily musky. Another spritz and it’s all candied violet and sweet hay and the apricot comes through. Very intimate scent, this won’t enter a room before you. Longevity is also below 2 hours for my skin. Side note: I agree that Petrichor is a sister scent—there’s a powdery connection.

im from an asian tropical country, never experienced the farms, always lived in the suburbs. came into this fully expecting to love it because people were comparing it to himitsu violets. welp. all i get was hospital gowns, medicine, just hospital setting really. damn hospitals do be smelling like violets and hay i guess

Sweet hay sparkling with petrichor in a luxury equestrian stable. Tiny wild violet flowers growing between the humidity of the stacks. I love the smell of hay. Somehow it’s mysterious in a sparkling contradictory way, like baby fog early in the morning.

Love this, & wish I’d discovered it before the bottle was redesigned - The old bottles with the golden egg shaped caps are just so iconic! If anyone is selling one with that vintage design, full or partial please DM me :)

Delicate and sweet and farm-y. Reminds me of winter at my family’s ranch in the middle of nowhere Texas. Lovely but fleeting! It disappeared on my skin so quick

not a commentary on this perfume but @niche_interests and others disappointed by the hay note in this should try harvest mouse by zoologist

If you love soft florals that don't smell like a department store, you'll probably like this one, especially in warm weather.

This smells like a fresh Musc ravageur, I love it!