“What does a vampire smell like?” Nosferatu, a new vampire perfume from Heretic Parfum, gives us a whiff.
The short answer is: “cold, pale and pellucid, the fragrance evokes the uneasy chill of encountering an apparition.”
But there’s more to it than that, including why the fragrance was developed to begin with. Let’s start there.
Vampire Perfume Origins
It’s no coincidence that the Nosferatu fragrance shares the same name as Robert Eggers’ highly anticipated film, which hits theaters this Christmas. The custom scent was totally inspired by the film in a collaboration between Focus Features and perfumer Douglas Little.
To create the scent, Little researched the history and time period that Nosferatu the movie takes place during, while considering what a vampire might smell like.
I’d expect it to smell like blood, earth, and the dampness of a cold, dark, fog-filled misty night. Not quite. Here’s how Heretic describes it:
A scent as atmospheric as the film, the perfume transports the wearer into the dark spaces inhabited by Count Orlok himself. The Eau de macabre opens with top notes of lilac and ambrette seed that fall into a heart chord of violet, orris root and petrichor. The mysterious dry-down is woven around vegan ambergris and Oud absolute.
The Bottle
As far as bottles go, the 30ml bottle of Nosfertu is understated and refined. Much like Count Orlok himself? Speaking of, the cap bears his sigil. Between that and the black coffret it comes encased in, this limited-edition release of vampire perfume is sure to delight any cinephile or vampire enthusiast.
The Price
At first, I thought $125 was a bit high, but then I realized that I pay about that for 1.6oz of Dolce & Gabana. And when I look at other equivalently priced perfumes, Nosferatu is no more expensive than they are.
Plus, there’s the whole collector’s edition aspect of it. Worth it. Although, before I spent $125, I’d love to know how it smells. I wish they had a smaller sample size of it like they do for some of their other fragrances.
Speaking of, let’s talk about those.
Other Great Heretic Parfum Offerings
Nosferatu is sure to delight vampire lovers, but I had a blast checking out the other offerings on their site. I have no idea how any of it smells, but the tongue-in-cheek titles definitely appealed to my macabre inclinations and heretic sensibilities.
Other fragrances include Coeur Noir, which comes in a black heart-shaped box, Poltergeist, Monster Spray, and Voodoo Lily. But that’s by no means all of them. They have many more! These are just some of the names that delighted me most.
If you want to sample a few scents, they offer Discovery Sets, among which they have the Blood Box and Season of the Witch.
The Blood Box consists of “three immersive 2mL perfume samples that harness the lifeblood of nature and are perfect for the fall season,” including Blood Cedar, Dragon’s Blood, and Blood Orange.
Season of the Witch contains 2ml samples designed to “beguile, bewilder, bemuse and bewitch.” Fragrances include Voodoo Lily, Poltergeist, Coeur Noir, Dirty Rose, and Smudge.
In addition to fragrances, they also sell bath and body products and candles. The cool thing about all of it is that they use “naturally-derived botanical ingredients” to “create vibrant non-gendered functional fragrances.”
Check-In
Are you a perfume wearer? Do you think you might like to smell like a vampire?
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
Loading ...
Intriguing. A shame I don’t wear perfume though. I do apply essential oil to my plain old clothing if I’m trying to clear a smell out of my nose. (You know, like after picking up after the doggies.)
I used to wear perfume. It was actually popular in my circles back in the day. But so many places are perfume-free that it makes it harder to wear perfume nowadays.
Ooo! I love using essential oils for various fragrancing, particularly spritzing my sheets when changing the bedding, but I never ever thought to apply to it help when dealing with pet smells!!!! Thanks for sharing this tip/trick you employ, Maria!
Oh gosh, I have only ever seen “perfume-free, please” signs in my oncologists office. But you see them other places, Priscilla? I wonder if now I will too…maybe they’re around and I never noticed them! If so, gosh. I feel bad.
At a hotel, at an office building, at a conference …
Oh my…I’m going to have to keep my eyes open. What if I’ve just ignored similar signs when I’ve been out and about? Glad you said something!