I like aromatic apparitions.
Heretic's Ghost Collection
Hi there and welcome back to Sh*t Sam Likes! I hope July is treating you well so far and that you’re finding places to stay cool and hydrated. This week, I want to talk about some of my favorite new fragrance releases, Heretic Parfum’s Ghost collection.
2026 has been an excellent year for Heretic. I think that their point of view has grown clearer and their ability to communicate it both through marketing and branding as well as the fragrances themselves has only gotten better. With that said, let’s get into the collection.
I’ll say up front that the Ghost collection feels like such a no-brainer in the best way. The same way it made perfect sense for d’Annam to release a mango sticky rice perfume, so too does it track for Heretic to release an entire line of ghostly fragrances.
The Veil
Heretic’s words: sheer, diaphanous, luminous
Those that have been lucky enough to smell Inside a Nightmare from Death & Floral will smell a familiar friend in The Veil. Though it is described as an iris/musk, The Veil is ice cold. It smells like freezer burn and snow on wet eyelashes. For this reason, I could see it working in any season. It’s going to cool you off in the summer and fit the scenery in the winter.
I love when a perfume is able to evoke texture and feeling rather than a checklist of fragrance notes. The Veil is more than just an iris perfume, it is a chill running down your spine.
Spectral Grace
Heretic’s words: ethereal, elegant, haunting
Anyone who has read The Moth & the Knight by Rachel Gillig should give it a reread whilst wearing Spectral Grace. This scent is exactly what I imagine Sybil’s world smells like - a wash of florals and a whisper of wet stone. Like being baptized with flowers in your hair.
Though I do enjoy every one of the five perfumes released in this collection, I do have to say, Spectral Grace is one of my favorites. There’s something so delicate and dainty about it without being too soft to smell on skin.
When I say I want to be hauntingly beautiful, Spectral Grace is what I’m talking about.
Doppelganger
Heretic’s words: skinlike, echoing, elusive
Though the entire ghost collection could be classified as musks, that would be an oversimplification for most of them. That said, if you’re after a true “your skin but better” musk fragrance, Doppelganger will fit the bill. This perfume is soft, warm, and delivers on its copy.
Doppelganger smells like a loved one’s skin. The only way to describe it is that it just smells like them.
Ektoplasma
Heretic’s words: musky, translucent, diffusive
Hear me out. Ektoplasma is Dandelion Butter’s creepy twin who ate their triplet in the womb. They share the same DNA, but Ektoplasma offers a delicate hint of decay that Dandelion Butter does not. If Dandelion Butter is Persephone, Ektoplasma is Hades.
I could also make a bit of an argument for Ektoplasma being a fig scent. All the parts are there, but it’s a bit deconstructed. Along with Spectral Grace, Ektoplasma is my other favorite from the collection. Both feel like they would make perfect sense in my perfume wardrobe.
Shadow People
Heretic’s words: dusty, cold, peripheral
Shadow People does an excellent job capturing what I imagine idle ghosts trapped between realms smell like. This perfume is dusty, fuzzy, and electric, but never quite reaches a state of being corporeal. From the five in the collection, I find Shadow People to be the most challenging. That said, I still enjoy this fragrance and feel that it is doing what it is meant to, which is to bring forth a sense of unease.
While we’re on the subject of Heretic, Shaya, my boss, owner of The Drydown Boutique, and the woman determined to spoil me to the point of turning me truly rotten, picked up a couple of treats for me from Heretic that I want to talk about here. I’ll get to that in a second, but first, thank you Shaya if you’re reading this! I love them so much and I’m very thankful!
Nosferatu Pillow Spray
It’s been a while since I mentioned Heretic’s Nosferatu on here, but it remains a perfume in our household’s regular rotation. If Travis and I had a signature scent to wear as a couple it would probably be Nosferatu. So, it’s only fitting that our bed smells like our beloved petrichor and lilac fume.
I was a smidgen nervous that the pillow spray wouldn’t capture what I love about the eau de parfum so much, but my worry was unnecessary. It’s the same scent I’ve known and loved and it feels so luxe and special for my happy place to smell like Nosferatu.
Sopping Thursday Room Spray
Though I was aware of Heretic venturing into home scents, I made a concerted effort to stay away from them lest I do something foolish like fall in love with them. Well, Shaya has made a monster out of me. Sopping Thursday is as beautiful as it is addictive. I never want to go back to a time when my home doesn’t smell like petrichor, wet rocks, and water-logged greens.
Reader, if I could find a way to emit Sopping Thursday through your screen, I would. It is damp and green without being soggy. It’s fresh and cozy and absolutely our home’s first and hopefully only signature scent. If you are looking to treat yourself or are looking to purchase a gift for a friend who loves to host, try Sopping Thursday. You can thank me later.
The Entomologist Correspondence Set
They say that to be known is to be loved, and man, am I loved. I make my own paper, I love to write letters, and I have a modest collection of pinned bugs on display in my home. Shaya knows all of this which is why she gifted me this absolutely stunning stationary set. I’ve already used it to write Travis’ birthday card (nobody tell him.)
The most difficult part about having something so beautiful, is the knowledge that it is meant to be used and eventually sent away. At least I get to enjoy them while I write my letters and you’ll have to take the gorgeous box they came in out of my cold, dead, hands.
Thank you again, Shaya. I love you and you’re the best!
So there you have it! Those were my thoughts on the Ghost collection and my stamp of approval on Heretic’s venture into the haunted home. I hope you enjoyed reading and I’ll be back in a couple weeks! My wedding day is rapidly approaching so we’ll see what happens to my writing schedule once we get into September. I’ll do my best to keep you updated and I will share wedding news as I have more to share.
So sick! Love this one
I love the idea of a pillow spray - especially with lilacs!