The Pink Bedroom by Marissa Zappas: Like Candy from a Stranger

I have a little silver tray on my bathroom vanity with a precious glass vase, dried lavender, and a jade roller I purchased in chinatown and have never used. This vignette is my Declaration of Independence as a Single Woman! I certainly don’t follow all the perfume rules, but I’m obedient enough not to store bottles in the direct sunlight of my bathroom counter. For the true iconoclasts among you, the frosted glass Pink Bedroom Perfume Oil by Marissa Zappas is begging for real estate on your vanity, and at 10ml, maybe you’ll drain her quickly enough to evade impending rot?

It’s giving smooth plasticky musk, powdery iris makeup, and sticky strawberry rosé that is designed to lure you in with memories of plastic dolls and pink candy before gesturing towards something creepy underneath. Think Blue Velvet, Sharp Objects, and “grooming” as a concept. The combination of rose and artificial strawberry feels like it’s just verging into screechy, headache-inducing territory before the pale heliotrope mollifies it into creamy softness. Muffled cries anyone? For the synesthetic among you, I hope you don’t have nightmares after giving this one a good sniff :)

If you like waxy pink starbursts and powdery theater compacts (like me) you will love this. For those who prefer not to smell like Hershey’s strawberry syrup, Marissa’s Lilac Dream is a day-old Gelson’s lilac bouquet just before you shake the water off the end to add it to your cart. It’s wet, soft, puerile, and just beginning to open up. Who’s creepy now?