Casper

Like you, I contain multitudes and love a lot of things: my friends and family and pets, Halloween, books, poetry, Ray Bradbury, perfume, movies, flowers, witchy things, spooky things… the list goes on. Most of these loves stem from childhood— a simple moment like a long car ride home in the backseat with the windows down so I could smell the country air. A Halloween costume. The haunted house covered in creeper vines down the street. A favorite cookie my grandmother used to make that I have never been able to make taste quite the same. Little things that became big things, all of the sights and sounds and smells and feelings of growing up that just seemed to stick, that helped build me from the ground up. All of those good (and bad) things that made me me. You know what I mean? I’m sure you do. Anyway, the 1995 movie Casper is one of those things. I was 9 when it released and it seemed to arrive with perfect timing, for I was an awfully confused, lost, and sad nine year old. The death of my grandparents and a sudden move shook the ground beneath me. Nothing felt safe or familiar aside from my books and whatever good dreams I was able to hold onto. And then I saw Casper and it meant the world, helped built me back up into some semblance of a half-normal child. I will forever attest that Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree and the film Casper are top medicines for grief and melancholy, especially for a starry-eyed kid. I’ve wanted to make this scent for a while, but knew how involved and mentally taxing it would be. How I’d obsess over each note, needing to feel that comfort and magic this film has offered me throughout the years. How if I could pass through those doors of Whipstaff Manor in Maine, ignore the ghostly trio, become best friends and go night-flying with Casper all would be right with the world. This is my “fly out the window to sit on a lighthouse with Casper” scent. No unfinished business, just contentment within and without a magical old house. Scent notes: Lemongrass, Ozone, sugarcane- evocative of Casper himself, a soul so sweet and uplifting regardless of his own sadness and longing. A soul who communes with the wind and stars, who whispers good dreams in your ear. Black currant, white musk, patchouli- for Kat’s youthful angst. Complex. Sweet and strong, in need of connection, structure and a grounded place where she can flourish. Violet, sandalwood, whipped cream- violets for friendship, whipped cream and sandalwood for Whipstaff Manor in Friendship Maine. It’s an old haunted house, but how can I not add some whipped cream with that name? Eucalyptus, vanilla, ivory soap, talcum powder- A paranormal therapist in a cardigan sweater, the spirit of Amelia, The Up and At’em Machine, a ghostly trio of uncles. This is a comforting, sweet scent. Perfect for sleep and quiet moments. And if you listen closely enough, it may just ask “Can I keep you?” I hope your answer is yes!