Article: FIRE PERFUMES
by Emilie Veillon | collages: Nausicaa Board
Their first creation, the Cypress candle, dark green in mouth-blown glass, was quickly exported to the White House at the time of Jacqueline Kennedy. In the 1970s, other candles followed - Cythère, Tournesol, Gardénia, making the headlines in decoration magazines. Now distributed in more than 30 countries around the world, the Rigaud collection has remained a reference for connoisseurs and exceptional homes. The list of prestigious clients, such as Prince Albert of Monaco, Prince Charles of England, the Vatican and even the Quai d'Orsay, bears witness to this.
The other French pioneer of the genre is Diptyque. This chic bazaar in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Paris, where three scented candles attracted attention in 1963 - Hawthorn, Cinnamon and Tea. Since the 2000s, nearly half a million pieces have been made each year in themed scents: floral, woody, spicy, fruity, herbaceous. "Diptyque has always created emotional candles that appeal to the epicurean elite. The fig tree really does smell like the tree. It's not easy, because behind the flame lies a whole technique to ensure optimal combustion and diffusion," continues Alberto Morillas, who founded the Mizensir brand of handcrafted scented candles with his wife in 1999, which is now managed by their daughter Véronique.
Doped up on subtle fragrances even in his home in Vandœuvres, the nose had taken to creating his own scented waxes. During a dinner at the Morillas' home, Patrick Firmenich - then head of the Geneva-based company specialising in the creation of aromas and perfumes - and his wife marvelled at the olfactory atmosphere that reigned there. "Very visionary, he suggested that I create a candle as a corporate gift for the next Christmas. It was so successful that we started selling them. That's how Mizensir was born, a play on the word "wax", in reference to the British title of nobility", says the founder who has developed a hundred or so references, handmade in a Geneva workshop. Among them, a candle has just been designed by the perfumer for Le Temps. Profits from sales will be donated to the NGO Race for Water, which fights to preserve the oceans.
THE TIME MAGAZINE 12/10/19
In the midst of a containment period, the Master Perfumer Alberto Morillas had the idea of creating a scented hydroalcoholic gel. According to Doctor Pittet's formula, he offers a hand disinfecta...
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