diptyque pop-up store @ Bangsar Village 2.

March 27, 2012 Comments (1) Spa + Beauty Like

I am absolutely dizzy with diptyque. Dizzy with happiness. Before i proceed into my post telling you all about their products, let me tell you what i knew before 5pm this evening, and what i felt right after.

Before the event, all i knew about diptyqye were their eponymous candles that i must have read about in some fashion or home magazines. I’ve also surfed their website and Facebook page rather fleetingly. Rows and rows of unrecognizable scent names confused me and clicked the ‘x’ after less than a minute.

This evening, i was invited to the launch of their first pop up store in Malaysia where i expected the usual testing of fragrances, grabbing of press release and then heading home before i got stuck in traffic. Instead… i was completely floored. Enamoured. That’s the word. I was absolutely ENAMOURED by the perfumes, the collections, the brand. But most importantly, the PERFUMES.

I can’t say i’ve felt this way about fragrances before. I didn’t even mean to rave about diptyque like this cos disclaimer here: they’re paying me nothing to write this! I’m writing this portion cos i just FEEL it in me and i just want to SHOUT it out and tell it to everyone!

Stanislas Le Bert (Area Manager from diptyque) is in KL just to talk to journalists about the brand. I was hoping that our one-on-one session wouldn’t last too long, but in the end, i wanted to hear more stories from him and kept on asking him to tell me more!

I was most captivated by the stories on how one of the three French diptyque creators used to travel in Asia, and was so inspired by the smells and his experiences that he decided to concoct perfumes for them. I loved the Philosykos perfume, that’s composed from fig leaves, wood and white cedar. Inspired by his times in Greece, i just fell in love with its natural demeanour. Stan told me, “The best way to smell it is to close your eyes, and let the scent take you on a journey as it is ever-changing.”

I thought it was a bit cheesy at first but as i allowed the fragrance to take its time and i continued breathing it in, it seemed to change and flow… amazing. It felt like i had stumbled upon a wonder of wonders, and i thought of all the different ones i wanted to buy and keep at home to smell whenever i want. I’ll be the crazy lady with her bottles and bottles of diptyque perfumes.

Stan continued with telling me stories about the perfumes inspired by Japan, India and Vietnam. Oyedo is the Japanese-inspired one, which he commented does extremely well amongst the Japanese who visit diptyque in Paris because it includes the fragrance from a fruit (i remember it sounding like ‘ochu’ but i am probably wrong cos i tried Googling it) that is rarely used in a fragrance. It is a very sweet-smelling perfume which i thought i personally may not go for, but who knows? I just googled it for fun and found a review that stated it reminds them of spring and summer. I’m going to give it another try when i get the chance.

The Vietnamese-inspired one is called Do Son, and involves tuberose, pink peppercorns, orange leaves and musk as its main ingredients. I took it in and swore on all fairies that it did remind me of Vietnam… the smell made me think of old Vietnamese stores i walked into when i was in Hanoi and Saigon. AMAZING.

After smelling a couple more, we stopped and moved on to other products, which i think may be just as well cos i might have fainted from taking it all in. It’s like… in my 20s i have managed to REALLY discover and appreciate fashion, fine food, interior, traveling.. and that’s it. I think my soul must have been just waiting for me to discover this ability to scatter my sense of smell haywire and crazy in an extremely over the top fantastic way.

Do i make any sense? Probably not and i’d better move along.

When i left the event, they gave me a bottle of 34 (i’ll talk about that later) and a candle (which i really wanted haha). While i was in my car in the traffic, i wanted to continue this elated feeling i had… that i opened the bottle in my car while moving along slowly in traffic. Just so i could CONTINUE smelling diptyque perfumes… like a crazed drug addict.

Later at night, after raving to Clem about diptyque perfumes, i asked him very sweetly, “I want diptyque perfumes! Can you buy them ALL FOR ME?!”
Clem: “Say please.”
Me: “Si tu plait.”

And that. Ends the story that i wanted to tell you about my obsession with diptyque right now. I’m a bit afraid of visiting their store in Paris this June lest i lose my financial plot. Ok now i’ll proceed with all the pictures i took today! I know i’m running all over the place and this blogpost seems to have no head or tail, but that’s just exactly how i feel right now about it – excited and fluttery. So be it!

This is Stan, whom i greatly appreciate for introducing me to the brand like i never anticipated.

Some history of diptyque: It was created by three friends – Desmond Knox-Leet, Christiane Gautrot and Yves Coueslant – who opened a store in Paris in 1961 to sell their own furnishing fabrics and traditional English perfumes. After two years, they introduced their first interior scented candle , which was followed by many others. In 1968, diptyque created its first eau de toilette called “L’Eau” that was inspired by a recipe of orange studded with cloves and cinnamon.

“Their enthusiasm for fragrances, their passion for creation and their sensibility, enabled the creators to establish diptyque as a unique brand. Diptyque’s eaux de toilette are travelling reminiscence, Mediterranean or Middle-East evocations, the warmness of a Greek summer, a citrus orchard , the early morning of a Latin landscape, countryside at midday or the scent of a green garden at the waterfront.”

This is one that i really want to have next – The Greece-inspired Philosykos!

Above is the packaging for the perfumes. What i love is that all the illustrations that you see were personally drawn with black Chinese ink on white background by Desmond Knox-Leet up till 1973.

Lombre Dan L’Eau is one of the more popular scents comprising blackcurrant leaves and Bulgarian roses.

There’s also a set for a rose-based collection

A solid perfume is the ONLY way someone can elegantly apply perfume in public.

There are body lotions and shower gels available for specific scents.

I just had to post this big fat picture up as i’m a huge fan of rich body butter.

The body polish also looks tempting. This is bad. I want everything they have.

If you’re wondering about the disarrayed way the letters on the packaging is arranged, there’s a great story behind that too! Desmond Knox-Leet used to decode messages during the war, and retained a taste for coded secrets.

There are also diptyque candles, which they are so famous for. While i was there, someone purchased their only gigantic candle on display which cost RM1200.

Of course with their cult candles, they’d have accessories to go with candle-burning.

This is to cut the wick of the blown out candle so you can relight it properly the next time without black smoke emerging. Stan said its best to snip it half a cm from the base.

I loved these too… scented wax ovals you place in your cupboard, suitcase or drawers to perfume the small area. One lasts up to three months.

34 is a collection that celebrates diptyque’s 50 years and represents its original store address – 34 boulevard St Germain.

diptyque has more than its fair share of celebrity fans, with icons like Jane Birkin, Catherine Deneuve, Eva Herzigova, Karl Lagerfeld, Christian Lacroix and Philippe Starck proclaiming their love for it. I’ll also include some quotes below:

“When I had my exhibition at the Design Museum we sprayed Tubereuse every day … the place smelled heavenly. The products are with me wherever I go: in hotels, on my terrace, at work, and of course, at home. Diptyque to me is suggestive of a timeless French elegance that transcends fashion.”
– Manolo Blahnik

“I discovered Diptyque in the early ’90s when I moved to Paris. One day by chance I was in Saint Germain and I entered this sumptuous place full of scents. I felt I was in Ali Baba’s cavern, and after so many years I still feel that way every time I visit.”
– John Galliano