Home Sanctuary

Turn your computer on and chat with friends; its the time to share your curated home with loved ones. The next stage of lockdown is upon us so home has to be a place of sanctuary for us all to get through the next block of ‘lone’ time.

Turning on the screen….

Connecting…

Emma: Hey…!!

Hazel: Heya…!!

Emma: How are you?

Hazel: I’m great… Actually, truth be told I’m a little bored at home seeing as we have the second lockdown… How about you?

Emma: Me too girl! I am done with this working from home thing. I want to get out and do some shopping.

Hazel: oh, really looks like someone did some shopping already….

Emma: ha-ha…! Actually, I thought to do some changes and decorate my home a little as now due to this lockdown situation my home feels like it really needs to be a sanctuary more than ever. As you know my home was passed on to me from my family and it is really important now more than ever to stamp my own vision on it…

That’s why I love to pick precious and subtle items that make my home look vintage as well as modern. I know it is a little early for Christmas, but I wanted to start the home decorations with Objet’ d’art before the season closes in.

So I took a little online trip instead, initially to diptyque to get some scent for me and my rooms and what I stumbled across kind of blew my mind. I didn’t know but they have a collection of exclusive handcrafted pieces to decorate a home. 

Hazel: that’s fantastic what is this brand about? I know about the fragrance and the candles but tell me more…

Emma: Well yes they are known for their scents but in fact, in the beginning, they offered home furnishings and manufactured printed fabrics as well imported scents from England. It was only later on that they added scented candles and perfumes they crafted themselves. I only found this out when I went to the site.

Hazel: Oh, really …

Emma: its diptyque’s promise that every item sold are symbols of craftsmanship melded with artistic imagination. All the elements on sale care about the environment so that anything you choose to buy is sustainable, respecting mother nature.

Hazel: that’s interesting show me around your house sweety..!! What are all things have you bought…

Emma: okay…! So, I have chosen a few products from Diptyque’s Autumn 2020 Decoration & Art de vivre collection. First, let me show you my living room. This candleholder was designed by the Jean-Marc Gady studio and created by Wilfried Allyn. The glass plays with candlelight and reveals a colourful illusion. Designed for indoors as well as outdoors. The moment I saw this holder the first place came in to my mind was the side table of my living room. When the candle holder is turned upside-down, it became a vase… Imagine in this grey cloudy weather lighting up a scented candle and the yellow glow coming from the glass candle holder and creating some colourful rays making your surrounding bright and colourful.

Emma: This beauty is a wax vase inspired by the shape of Medici vases. Designed by the Jean-Marc Gady studio. The best thing about the Wax is that it is flexible it can meld into any shape you want. This vase features a white bisque cameo, handcrafted, making each piece unique. Over time, Rainbow-like colour naturally takes on a coating. I have picked some beautiful flowers to fulfil the appearance of the vase making it even more exquisite.

Hazel: Ahan…!! Your living room looks so fresh and colourful. What are those sticks with a circular marble stand they look tempting?

Emma: Oh, this is a scented stick and this black and white marble circle is the base for scented sticks. The base is made of hard stone, with a drilled hole in the centre allowing it to hold an incense stick. I have put these stick diffusers all over my house filling it all with an almost spiritual scent. Here look at my shelves, I have put this cute stone diffusor. It attracted me the most as it combines the beautiful quality of hard stone with the cold diffusion. Simply infuse the woollen felt in the aluminium dish, place the porous stone globe on top and turn it to release a fragrance.

Hazel: that is so amazing all the products so decorative yet you are creating the most wonderful cocoon for yourself. Show me other rooms, I want to see more!

Emma: Ha-ha… See I told you, you will fall in love with diptyque products. So, I already had Diptyque’s Rose and Fig tree candles so I picked up this Rose and Fig candle lid, in order to preserve the canle. By by  Natalia Criado who is a jewellery and accessorise designer she handcrafted this black bakelite lid, espeically for diptyque’s 190 g candles, with a hand-crafted silver motifs such as swan, rose and fig. And, for my bedroom, I have picked this black and white marble candle lid which is handmade from a block of rough marble from the Pyrenees, this candle lid is also designed for any 190g candles. It can be combined with the octagonal candle base which is also made of marble.

Emma: Interestingly this is another reversible piece, which was designed from the 190g spotted candle holder, on which a vase was joined during the melting of the glass so this holder has a dual-use. The technique used is the Macchia su Macchia way makes it possible to create shimmering coloured glass objects. Do you know each piece is mouth-blown and hand-finished? amazing huh?

Hazel: Wow, each piece is so unique, so visually stunning .

Emma: Aha…I’m not done yet last but not the least. diptyque also creates paperweights that look like precious gemstones, sourced from the finest recycled Murano glass, improvise modern, exuberant compositions. 

Hazel: did you say all these diptyque are handcrafted?

Emma: yes…!! The products are handcrafted and environment friendly so I don’t feel guilty about shopping as I’m supporting craft makers. Do you want to see more?

Hazel: that would be great Sweety.

Emma: Im sharing my screen can you see?

Hazel: Yes

Emma: Look they have two size options in wax vases, photophore coast and torshade photophore. They even have Basile ceramic stand and Basile ceramic snuffer you know a snuffer is the perfect say to put out a candle so wax doesn’t go everywhere.

There are also other candle lid options. Some in the shape of swan, ovale, encensoir. they even offer other candle holder options with different styles, different colour (gold and black), and in three sizes. The last they have other options in soap dish and paperweight too..

Hazel: Fantastic…! I should surely check out their products for this Christmas.

Emma: Lastly, when you go to shop, look at the paper book options they have this is my favourite notebook which I’m going to get my sister for her birthday. It’s Crafted in a traditional workshop in Egypt, and assembled and bound entirely by hand. The cover is wrapped in a thistle-print paper from Nepal, with the pages being Italian laid paper. iTs divine to touch as well as hold.

Hazel; I’m off there now…

Emma; They have a ton of home items, fabric and gifting at diptyque so it can easily be a one-stop-shop for yall your Christmas presents just make sure to get some things for yourself too.

Hazel: ok speak later I’m off shopping….

Illustration by Angeliki Blesiou

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