Feu de Bois

Jun 5 | Written By American Baroness

The brand Diptyque is pretty ubiquitous these days. But back in the day, when I was a student in Paris, Diptyque was just that jewel-box of a boutique I loved—34 boulevard Saint-German at the corner of Rue de Pontoise, a ten-minute walk, downhill, from the Sorbonne, where I was studying. Approaching Diptyque, before its awning was even in view, I would be struck with the store’s scent: a musty, rich, and vaguely floral fire-pit of a fragrance.

And then, inside: rows of bottles, with their iconic black and white labels—still one of my favorite logo designs of all time—and countertops replete with candles, each one powerfully reminiscent of travels, loves, pleasures, places I’d yet to experience. Of my preferred Diptyque fragrances (L’Ombre dans L’Eau, Eau Duelle, Fleur de Peau) and candles (Ambre, Baies, and Roses), it is Feu de Bois that most invokes a feeling, a sense memory, and seems to wedge open a portal, some new perspective, as soon as its singular, smoky scent starts wafting my way.