Tea at Trianon: Wisteria Blue

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, February 2, 2018

Wisteria Blue

I love the NEST fragrances, especially their candles. To quote:

NEST Fragrances, a leading designer and manufacturer of exceptionally crafted fine and home fragrances, today announced the debut of Wisteria Blue, an aquatic floral eau de parfum launching exclusively this week at Sephora. It is the eleventh eau de parfum created for the NEST Fine Fragrances Collection.

“I was inspired to create Wisteria Blue while walking through the Historic District in Charleston, S.C.,” said Laura Slatkin, Founder of NEST Fragrances. “I came across a home that was covered in wisteria blossoms in the most extraordinary shades of lavender, blue and white; it was right then and there that I knew I had to create a wisteria fragrance.”

Upon returning to New York, Slatkin knew immediately she wanted to collaborate with Givaudan senior perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux to develop the fragrance. “He is legendary in the fragrance industry, but I had not yet had the pleasure of working with him,” said Slatkin. “When I got to his lab, Rodrigo shared with me an essence of wisteria. He said this rare essence was extracted from wisteria blooms adorning Petit Trianon, Marie Antoinette’s home at Versailles. It was pure perfection.”

Slatkin continued, “To complete Wisteria Blue, we added imperial jasmine and Bulgarian rose – notes Rodrigo calls the ‘king and queen of any important floral fragrance’ – and fresh watery nuances. The end result is an exquisite fine fragrance that captures the ethereal beauty and artistry of wisteria.” As with all of her previous creations for the NEST Fine Fragrances Collection, Slatkin worked closely with widely respect Russian artist Alexander Solodukho, who painstakingly sketched and painted the original botanical artwork for Wisteria Blue’s packaging. (Read more.)