1st of December with BYREDO

Its that time of the year! December is finally here and even though the beauty industry has been [force]feeding us with christmas gifts, stocking fillers, crackers and so on all the way ever since August, for me the whole spirit of the Holidays haven’t really kicked in. I used to be ALL about christmas and feeling cranky when my husband wasn’t all invested in putting up the decorations in November, but this year it feels different.

With a brand new, nicely decorated home it almost feels bad to “ruin” the ambience with ornaments. The christmas tree still sits in its box.

But. Yes, there is always a but.

I don’t want to be a party-pooper and so I will succumb to the urgent need of lighting even more candles to get myself in the right mood.

Starting with BYREDO Cotton Poplin candle. Not a very festive scent, you say? No it is not but it evokes all my memories of advent at home as this scent (and brand for that matter) is the true picture of Swedish elegance.

If I’m going to kick-off December I might as well do it in style you know? BYREDO fits the description. This is luxury. The candles are the ultimate splurge; very expensive and refined with a distinguished and long lasting scent no matter which one you choose.

Cotton Poplin is exactly what it sounds to be. It shall remind us of that starched collar of a cotton poplin shirt or the white, woven fabric of linen. My grandmother used to have her entire linen closet filled with pressed napkins, cloths and bed sheets. They felt starch and hard against the skin but I still remember loving the feeling of unfolding one of these whenever we had a sleepover and see the sharp folding in the fabric. I guess this candle just reminds me of my childhood, the clean scent mirroring mom cleaning the whole house with extra care before butting up the christmas tree…

Ben Gorham, founder of BYREDO created the perfume Blanche for his girlfriend and then followed up with Cotton Poplin, part of the same family of clean, crisp scents. Being a native Swede with Indian and Canadian parents brought up in Canada and NYC he is the ultimate and interesting “gypsy soul” who was never supposed to get into perfumery at all.

But luckily for all of us, the stars aligned and the former pro-basket player and art student traded paint brushes for an interest in olfactory notes that would preserve all the memories from travels that he was carrying within. Legend has it, he started to make his candles in the kitchen, filling up non-expensive IKEA glasses and making sure that all his friends could test and try. Nowadays, as BYREDO grew out of that kitchen and into an international success story; all candles are hand-poured in France, using only the finest waxes and cotton wicks. Always with the traditional black shade. The glass vessels are mouth-blown and the labels easy to recognize with their clean paper design.

Now, most of you will probably say that Cotton Poplin is probably the least christmassy scent made by the brand but to me, its the opposite. The blend is supposed to make us think of a starched collar of a cotton poplin shirt or a woven, white fabric. It is super clean, Scandinavian and fresh. Thus, it throws me back to my mother cleaning the house extra carefully before we were allowed to but up the christmas tree, or my grandmothers linen closet who was filled with pressed and starched napkins and wash cloths. I remember the harsh feeling of fabric but the delight of seeing the sharp crease when we got to unfold one of the napkins. They remind me of sleepovers and christmases from long ago and the candle mirrors these memories.

Cotton Poplin is composed of rare Blue Chamomile at the top, crisp linen and white cedarwood at its heart and sweet musk as base note. It is kind and gentle to the nose and if you’re lucky enough to catch it, there is also a matching Cotton Poplin home fragrance. Always sold out and I completely understand why. Luckily, the Chance perfume is easily accessible and my absolute favourite BYREDO perfume.

How do you get into festive mood this year? Happy December beautiful friends ♥

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8 Comments
  1. I salute Scandinavian Christmas! For me it’s clean, fresh yet warm with some cardamom hidden there somewhere. What reminds me of my grandmother are wool socks and clean grey linen. You described the candle beautifully, taking me to beautiful memories of Sweden (which is much more chic than we here in Finland haha). You really have talent in writing, the blog is such a pleasure to read. Cotton Poplin sounds gorgeous, I definitely will give it a sniff when I visit a Byredo counter. We STILL don’t have one in Helsinki!

    x Laura

    1. Beautiful Laura, you have no idea how much it means to me that you take the time to read my site and to comment. I value our friendship and I think we have a mutual understanding that comes with a typical Scandi background. Thank you for always being incredible and inspiring! much love, M

  2. I love Byredo perfumes, but have not smelled their candles yet. This candle sounds lovely, Christmas or not. I am not in the festive mood yet – too much work to do in the meantime. Hoping to feel more festive when I shut down for the year before Christmas. R

    1. Hi Sweetie! Whenever I see a comment from you I know its going to be a cute one. Thank you for always reading. I still have two of your articles to catch up on. Saving them to the holidays. work has been a bit too much during 2017, I think we all are exhausted! I hope the xmas mood will kick in soon…xoxo, M

  3. This brand is very interesting to me! I saw it in Nordstrom’s when I was in Vancouver but I didn’t get any. The products were a bit more expensive up there but I’m very interested in trying this line. Where to start though! Got a recommendation for me?

    1. Beautiful friend!! To me, BYREDO is home, as a Swedish brand I feel I truly connect with the whole ethos of the brand. My first BYREDO perfume was Blanche…I think, followed by Pulp and La Tulip. I recommend them all as beautiful perfumes you can wear on an everyday occasion! I know what you mean when it comes to price point. I try to get mine from Sweden as they’re much more affordable there…xoxo, M

    1. Sweet Angel, I shall be completely honest with you: mostly I don’t burn my candles because I actually have a fear of fire, but I still love to use them for decoration and for sniffing :)) Kisses, M

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