Maduraï by Cire Trudon
Maduraï by Cire Trudon

Cire Trudon is not a conventional house of home fragrance. They do not, like many brands, create candles that represent one smell, like rose or oud, or even combinations of such notes. No, Cire Trudon tell stories through wax, smoke and glass. They are a brand that allow you to fill your home with the scent of the cold stone walls from a Carmelite convent or fresh mint from the mountains of ancient tribes. Cire Trudon are not a typical brand and their many scented offerings are anything but ordinary, in fact they are rather extraordinary!

This Spring, Cire Trudon have twisted their narrative ever so slightly with their Les Belles Matières collection. Starting with three scented candles, which are housed in the most eye-catching of blue jars, Cire Trudon promise a “geographic odyssey” with this new collection, which takes one on a journey to three exotic destinations by way of iconic ingredients, covering not only a number of air miles but also three of the most familiar olfactory genres: florals, woods and fruits. The three scents are Tadine (New-Caledonia by way of sandalwood), Reggio (Calabria via citrus) and Maduraï, the focus of today’s review, which is all about “the splendour of Indian Jasmine”.

I’ve never been to India but you don’t have to do much convincing to get me on board with a white floral so the prospect of an jasmine sambac by the bucket load is an easy sell. Maduraï tells the tale of the flower’s many uses, whether they be in tea, as floral garlands or in perfumery. Maduraï is an ode to jasmine in its full glory and unexpectedly, it’s rather glorious.

Solis Rex by Cire Trudon
Solis Rex by Cire Trudon

I was faced with a predicament rather recently. Nosing around the Cire Trudon store in London, which is neatly tucked away along the rather immaculate Chiltern Street, I was guided through the brand’s extensive range of scented candles. Each of the candles takes inspiration from something unique, whether that be the mossy stone walls of a convent, the cerebral strangeness of an art movement or even Parisian Laundry Maids. It is most definitely an eclectic collection and it would be fair to say that Cire Trudon do things a little bit differently and they make some striking, and nose-tinglingly beautiful candles as a result – candles that smell unusual and modern, which is no mean feat considering Cire Trudon’s illustrious history.

“Founded in 1663, on the threshold of the reign of Louis XIV, Cire Trudon is the oldest candlemaker in the world still active today. Throughout the 17th century, the manufacturer became the Royal Wax Manufacturer and official supplier to the French court, then to Napoleon Bonaparte. Cire Trudon received a gold medal during the 1889 Universal Exhibit as a reward for the outstanding quality of its candles and wax.”

– Cire Trudon

So, back to my dilemma. As I moved along the line of candles, picking up the heavy glass cloches that encases each of the jade-coloured glass jars, twisting them towards my nose to inhale their swirling aromas, I was posed with an impossible question: which one would you like? “Argh! Don’t make me choose”, I thought, “they’re all so darn nice, how am I ever going to pick one to take away?” Not one to be good at making decisions on the spot, and not being a fan of the idea of having to move into the store to live out the rest of my days because choosing when there is extensive choice is impossible for me, I let my nose do the talking, as it were, and picked out the candle whose scent intrigued me the most. That candle was Solis Rex.