The dichotomy between sustainability and luxury has never been more polarising than today. At a point where many of us are chronically aware of the somewhat bleak nature of the future of our planet, we are asking ourselves what we can do to help on a daily basis. I love luxury because I love art and architecture and attention to detail, in the same sense though, I want to do what I can to protect our planet from further destruction, to reduce my carbon and plastic footprint. Working with BBC and National Geographic last year really helped me share my message, but it’s not always about alienating and deconstructing luxury, but understanding its purpose in our universe and improving the timeless nature of what luxury items are originally created to stand for.
That said, I wanted to share a post about Kilian and their manifesto of “Luxury Should Last Forever“. This is rooted in their expansion of refillable perfumes and shower gels. In the words of Kilian Hennessy himself, “luxury should always be lasting, and that is a voluptuous challenge, to capture what is ephemeral the better to savour it. To slow down time and enhance the sensations. To go back to the origins of perfume, when bottle and box were its coat of arms; the embodiment of a spirit.”
As you know, I am always experimenting with different scents and sensory experiences, and currently I am addicted to Kilian’s incredible Gold Knight which contrasts the addictive dark sensuousness of patchouli with the effervescent brightness of bergamot, and warm golden shimmer of vanilla and anise. It holds a regal scent with an almost Eastern meditative element and comes in a gold armoured outer case (a truly timeless piece) which is also inspired by Gustav Klimt’s famous ‘Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I’. The case contains refillable micro bottles – as pictured and although they can run out pretty fast (especially around me), the whole experience gives fragrance the sense of importance that it deserves and is long run more environmentally friendly and iconic than your average perfume experience.
Another highlight from Kilian recently is the shower gel holder and set for Black Phantom – also pictured. I personally LOVE Black Phantom, it is sweet, rich and intoxicating and using it as a shower gel really makes your skin vibrate on a whole new level of sensualness. Super impressed!
Image by Nik Thakkar, faux fur rug for reference!