Greetings from quarantine, a time for reflection and well, more reflection. I am beginning to think that taking time off from the tyranny of a 24/7 news cycle is a good thing. Of course one can just flip the button and turn off the box, et cetera– yes, we (singular) know all that, but somehow the button beckons. Why? Perhaps this is a wonky form of self care for us social creatures when deprived of society with no endpoint in view. Would we be different had we evolved from a solitary species—cats, for instance? Then, maybe we wouldn’t care so much; maybe we would treasure our solitude. But would we make candles?
A short while ago I decided to create a scent that would reflect those moments—actually, many strung together—when solitude was a kind of comfort, even an envelope for sadness. A time set aside when I didn’t have to be “positive.” I thought of a walk alone through a drippy stand of flowering trees—blossoms all past their prime, all nostalgic for their youth as buds—thus a blend of scents emerged: plumeria, spent blossoms, and velvet musk topped off with a pinch of artemisia (wormwood). I named my candle “Sweet Solitude”, and tinted it a rainy grey, see pic.
Would one want to scent a room with Sweet Solitude? Maybe not as a House Beautiful signifier, but as a thing to enjoy in one’s own private corner: a sweet solitude.
