Presenting the Maître Tseng x Trudon collaboration, a collection of three scented candles that celebrate the world of tea and its thousands of years of history.
Maître Tseng, or Yu Hui Tseng, is a master of tea. From a long line of tea makers, she is also a descendant of the first disciple of Confucius. Maître Tseng is one of only ten Gongfu tea masters recognised across the globe – the only one operating outside of China, and the only female tea master in the world.
Maître Tseng is the founder of La Maison des Trois Thés (The House of Three Teas) in Paris, a sanctuary for connoisseurs and professionals alike. It is home to over 1000 varieties of tea, 500 at a time maturing in the world’s largest tea cellar.
The founding idea behind the Maître Tseng × Trudon collection came from imagining the flow of water from the sky, enriched by elements of the earth. Reflecting this idea, this range of scented candles is expressed in three stages representing the journey of water… essentially, what happens before it ends up in the teapot!
Each candle’s vessel in this collection has been adorned with golden calligraphy in the shape of the Trudon royal seal, and an embossed gold interior that is illuminated by the flame once lit.
SOUS UN CIEL DE PÉTALES – UNDER A SKY OF PETALS
The second stage in water’s journey, where it has travelled from the mountain tops to water and nourish lush floral greenery. Combining jasmine sambac and jasmine grandiflorum originating from the Himalayas – and with fresh notes of bergamot, the fragrance of Sous un Ciel de Pétales (Under a Sky of Petals), created by Vincent Ricord, evokes a floral scene. Its fragrance is supported by base notes of guaiac wood and light touches of incense, which evoke this candle’s connection to the earth. The inspiration for this scent comes from a Qing dynasty poem that Master Tseng has written on the front of Maison des Trois Thés in calligraphy.
NOTES
Top: Italian Bergamot, Italian Lemon, Elemi
Middle: Egyptian Jasmine Absolute, Indian Jasmine Sambac
Base: Guaiac wood, Somali Incense Oil, Musk
BURN TIME
The 270g candles burn for approximately 55-60 hours. Please follow the instructions enclosed with your candle to get the most out of it.
HOW IT SMELLS
The opening of this scent is crisp and citrusy, like cold water from a mountain stream. The elemi resin then beckons in the floral notes, and as the candle burns these become more intense but remain green and fresh. The scent is underpinned by smoky incense and guaiac wood to keep it grounded and connected to the earth.
LORE LOVES
This is the scent of a tea ceremony in one of China’s spectacular outdoor teahouses. Under a canopy of fresh jasmine, you drink blooming tea, watching its petals unfold and inhaling its vapours as they’re released into the spring air.
ABOUT THE BRAND
Founded in 1643, Cire Trudon is the oldest wax manufacturer in the world.
In 1640s Paris, Claude Trudon, a convenience store owner, began to make tapered candles with a new methodology he had developed, utilising a special blend of beeswax and vegetable wax. His high-quality candles rapidly gained popularity, as they didn’t warp, smoke or splutter, and therefore didn’t cause fires!
In 1702, Trudon opened a factory so that their highly sought-after candles could be manufactured on a larger scale. Before long, their secret wax formula (still used today!) attracted the attention of the Crown. The house of Trudon became the candle provider to the Royal Court of Louis XIV, as well as many of the great churches of France. Louis XIV was so impressed with the candles that he issued his seal of approval with the official family crest. This crest can now be seen affixed to every Trudon product, with the addition of the motto “Deo regique laborant”, which means: “they (the bees) work for God and the King”, a nod to the creature that made their successful formula possible!
By the mid 17th century, Trudon had become the largest wax manufacturer in France. As candle makers for the Royal Court, Trudon were commissioned to make candles for many French icons – from Louis XIV to Marie Antoinette to Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon actually commissioned Trudon to make a candle for the birth of his son – rumoured to be the only gift he ever gave him – a black candle decorated with his likeness in gold.
Fast forward to 2007 when the house took the name Cire Trudon and became the leading specialist in manufacturing perfumed candles. All their candles are still hand-made, using traditional production methods akin to those Claude Trudon would have used in the 1600s. In their Normandy factory, each candle is hand-poured into hand-blown vessels from Tuscany. Today, Cire Trudon has extended their savoir-fare to a line of genderless perfumes as well as a variety of options to luxuriously scent your space.
