Before being there comes getting there. For many, the festive season begins with a journey back—back across distances and into awaiting arms, certainly, but also back through time, to encounter familiar sights, sounds and scents that the passing months may erode, though never quite erase. In this year’s festive short film, our protagonists find themselves engaged in this business of returning home. In the warm interior of a train carriage, with snow-dusted pines streaming past the window, the overhead luggage racks creak with largesse. Suitcases are packed with all manner of efficacious and aromatic formulations, ready to delight discerning recipients. It is a time to give, a time to gather; a time to embrace.
If there is still an empty space or two in your own festive suitcase, here are a few ideas of gifts with which to fill them.
Discerning hosts: gifts for the home
'Tis the season not just of homecomings and gift-giving, but also of hosting. From the first umber of autumn, the convivially minded among us begin gleefully to dream up this year’s domestic mise-en-scène:; carefully curated table settings and elaborate centrepieces with which to delight any and all guests lucky enough to be invited over. If you have such an individual on your list, then you might want to consider our Rekindled Connections gift kit, which brings together all three of our Aromatique Candles in miniature format, or Sensing Excitement, which pairs an Aromatique Incense with a Bronze Incense Holder. Otherwise, there is the Diaphos, a glass enclosure that transforms an Aromatique Candle into a flickering lantern, or the Brass Wick Trimmer—for the truly detail-oriented host—that ensures candles maintain an even, smokeless burn.
Serenity seekers: gifts for the self
A joyous time it may be, but even the most gregarious are bound to experience a degree of jubilation fatigue over the course of the festive season, leaving one in need of some quiet recuperation. The Basin-side Serenity gift kit assembles a pair of cleansing formulations to leave one with a thoroughly refreshed countenance, while Becoming Acquainted includes a comprehensive morning regimen, allowing one to begin the day feeling fully primed—not to mention delightfully fragrant.
Curious travellers: gifts for travel
If looking something that would please an inveterate wanderer, then the Refreshing Memories gift kit might be something to consider. Containing three of our most sought-after Eaux de Parfum—Marrakech Intense, Tacit Truths and Silently, Hwyl—in a perfectly portable 10mL format, it is ideal for those who want a choice of fragrances in spite of their peripatetic schedule. There is also Time Together, a complete shower regimen in miniature, and an essential travel companion for the perpetually mobile.
Hands-on nurturers: gifts for the hands and body
Hand and body care formulations make for thoughtful gifts, not just because of the sensory pleasure they bestow, but also for the nurturing attention they signify. Gift kits like the aptly named Arms Outstretched, Touching Gestures, or Gentle Embraces, will communicate deep appreciation for a cherished recipient.
The Aesop Valise
If none of the above has leapt out and announced itself as the ideal gift for someone on your list, or if you are looking to make a gesture of utmost generosity this year, then consider the Aesop Valise. A sizable carry-on which brings to mind that annual journey homeward, it is filled with a profusion of sensorial delights including skin care, formulations for the hands and body, and fragrances for the self and home. Designed to be gradually unpacked and enjoyed throughout the month of December—or all at once in a flurry of excitement—it is a gift that will still be talked about when the next festive season arrives.
‘Happiness seems made to be shared.’
Pierre Corneille
