L’OCCITANE JOYEUSES FêTES
Celebrating a special year
L’Occitane celebrated a milestone anniversary and seized every opportunity to evoke – from one range to the next – the wonderful journeys, encounters, harvests and successes that have shaped the last four decades. The year ends on a beautiful note, with the scent of honeysuckle setting the tone in a refreshing collection inspired by founder Olivier Baussan’s very first olfactory memory, Joyeuses Fêtes.
Joyeuses Fêtes reveals interlaced notes of white flowers and green tea flowing through delicate, festive products decorated with a design inspired by French domino paper. What better way to celebrate the end of a very special year than with a special collection?
Baussan still fondly remembers the fragrance of small white honeysuckle flowers as they suddenly came into bloom. On his way to school, he would breathe in this scent, which seemed to celebrate the freshness of the Provençal morning and announce the end of winter. Decorated with a domino-paper design, the Joyeuses Fêtes collection recalls this first olfactory memory.
A Provençal tradition inspired the form and design of the Joyeuses Fêtes collection. Famed for their costumes, Arlésiennes would use domino paper to line closets and drawers, and to protect their precious accessories.
Printed from engraved wood blocks, domino paper was originally used to cover walls, decorate millinery shops, and even for book covers. The block printing technique is quite simple. Geometric, floral patterns are carved into a wooden block (or, as was later the case, etched into a sheet of copper). This pattern is then printed repeatedly on a sheet of paper. To obtain several colours, the dominotier would go over the paper several times with a new block or sheet, or even add colours by hand. These designs have a softness and simplicity that go beautifully with the festive season. For Baussan, they would look perfect around a Christmas tree.
The collection includes: Joyeuses Fêtes Body Cream, a light cream to moisturise and nourish, an iridescent texture to make your skin shimmer all year long, and a dash of green tea in a cloud of white flowers to give a fragrant start to Christmas Day; Joyeuses Fêtes shower gel, a gel that shimmers and sparkles like the festive season! This gentle formula cleanses the skin and revives the body and mind with a breath of white flowers and green tea; Joyeuses Fêtes Hand Cream, a light and delicate cream, enriched with shea butter and fragranced with the scent of a fresh bouquet of white flowers and green tea; Joyeuses Fêtes Perfumed Soap, a delightfully festive soap wrapped in domino paper, it cleanses the skin, leaving behind the scent of white flowers; and Joyeuses Fêtes Lip Balm, a delicious lip balm, enriched with shea butter, leaves them feeling beautifully soft, supple and comfortable.