I've occasionally paused in a high-end department store — usually on the way to the fragrance department — to admire the creations of Fornasetti. It would be easy, I think, to become addicted to Fornasetti's world of ceramics and other home décor items, all embellished with witty designs that draw on a vocabulary of classical architecture, celestial bodies, playing cards, keyholes, and (most famously) the face of opera singer Lina Cavalieri, featured in hundreds of "themes and variations." It's a whimsical, almost Surrealist, visual style that filters Victorian imagery through a 1960s sensibility.
Fornasetti licensed the Fornasetti Profumi line just a year ago, and this venture seems like a smart fit for the brand. This collection encompasses various home-fragrance devices: scented candles, incense sticks, room spray, and ingenious three-way ceramic diffusers that can be adjusted to hold incense, perfumed oil, or scented crystals. It also has an impressive pedigree. The actual fragrance, named Otto, was developed by perfumer Olivier Polge. The candles, housed in Italian-crafted ceramic containers, are a wax blend manufactured by Cire Trudon, and the incense (the main subject of this review) is made by Nippon Kodo.
Otto was given its name because it was the eighth version tested by Polge and Barnaba Fornasetti (son of the company's founder, Piero Fornasetti). It was partially inspired by the gardens surrounding the Fornasetti home and by the various woods used in the house's interior and furnishings, and its composition includes top notes of thyme and lavender, middle notes of orris and cedarwood, and base notes of tolu balsam, incense, birch/styrax and labdanum. I've only tried the Otto incense so far, and I've enjoyed it thoroughly. Each small stick burns for a half-hour, with the fragrance remaining consistent throughout. It's a smooth, good-quality blend, in which the wood (cedar!) and resin notes dominate; there might also be hints of sandalwood and patchouli in the mix. It's an incense-y incense, but not a spices-and-myrrh church incense; it feels "secular" instead. It smells timeless and just rich enough, without being overwhelming, and it would suit a range of occasions and décors, just like a well-made piece of mid-century modern furniture.
More than anything, this incense reminds me of a stylish man or, more specifically, a stylish man wearing an woodsy-incense fragrance from L'Artisan Parfumeur or Le Labo. It's a far cry from the cheapie incense sticks that I used to burn in my college dorm room or my grad-school apartment. Even more than the incense itself, I covet the incense burners. Each one is a finely polished wooden box (to hold the sticks!) topped with a ceramic cover, and many of the designs incorporate the burning incense stick into their imagery. If I were going to splurge, I'd have a hard time deciding between the trompe l'oeil "Bacio," where the stick is inserted into a lipsticked "mouth" like a cigarette, or the romantic "Pensée," which shows a hand holding a purple pansy. I wouldn't mind owning, or at least smelling, one of the candles, either.
Fornasetti Profumi's Incense Box (including forty incense sticks) sells for $220 at Barneys and Ron Robinson (Apothia). Refill sets of incense sticks are also available; however, I haven't been able to locate any online ordering information for them.
Oh, those incense boxes are divine! Will investigate Nippon Kodo line as I will be more likely to splurge on the incense. Thanks so much for the review and information!
My pleasure! I’m not as much of an incense expert as our Kevin, but I can tell this is a good one.
I looked up Nippon Kodo online briefly, they have sample kits under $20 and a wide variety so it’s in my price range, LOL!
Perfect! I may check that out myself…
I can highly recommend Nippon Kodo incense. Some friends brought some back from Japan for me 15 years ago. I used to burn incense in college all the time but I’d become extremely weary of Nag Champa and most of the varieties sold in the health food stores made my sinuses swell. Japanese incense burns “cleaner” for lack of a better word. Unlike most Japanese scented things, I don’t find them apologetically quiet. My favorites are the frankincense, osmanthus, Paris Cafe, Fire, narcissus, hinoki, aloeswood, to name a few and I’m still exploring! I tend to prefer the cone and short stick kind. Have fun exploring the site! It’s so awesome to be able to just order directly from them now. And it’s ridiculously cheap for such a high quality product.
Those scents sound wonderful.
Thanks for these details, LaMaroc. I go through phases with incense but often find myself overwhelmed by “eau de headshop.” What is it you prefer about the short stick and cone types? Burns cleaner? Nicer scent? Or . . .?
Yes, the cone and short stick do not have the bamboo core of regular (long stick) incense. I think this does contribute to the “cleaner” burn. I use short sticks in smaller rooms and cones, which tend to be more potent, for larger, more open spaces.
Thanks for the clarification.
I just love green fragrances, especially when I smell it throughout my living room… But even with the beautiful design and the without a doubt great scent, I still find it way too expensive for a candle.
I also couldn’t justify the price for a candle, but loved the fragrance so much that i purchased the room spray, which costs the same as the candle but will last 100 times longer as long as i don’t go crazy with the spraying!
To be honest, I considered that as well. I would do it but my only concern is that you don’t have the pretty design then (or less eye-catching at least). But I might actually do it with this one actually, I really need a new room spray so…
I haven’t tried the room spray yet, but it must be lovely. I’ve never thought seriously about buying any Fornasetti ceramics, just because of the price…but these items seem almost within reach…almost!
Yeah the room spray only comes in 2 designs, one with the face & a right red one with butterflys on it. I bought the face & it looks very nice on the shelf even when its not being sprayed! Its one of my favorite incense scents & beats my Cire Trudon Sprirtus Sancti room spray hands down!
I love Fornasetti, and I find the home fragrance to smell divine (I would wear this scent myself!). These scented products/artistic objects are relatively affordable- I was so happy when the line launched: I could finally own an iconic black and white ceramic face, and a wonderfully perfumed one, too!! So I bought the crystals, and while the ceramic container is beautiful, and the crystals smell great, the device just does not diffuse! 🙁
I think the candle or the incense sticks are much better perfomers, fragrance-wise, and I wouldn’t trust the oil to behave better than the crystals.
Anyway, I’m still happy with my purchase…well, almost.
P.S. I think the home fragrance line just got plenty of new additions, but I don’t know if the additions are new fragrances, or improved diffusion devices! 😉
I do think they’re planning on releasing new “collections” from time to time — they just came out with a new set of designs for the fall, and a holiday collection is on the way. The fragrance is the same, however.
Enjoy your purchase! I am envious, in a good way. 🙂
I love those incense burners! A bit steep for me – I just stuck a stick of Noppon Kodo Eiju (spicy sandalwood) into one of my orchid plants, cause my burners are all still packed.
Of course you all sent me over to the Nippon Kodo site and I am having a very hard time not shopping. I have 15 million boxes of incense and DON’T need any more! lol
Would be nice to find out where you can get the Otto refills, though.
You can’t miss with a good sandalwood! I’m usually more of a candle person, but recently I’ve been enjoying incense for eliminating (or just covering) certain *other* smells quickly — e.g., cooking, the cat’s litter-box…!
I too must bemoan the linking to Nippon Kodo! Oh man, I just went into Poor Mode. :<
But really, I love incense. Not health shop, "Vanilla Seductress" stuff, but real Japanese incense. I take Japanese tea ceremony classes and the incense my teacher uses is fantastic. Smells exactly like CdG Incense: Kyoto if Kyoto lasted more than 20 minutes. ;3 It's strange, though. That incense is a wood chip (in summer) or a ball of paste (in winter) put directly into a brazier and I don't know how I'd get that. Guess I could just ask. :3
Ol Rait, I wish I knew more about the tea cermony; I’ve seen exhibitions of the various items at places like the Freer Gallery in Washington, D.C. but have never watched the actual ceremony being performed! So interesting.