Stuck Inside? Re-Create a Woodsy Aroma With High-End Incense

(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- Scented candles may be all the rage, but the ritualistic nature of incense makes it a better tool for achieving a Zen-like state. At least, that’s the thought behind the sophisticated scents of Cinnamon Projects, created by Andrew Cinnamon and his husband, Charlie Stackhouse. When they were asked by the interiors studio Apparatus to collaborate on a stick to coincide with a furniture release called Interlude, the duo doubled down on the musical theme and conjured the smell of a violin case. The fragrance is a mix of frankincense (to give it leathery notes), iris and tuberose (to reference the silk-velvet lining), and rosin and spruce wood (to mimic the instrument itself). A svelte package holds 25 sticks that have a burn time of 25 to 30 minutes each.

THE COMPETITION

• Design studio Commune has produced a $32 incense pack with Kyoto-based Keijirou Hayashi, whose family’s craft goes back 180 years. The sandalwood sticks burn quickly without the sometimes overly sweet odor the wood is often chided for.

• Beckoning Spring ($52 for 35 sticks) from the 300-year-old Japanese brand Shoyeido is pressed directly into the shape of a stick instead of being formed around a piece of bamboo—giving its combo of clove, patchouli, and camphor more room to shine.

• Lisn, founded in 1989 as a Shoyeido offshoot, creates sticks ($54 for 10) that, at less than 3 inches long, are a microdose of bliss. The brand is also collaborating on a collection with the Mitsui hotel in Kyoto, which opens in summer.

THE CASE

That Nag Champa you burned in college left a persistent aroma for a reason: The sticks are made from bamboo wood. Interlude, on the other hand, is handmade in Japan with charcoal, which allows more of the actual ingredients to get their due. The earthy frankincense is leavened by the floral notes, particularly the tuberose, known for its clean, gardenia-like smell. Plus, because there’s no wood core, the sticks produce considerably less smoke, so you can clear your headspace without choking like a tourist in a Buddhist monastery. $40

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chris Rovzar at crovzar@bloomberg.net

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