Set off some Franco-Irish fireworks and explosive vanilla into the air around you. Express your liberty and make every day “Un Jour Glorieux” with a new fireworks perfume accord. Celebrate every day as a day of freedom.
14 JUILLET is so much more than just a date, says Bastille CO Sophie Maisant of her latest fragrance. “It’s the echo of a French way of living, a timeless ode to joie de vivre, union, and freedom. This fragrance is not limited to a particular time or place; it embodies the spirit of French celebration, that French Touch that resonates from the streets of Paris to the villages of the countryside, a fragrant tribute to the elegance, conviviality, and spontaneity that characterizes France.
It’s an invitation to embrace freedom and joy, at any time and in any season, capturing the essence of being together and celebrating life the French way, every day of the year. An olfactory explosion that dazzles and leaves an unforgettable memory on the skin.
The perfume was created by Irish perfumer Meabh McCurtin of IFF. This is a luminous, sunny creation that starts with a tangy dazzle of tangerine, amplified by the extra sparkle of blackcurrant, which, like fireworks, makes the whole fragrance sparkle and light up. An impression reinforced by the particularly atypical, racy smokiness of an original fireworks accord that I created specifically for this fragrance. The cheerful energy of this perfume is warmed by the amber intensity of labdanum and cinnamon, and violet leaves. And vanilla enters the game and becomes the master! Undeniably dazzling, infinitely comforting, divinely enveloping, its trail of enchantment conquers hearts and souls.”
Meabh created the 2018 Róisín Dubh for the Irish perfume house, Cloon Keen, inspired by her roots in Ireland. She has also created Eau d’Amsterdam with Perfume Lounge owner and scent designer, Tanja Deurloo, a perfume based on the scent of Amsterdam’s Elm trees. Her other scents include Annindriyu’s Tipsy Tuberosa. Frapin’s Bonne Chauffe, Un Ete by Obvious. Scents of Wood’s Bread in Chesnut and Mamajuju, The Sixth and Sun Rae for Vyrao
Meabh studied biochemistry at the National University of Ireland in Galway and, after graduation, moved to the École normale supérieure in Lyon. His mentor is the French master perfumer Dominique Ropion at IFF.
I can live in a space inside my mind which is less about facts and more about connecting with people, connecting with ideas, exploring through feelings, the whole synaesthesia of smells. I want to feel that I’ve made something that resonates with people and that they like to wear. It’s a sign that what I’ve done is that I have connected with them.”
My attraction to perfumery is driven by the poetry that nature offers us, by the emotions that it provides.
The challenge is also to bring modernity, not to be too traditional perfumery. Formulating 95% natural ingredients is not just a technical exercise. We must remember the pleasure the note must convey. I really enjoyed this challenge. I found it interesting to work around such a strong national symbol. A symbolic moment of joy and reunion for many French people, so I wanted a joyful, luminous perfume, but also enveloping, delicious to express the pleasure that these moments of jubilation give us. I remembered the wonder I felt on one day of celebration on the Champs-Élysées. I was at Place de l’Etoile, on my bike, and in the arch of the Arc de Triomphe, I saw the fireworks. I found this moment magical!”
Dijon-born Maisant, who describes herself as a businesswoman who loves perfume, attended Bordeaux Business School and did her Master’s at Paris IV Sorbonne. The daughter of an engineer collected perfume miniatures as a child and went on to work for Bourjois, Chanel. She went on to become VP of Marketing for Europe at Huda Beauty. The fragrances are made in Paris, and the essential oils are made in Grasse.
I realized I wanted to be an agent of change and development, and purchased the brand from its founder. My vision was primarily to give meaning to the perfumes we wear in our daily lives. Bastille was born of a very simple observation: while habits were changing towards more eco-responsible modes of consumption, with the advent of clean cosmetics, natural and respectful formulas for health and the planet
The other Noses behind the latest Bastille collection are Nicolas Beaulieu (Bataille and Paradis Nuit). Caroline Dumur (Demain Promis and Rayon Vert). Domitille Michalon-Bertier (Un Deux Trois Soleil and Hors-Piste). Paul Guerlain and Anne Flippo (Pleine Lune)
Adds its CEO: Bastille Day is a national day of celebration, symbolizing freedom. On the 14th of July, 1789, the Bastille, a prison at the time, was stormed by revolutionaries, which signaled the start of the French Revolution, laying the foundations of the republic we know today, established on the ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity.
At Bastille, the brand believes in the freedom of choice for everyone to each their own fragrance, their own story, and their glorious days.”
