Bonjour, mon amours! We’re here today highlighting a very cool product for the incense lovers and the incense curious among us - Papier d’ Armenie. IYKYK. And if you don’t, here’s le scoop.
Papier d’Armenie is an old school, handmade French incense. It comes as a leaflet of absorbent paper, soaked in a concentrated solution of benzoin, incense and other natural aromatic fragrances, which you then burn to deodorize, sanitize and disinfect the ambient air.
But what do you do with this booklet of paper strips?
It’s easy! Simply detach one strip. Then fold it a few times into an accordion shape (like the silly picture below). Light the end. Blow it out gently. Then the magic will waft into the air. Keep it safely burning in an incense tray or bowl.
We carry three scents of Papier d’Armenie at Friends NYC. The blue papers give off a myrrh and subtly woodsy scent. Grab green for a sweet vanilla, balsam moment. And pink is definitely for lovers with its sweet rose fragrance.
You can also get the most out of their delicious scents without burning. Just pop the strips in your dresser drawers, pillow cases, books, shoes, closets, or what have you!
Papier d’Armenie is a 100-year-old French family business that is now run by Mireille Schvartz, the great-granddaughter of the founder. You know we think women-led businesses are magnifique! Some employees have been loyal to Papier d’Armenie for three generations. That’s a good sign of a good company.
There are twelve production stages to obtain the famous little notebook. It starts with the best benzoin resin, which is secreted as “tears” by the aliboufier tree from Laos. The resin is dissolved in alcohol for several weeks before adding the perfume extracts. Their secret recipe is then applied manually to a special blotter-type paper, sheet after sheet.
So, burn, baby burn… that home fragrance. This is a classy way to cleanse the airwaves in your home or give as a unique gift. You can even light it up with Papier d’Armenie matches. They have a vintage, minimalist feel that pair perfectly with the iconic incense papers.
