Sometimes you just can’t help but commit to a self-indulgent project. In my case, this time around, resulted in a luxury object that leans toward a world of wellness and self-care. But somehow these days, it seems even the idea of personal inner peace has been co-opted by almighty corporate puppeteers, somehow translating our urges and desires for balance into dull and endless spreadsheets of control. In a time where stress is waiting around every corner and stimulating distractions only a touch or tap away, it no longer feels truthful to preach offerings that promise some ill-imagined dream of safety and tranquillity.
I had been to Nepal recently and spent considerable time scouring markets for antique objects, what I encountered was a place full of devotion, layered with Hindu and Buddhist symbology. From delicately engraved silver castings etched with immense care to simple low-fired ceramic forms pressed into crude moulds, there existed a range of cultural beliefs woven through centuries of dedication and expression. When luxury is tied to devotion, it transforms into something else entirely.
It just so happens that our modern devotions tend to celebrate ourselves. But when luxury is connected to an offering beyond the self, perhaps that is what justifies such indulgence. It becomes a kind of luxury that interweaves us into a larger tapestry, rather than reducing everything into a single special thread.
Maybe that’s why the diffuser holds such attraction for me. At its core, it is a simple therapeutic tool, a basin with a tealight underneath that evaporates scents into the air, something meant to make our spaces smell a little nicer while framing an activity that can feel relaxing or perhaps even regenerative.
And yet, I know the paradox sitting directly in front of me: all of this rendered into a luxury object that remains fundamentally inaccessible. Unless, of course, you send me something around 800 USD so I can print it in steel, package it carefully, and ship it to you. The irony is unavoidable. But like most luxurious endeavours with even a sliver of dignity, I believe these objects attempt to become symbolic containers. I hope this diffuser carries some sense of mystery, a reminder that our inner and personal rituals are still, in fact, our own.