Nina Ricci L'Air du Temps L'Écrin Des Colombes

by: Sandra Raicevic Petrovic

NINA RICCI L'AIR DU TEMPS L'Écrin Des Colombes "Longstanding muse, L’Air du Temps has inspired an array of artists over the decades. “L’Écrin des Colombes” (2015) is the latest creative collaboration to honour the iconic fragrance. The acclaimed craftsmen of Lalique and Gérard Lognon drew on their talents to give new life to “La cage” (1951): the precious birdcage that encased the exclusive 1951 edition of L’Air du Temps, the emblematic bottle upon which perched for the first time a pair of interlinking doves. In a glittering display of craftsmanship, “L’Écrin des Colombes” pays tribute to the exclusive vintage edition with a series of 74 one-of-a-kind, meticulously hand-carved and individually numbered bottles.  The finely honed and fastidiously repeated technique of the master glass-maker is seen in a spectacular swirl of signature volutes that sparkle beneath crystal-cut doves ablaze with flashes of pure gold. Then, at the expert hands of the pleat maker, a bolt of beaming yellow satin is carefully coaxed into the concertina pleats of the birdcage. As the fabric is heated, cooled and fashioned, hand and eye work in unison to transform raw material into a three-dimensional work of art. For a fleeting instant, time stops. Synchronised in silence. Working in artisan time."

As one of the classics in perfumery, the fragrance that made the house of Ricci famous, L'AIR DU TEMPS, was developed with great love by Nina Ricci’s son, Robert Ricci, and perfumer Francis Fabron. L'Air du Temps is a truly characteristic aroma, because it was created after World War Two. The unique flacon was designed by Marc Lalique, while the dove on the cap symbolizes peace.

Francis Fabron signed such masterpieces as Nina Ricci  L'Air du Temps (1948),L'Interdit by Givenchy (1957), Nina Ricci Capricci (1960), the original version of Robert Piguet's Baghari (1950), and Le Dix by Balenciaga (1947).

NINA RICCI L'AIR DU TEMPS "A jus of gleaming gold, L’Air du Temps perfume is the essence of eternity and perpetual motion. Its unusual composition of mythical florals ensures an inimitable wake of Jasmine and Gardenia spiced with Carnation and peppery Rose. Eye-catchingly encapsulated in an exuberantly artistic bottle, this is an ode to absolute femininity!"

The composition of L'Air du Temps was built around carnation, peach, neroli, bergamot, rose, rosewood and aldehydes in top notes. Rosemary, carnation, gardenia, violet, orchid, cloves, orris, jasmine, ylang-ylang and rose decorate the heart of the perfume, while spices, orris, amber, sandalwood, musk, benzion, moss, vetiver and cedar constitute its base.

During the years, the classic of the house, L'Air du Temps, received numerous successors, and each of them thrilled the audience in their own way. Those I would like to mention are L`Air du Temps Couture Edition from 2008 with attractive green feathers inspired by a Nina Ricci haute couture gown; L`Air du Temps by Olivia Putman from 2013 – a special limited edition of the bottle created by Olivia Putman, and characteristic for its royal blue facets and dove-shaped stopper; L'Air du Temps Noel from 2008, which was launched in the wave of black flacons as a holiday edition; L'Air du Temps by Starck from 2010 as a redesigned flacon with a cap shaped as two pigeons in a different manner than the usual; and Lalique’s version as a modern, futuristic, bolder and more aggressive edition. The collection of L'Air Du Temps includes the fragrance L'Air, presented in 2011, which brings a new image and style to the brand as a contemporary response to the classic, attracting a younger public with a fluffier, feminine, sophisticated floral composition.

I can freely say that the luxurious edition L'Air du Temps L'Ecrin des Colombes has the most beautiful flacon among all editions of the collection, which is really worth of this fragrance. Its beauty is reflected in the blend of perfumery industry art, fashion details and master glassmakers’ art, who sculpted it and adorned it with golden dust, providing it with new life, putting it on the pedestal of the Nina Ricci perfume collection, and crowning it once again.

All fragrances of the L'Air du Temps collection can be found in our encyclopedia: NINA RICCI L'AIR DU TEMPS collection.

Source: Nina Ricci official website