There is a word that sticks in my mind, which is peculiar, because I know a great many words.
Why should this one demand my attention?
I’ve been spending time in a study I recently discovered in the Archives, fitted with shelves of old leather books, needlessly gaudy portraits of no-idea-who, a rich-looking desk, and stocked with expensive cigars and other frivolous things that I have little taste for. The scent of the room, though, calls me back to another time. A time before, I think.
I can picture myself standing in front of the window of an old bookshop, admiring the crooked stacks and displays of antiquated tomes. In my mind, there is a bakery nearby. The scent of fresh cookies trails in behind me as I step inside, where the air smells of leather and smoky vanilla: a sublime combination. I imagine I am there for hours... no, much longer. Why would I want to leave?
But that’s the trick of the Archives, isn’t it? And the trick of scent. Not a real memory, per se, but wistful nostalgia all the same.
In any case, the enchanting blend of leather books, smoked oud, and sweet vanilla brings to mind a single magical word: Vellichor.
It’s a fragrance every book lover could adore—and one every book nook and reading cranny ought to wear. As for me, this study may not be quite to my taste... but the scent it carries? Worth every wandering step it took to find it.
With Light,
-K
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Vellichor is a word used to describe the "strange wistfulness of used bookstores..." by John Koenig in his book The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. The word perfectly described the scent we were chasing: the aged parchment and leather of old books, a playful hint of sweet vanilla, and a mysterious shroud of smoked oud.
Available in wax melts, an 8oz candle, and an oversized 16oz candle.
Emberlight Archives is a candle and fragrance brand for lovers of fantasy, folklore, myth, magic, & mystery. But let's play pretend (otherwise, where's the fun?) - it's a collection of scent-based artifacts drawn from imagined realms and hidden histories. Each product tells a story and invites a unique ambience. Each collection reveals a new corridor - and there's so much more to unlock.
If you're a reader, gamer, fragrance lover, story fanatic, or seeker of the strange and beautiful, you'll feel right at home in the Archives. We're glad you found us.
