The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Encens et Bubblegum takes its name seriously. Antoine Maisondieu built the entire fragrance around a single, deliberate provocation: what happens when frankincense meets bubblegum? The name isn't a metaphor or a poetic abstraction. It's the concept. The perfume is the manifesto. From the first spray, the tension is immediate and unmistakable. Bright synthetic fruit notes hit the nose with an almost aggressive sweetness, while beneath them coils a deep, resinous smoke that refuses to be buried. The frankincense doesn't lurk quietly in the background, waiting its turn. It rises alongside the bubblegum, creating a jarring but strangely harmonious collision of styles. As the fragrance settles on skin, both elements remain present, neither completely dominating the other.
The note structure makes this possible. Peach and raspberry open with a bright, slightly synthetic sweetness, fruit as flavoring, not fruit as nature. This is bubblegum in its truest form: processed, sweet, deliberately artificial. The orange blossom and lily of the valley in the heart provide just enough floral grace to keep things from collapsing into pure novelty. But the real structural work happens in the base: frankincense is a resinous, smoky material that doesn't apologize for itself. When it meets the sweetness, the collision is intentional. Vanilla and musk round the edges, adding warmth and skin-proximity that keeps the whole thing intimate rather than theatrical.
The evolution
The opening hits bright and sweet, synthetic peach and raspberry, like fruit-flavored candy dropped into a space that smells of smoke and incense. A deliberate collision of the sacred and the sweet. As the fragrance develops on the skin, the sweetness begins to quiet. Orange blossom and lily of the valley emerge, a soft floral presence that grounds the composition without erasing the bubblegum character. The floral notes weave through the fruit, adding a dewiness that tempers the synthetic edge. Meanwhile, the incense element grows more pronounced. Frankincense fills the space, smoky and meditative, taking on an almost aromatic quality that feels both ancient and modern. Vanilla and musk linger warm and close to the skin, wrapping the wearer in a soft embrace that retains a ghost of candied fruit at the edges.
Cultural impact
Encens et Bubblegum was released by État Libre d'Orange, a house known for provocative naming and unconventional compositions. The fragrance pairs incense notes with bright, synthetic fruit accords in a combination that surprises and sometimes unsettles. This collision of materials created a scent that refused to follow expected paths in perfumery. The composition demonstrated that unconventional pairings could produce something worth wearing and discussing. The fragrance attracted attention from those interested in niche perfumery who appreciated its willingness to take risks with note combinations that other houses might avoid.
The House
Etat Libre d'OrangeÉtienne de Swardt founded Etat Libre d'Orange in 2006 with a manifesto: perfume should provoke. The house gives its perfumers total creative freedom — no commercial briefs, no focus groups. The result is a catalog of unapologetic scents, from the animalic shock of Sécrétions Magnifiques to the delicate restraint of Yes I Do. Perfumery as contemporary art.
The Creator
Antoine MaisondieuHis technical signature is an exceptional facility with natural materials and a painterly approach to composition. He builds fragrances in layers, each stratum contributing to an overall impression that feels inevitable yet surprising.
