Discovery and encounter during an extraordinary olfactive ceremony at State of Mind, Cour du Bailliage, in the Antiquaries district of Versailles
The tone is set: confident, passionate, playful, and ambitious. Catherine Laskine-Balandina possesses a sense of urgency to pass on a sensory heritage. She wishes to share a gift from life — one received from her grandmother Larissa, who initiated her into the world of tea and Asian legends. "It was by listening to her travel stories and the tales she invented that I first encountered China: the Nine-Dragon Wall, the Great Wall, calligraphy, acupuncture, the lotus flower opening in a cup of tea, the perfumes and the colours of the tea shops. I felt as if I were living within that magic. I tasted everything by proxy."
"I want to spark an intellectual and sensory discovery."
Since then, her ambition has been clear: "We must awaken our senses," she asserts. After 15 years traveling from capital to capital as an international director in the luxury industry, she could have decided to settle down, create a fashion or perfume brand, and simply enjoy life. But that would have been to reckon without her fiery, wholehearted, generous, and enthusiastic temperament. This woman of intellect with Franco-Russian roots — holding a postgraduate degree in comparative literature and fluent in French, English, Russian, Italian, and Spanish — is a woman of vision. One of her ideas finally came to fruition…
Today, her dream has become a reality: she offers a unique experience where synaesthesia takes on its full meaning. Sensory perceptions and emotional sensations converge in the perfumes and teas presented here, during an olfactive and gustatory tasting.
Can you hear the tea leaves steeping in perfectly heated water? Do you smell the Siberian cedars and birches emanating from L'ÂME SLAVE? Do you see Shakespeare smiling in SENSE OF HUMOR?
As you will have gathered, the perfumes of State of Mind — experienced on a fan — stand at the crossroads of literature, philosophy, and an art de vivre. A tea echoes each one, acting as an accomplice in a story imagined and brought to life by Catherine, who recounts: "Tea and perfume generate emotions and feelings that affect our thoughts. Tea, like perfume, brings you to a joyful state, energizes you, or calms you. It helps you discover your personal image and awakens your artistic sensibilities."
"Perfume, beyond being a symbol of pleasure, elegance, and refinement, has a powerful influence on our state of mind. This fascinating property is explored throughout this new collection," created by perfumer Karine Dubreuil and tea master Olivier Scala.
This new olfactive concept brings together tea and perfume for an emotional and sensory experience. "By choosing one's tea and one's perfume," explains the creator of State of Mind, "one influences one's state of mind and develops a new form of energy."
The tea ceremony is a privileged moment conducive to reflection. It is guided by a quest for harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. In this sense, it is an original synaesthetic experience centred on scented teas in perfect harmony with the perfumes, scented candles, and home fragrances of the house. An invitation to an extraordinary olfactive journey.
Interview by Isabelle Sadoux for Instant V
Article published by the magazine "Versailles Plus" in July 2021.
