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Litotes Luxury Fragrances

Luxury fragrances inspired by literature

Chicago, Illinois

Featured in Architectural Digest and Essence, LITOTES soy-blend candles and fragrances are thoughtfully designed, hand-blended, poured, and finished by Kari Herrera in her Chicago-area studio.

A book critic and podcaster, Kari mastered the art of fragrance layering and wax formulation to reimagine moments from literature through scent. Each aroma is a love letter to literary giants, unforgettable books, and the soothing spaces where stories come alive.

Dark Academia

$48.00
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Experience the cozy embrace of cashmere and warm milk with the captivating depth of sandalwood. Rich black wax poured within a sleek black vessel; Dark Academia is our first onyx-hued candle. Sophisticated and seductive, this scent evokes late nights in libraries, handwritten letters, and secrets preserved by the dark.
Contemporary Romance

$48.00
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Litotes has captured the sweet aroma of strawberry cheesecake brightened by the effervescent sparkle of limoncello in a blush pink package. Poured in a pink vessel with matching wax, it’s as charming to look at as it is indulgent to burn. Contemporary Romance is a love letter to LOVE represented in literature — playful and impossible.
Langston's Library

$30.00
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Our bestseller: Writer and artist Langston Hughes inspired this aromatic experience. Books surrounded Hughes with the friends and adventures he so desperately craved as a child. As he grew, his love for literacy evolved into an exceptional talent as a writer. He once said of the power of literature in his life, “I … believe in nothing but books and the wonderful world in books.”
Flora Neale Hurston

$48.00
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This fragrance celebrates author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston. She was a gorgeous “rose” with a more substantial beauty under her surface. In addition to her incomparable storytelling ability, Huston was a passionate student of humanity. She used her education and resources to study and document women’s roles throughout the diaspora while highlighting the shared experiences of all races of humans.