A gilded cat that rises from a Diptyque candle and slips back out of sight, set inside a pavilion of green and gold.
Diptyque’s Christmas 2025 brief called for a pop-up installation built around a single moment of surprise, delivered as two complete sets for Hong Kong and Macau.
The challenge was twofold: a large joinery structure had to arrive finished to boutique standard and assemble cleanly on site, and the centrepiece cat had to move reliably through the full season without revealing any of its mechanism.
The concept places an octagonal pavilion at the centre, crowned with an open gilded dome and framed by arched windows. Inside, an oversized Diptyque candle in gold leaf holds a gilded cat that rises into view and sinks back out of sight.
Curved counters in deep green with gold-edged trims wrap around the pavilion, while sculpted fir trees grow out of open books, carrying the festive story outward into the mall.
Arches edged in gold, a dome of gilded ribs, and a cat that will not stay still. Christmas, told as a game of hide-and-seek.
– Pavilion & counters: bespoke wood joinery, deep green finish with gold-edged trims
– Dome & arches: metal frame, gold finished to match the joinery
– Cat & candle vessel: sculpted forms finished in hand-applied gold leaf
– Motion: concealed motor driving a vertical lift inside the candle
– Trees & books: sculpted fir trees mounted on oversized open-book bases
– All modules built in sections for transport and on-site assembly
–Bespoke Joinery
Curved counters, arched windows and the octagonal pavilion are built in wood and finished in deep green, with every edge traced in gold.
–Gold Leaf Gilding
The cat and its candle vessel are gilded by hand, leaf by leaf, giving the surface the warm, uneven glow of real gold rather than the flatness of paint.
–Kinetic Hide-and-Seek
A concealed motor lifts the cat into view and lowers it out of sight on a slow, repeating cycle, turning the display into a small piece of theatre.
The pavilion and counters are built as wooden structures, shaped to their curves in the workshop and finished in deep green with gold-edged trims. The dome and arch frames are fabricated in metal and finished in gold to sit seamlessly against the joinery.
The cat and the oversized candle vessel are sculpted first, then gilded by hand in gold leaf. The Diptyque label is applied last, so the candle reads as a true-to-life object at monumental scale.
A concealed motor sits inside the candle, raising and lowering the cat on a slow cycle. Before shipping, the full installation was assembled at the workshop to test motion, fit and finish, then divided into sections for delivery to Hong Kong and Macau.
Two complete installations were delivered, one to Hong Kong and one to Macau, each arriving finished and assembled on site for the Christmas 2025 season.
Joinery, metalwork, gilding and motion come together in a single centrepiece, showing how a kinetic display can be built to hold both its finish and its function through a full holiday run.
A structured workflow that keeps the brand in control from brief to delivery.
References, dimensions, quantity and finish confirmed up front.
Full renders and technical drawings shared for client sign-off before any physical work.
A single sample is produced and documented for feedback and approval.
Approved units manufactured, quality-checked and flat-packed for shipping.
The pavilion and counters are bespoke wood joinery with a deep green finish and gold-edged trims. The dome and arches use a gold-finished metal frame, while the cat and oversized candle vessel are finished in hand-applied gold leaf.
A concealed motor inside the oversized candle lifts the cat into view and lowers it out of sight on a slow, repeating cycle. The mechanism is fully hidden, so the movement reads as a game of hide-and-seek.
Yes. Motorised elements such as lifting, rotating or tilting props can be built into sculpted or joinery pieces. Each mechanism is tested during full workshop pre-assembly so that motion, finish and fit are confirmed before the props ship.
The installation is fully assembled and checked at the workshop, then divided into transport-ready sections and shipped to each location. On site, the sections are reassembled and the motion system is tested before the pop-up opens.
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