Diorissimo Eau de Parfum

Christian Dior’s lucky flower

Lily of the valley was Christian Dior’s favorite flower. The house recounts that he slipped a sprig into the hems of his designs on show days, out of superstition. Diorissimo was born of this flower in 1956, composed by Edmond Roudnitska, who ten years later would create Eau Sauvage.

His son Michel Roudnitska recounts that the beds of lily of the valley in the family garden at Cabris served the perfumer as a model, and that Christian Dior adopted the composition on his first visit to the laboratory. He sees it as a return to nature, against the heavy, sweet perfumes of the time.

François Demachy’s eau de parfum

The house dates to 2009 the eau de parfum signed by François Demachy and presents it as a reflection of the original eau de toilette: a thicker creation, enriched with jasmine and rose absolutes. It belongs to Les Créations de Monsieur Dior, the collection of the house’s historic fragrances.

The 1956 formula was reworked to comply with IFRA restrictions. Michel Roudnitska attributes this to a main component left without a true substitute; Thomas Dunckley, of The Candy Perfume Boy, points to hydroxycitronellal, the key lily of the valley molecule, whose use is now limited.