A few more spritzes from my sample tube, and there it goes — the last of my Christian Dior Dior-Dior. Finished.
Lately I’ve been working my way through the crystal cocktail glass storing my most precious samples. A few unexpected (and in one case, fatal) accidents in my world during the past few weeks have startled me out of complacence. We’re not going to live forever. Meanwhile, those few drops of old Guerlain Mitsouko parfum, that dram of Lanvin Scandal parfum, that tiny vial of Christian Dior Dioressence parfum, and, yes, a two ml spray of Christian Dior Dior-Dior Eau de Toilette were going unappreciated. I put an end to that. It’s hard to use a vintage, discontinued fragrance knowing that when it’s gone it’s likely gone for good. But enjoying a perfume sure beats simply having the perfume.
Perfumer Edmond Roudnitska developed Dior-Dior, released in 1976. Dior-Dior is a fresh green floral chypre tart enough to slice through the muggy July heat, but with an animalic edge.
At first, Dior-Dior is a shattering mix of citrus and green narcissus with a tiny hint of watery melon. It smells fresh as an icy cologne slapped on after a shower. People new to perfume might be a little put off by Dior-Dior’s force, but sit tight, because within minutes the fragrance settles closer to the skin and softens. Its frisson of crisp spring flowers sweetens just a little to become Audrey Hepburn elegant and clean.
Complementing all this ladies-who-lunch freshness is a naughty hint of civet. If you fear Dior-Dior might be too much like Hermès Eau d’Hermès (another Roudnitska creation and a total skankfest), don’t worry. I’d rate Dior-Dior a two on the skank scale, compared to Eau d’Hermès’s nine.
Finally, what smells to me like oakmoss, dry wood, and a hint of musk cushion Dior-Dior and round it out. Dior-Dior is refreshing and angular, full of lively springtime, but I wouldn’t call it sheer or one-dimensional. It smells like a real perfume — a fascinating mix of textures and sensations. The tingle of jasmine and narcissus, the almost tannic green notes, the fuzzy, earthiness of wood-softened moss, and the shock of civet keep my nose glued to my arm.
Dior-Dior could have been the fragrance of Belle de Jour’s heroine. She’s meticulous and proper with a glossy chignon and unimpeachable manners, but her afternoons are a different story altogether.
Now that my sample vial of Dior-Dior is empty, I’ll tuck it among my lingerie and hope its ghost appears when I shake out a slip or put on a nightgown. That’s o.k. It’s a far sight better than not having had worn it at all.
Christian Dior Dior-Dior is discontinued.
I hope the unexpected (and fatal) accidents befell your vintage perfume samples, and your not friends or family?!? Please say that all is well with you.
I do find it ridiculously difficult to use my vintage/discontinued samples and decants to the last drop, so I’m proud of you and shall try to follow your lead.
I’m fine, thank goodness! Thank you for asking. My favorite post man died of an unexpected heart attack–he was only about 50–and a coworker’s partner hit a pothole when he was bicycling and broke his collar bone in five places. It just makes you realize how fragile life is.
It does! Sorry to hear of what has happened to your friends. I don’t know if you know through Robin, but my two members of my family have been in hospital with health challenges for most of the last two months, which is why I haven’t been posting. Most thankfully, everything is on the mend now with both parties, though. Perfume is a great comfort — but sometimes you don’t have time for it! Tonight I swear I’ll find time for a drop of Moment Supreme…
I’m so sorry to hear about that! That’s awful. Moment Supreme is the ultimate in calming, beautiful fragrances, though. Incidentally, it’s part of my stash, too. I will wear some today.
Isn’t it wonderful to feel connected to your postman? We had a delightful, older gentleman for most of my time in this apartment. I was so sorry to learn that they’d changed his route. He was such a part of the community! I’m sorry for your loss!
A good postman is a real asset. One postman I had helped me once round up an aggressive pot bellied pig that had escaped from the neighbor’s yard (gosh I wish that scene had been videotaped). My current postman stars in my dog’s dreams, where he circles the block 24/7, giving my dog treats. The postman I lost was my favorite counter guy at the post office I visit. He was always, kind, endearingly quirky, and practical.
Great article and wise words. Things do not last as they are and neither do we. As with the commenter above, Erin, I hope the accidents befell your perfume collection and not your friends and family.
Best wishes.
Thanks for the good wishes! I’ll pass them along mentally to the people directly affected by the twists of life. I was only a bystander (and now a fragrant one!).
Hi Angela 😀
Love this article! I have a mini Dorissimo bottle, a ’80s edition. It’s empty now. I bought it when I was about 18 years old and I enjoyed wearing its juice a lot! Now it’s a sort of angel who cares my memories!
Regards
Diorissimo sure is beautiful! I’ve never thought of a perfume bottle as an angel, but if one ever was, the bottle surely held Diorissimo.
Hi Angela again
I wanted to say “an” ’80s edition…:D
Yes I think this bottle is very special to me (the box is made of a sort of paper that seems to be velvet). I’m really sorry to read about your favorite postman and his co-worker!
Mmm, a velvety box sounds so nice!
I agree 100% – we should use our perfumes rather than hoard them. What if the time comes when we’re ready to use them and they’ve turned or evaporated? Perfumes are meant to be enjoyed, not to last forever. Thanks for the reminder.
Oh, I’ve had that happen and it’s so, so sad. It’s like saving a special bottle of wine, only to open it and find it’s past its prime.
Oh, my. That sounds heartbreakingly beautiful. I completely agree with the “can’t take it with you” mentality. I need to force myself to be ruthless, though. **Looking at you, vintage Vent Vert parfum!**
Yes! I’d guess that, in general, Vent Vert doesn’t age very well, either. So put some on and give yourself–and everyone within nose-shot–the pleasure of Vent Vert.
Thank you for your wise words, Angela! I think your example of precious drops of vintage perfumes hits at the core of mortality. It can be hard for me to accept the transitory nature of perfume, and of life, so I tend to hold on and hoard. I am reminded to saturate my experience as deeply as possible!
I’m especially jarred about mortality when I go to an estate sale and see beautiful things–perfume, silk lingerie–that should have been used up, but were kept for “a special day.” Every day is special, I guess. I forget that all the time.
Beautiful review, Angela. You have made me want to reach out for my neglected fragrances in my wardrobe!
No, we do not live forever, but a memory can be immortalised in scent. There are fragrances that remind me of specific people and places and I enjoy wearing them to remind myself of loved ones past and fond memories. That is one of the things I love about fragrance – its power to evoke memories.
Now, where’s my vintage Joy?
It’s so true about perfume’s ability to bring back a person or a time or a place. I hope Joy brings back lots of good thoughts and feeling for you!
Angela, you make such sense. Tomorrow I shall wear vintage Dioressence parfum, from the tiny dribble in the bottom of a bottle I managed to find online.
Carpe diem.
x
And I’ll wear mine! I’ll think of you, out there, smelling as divine as I will.
Somehow this post makes me sad, but I believe it is because I tend to feel very nostalgic and sad about the idea of things “ending”.
Lovely review, as always!
Oh yes, endings are sad for sure. But beginnings that never happen might be even sadder.
Sorry about your friends. I used to be a hoarder of my favorites but recently I decided that I bought them with the intention of wearing them and by golly, that’s what I am going to do. I used to have my “special occasion” scents but really how often in my boring life does a special occasion come along? So now I wear them whenever I want for whatever reason I want. I’m using up a lot of my samples instead of hanging onto a few drops. I have notes on them to refresh my memory if needed and for the most part I can always get another sample if I want. If I can’t then like you said in a different way, it’s better to have loved and lost then to never have loved at all.
I always love your reviews, Angela.
Between you and me and some of the other commenters, we are definitely making the world a sweeter smelling place! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the hoardables. Thanks to Erin’s comment above, I’m wearing the heart-stoppingly beautiful Moment Supreme and loving it.
Poodle, I have my “special occasion” clothes, shoes, scents, what-have-you! These last few years, I’ve started to relax and let myself create the occasions, and I don’t regret it! Sometimes you just have to feel fancy, even if there’s nowhere to go but the corner yogurt shop!
I’m consistently overdressed, but that’s just the way it is.
Well, as I think we’ve discussed before, there’s an earlier aesthetic that appeals to both of us! Sometimes, I think it’s folks “these days,” who are perpetually underdressed!
Yes!
Thanks for the lovely review, Angela and also thanks to you and everyone else for those very important reminders that it’s no use hogging. I do know this – in theory – but often after being “good”, slip back into thinking I can’t wear something, because the occasion is not special enough – or sometimes feeling I’m not special enough! Bad thoughts I know, but this encouragement today gives me good resolve and reason to reach for something very special tomorrow. Maybe I’ll start off my (not yet opened) Prada Candy.
Yes! Crack out that Candy and spray it all over. None of those stingy half-sprays. You are worth it, and it’s a special day. We all need those reminders, I think.
My thought has always been that those Special Occasions are enough unto themselves….I like making every day special by wearing the good stuff and using the good china, crystal, etc.
Life is for living, dear ones…..tomorrow is not a promise. All you can count on is what is happening now, and ya may as well smell good every second.
Exactly! I feel like your comment should be embroidered on a throw pillow in everyone’s houses.
Oh, I want a cross-stitch sampler that says “Smell good every moment!”
That’s a good one!
Dance in the streets; wear your precious perfume; don’t put your dreams or happiness off until “someday”. A cancer diagnosis at age 40 (fortunately stage 1, curable by surgery) made me realize that life is short and to grab your happiness when you can.
It feels sort of cliche, but having a health scare really can make you consider things, can’t it? I developed a very scary autoimmune condition in my 20’s, and I know that it has influenced how I live my life, even a decade later! I still plan for the future, but I also really try to enjoy the beauty of the moment, too. I’ve given myself permission to slow down and smell the roses (or the Lipstick Rose, as the case may be!).
Hey, that’s another good cross-stiched sampler, “Slow down and smell the Lipstick Rose.” I hope your health is robust now.
Yes, thank you! I’ve been off meds for 6 strong years now–in fact, my health has been so good, the doctors are becoming a bit at a loss for how to treat me! Statistically, I’m overdue for a relapse, but there’s a small percentage of people who never do. The longer I go, the better my chances I’m in that minority. I choose to live in the reality that I’m a healthy person, and it seems to be serving me well!
*taking time to stop and smell the Lipstick Rose* 😀 (Or, Nostalgie, today!)
I bet you’re in the minority in many excellent ways, so why not in this way, too? Here’s to a seventh, then eighth, than many more healthy years.
Thank you, Angela!
You know, I think it’s all sort of related! Why worry about how others will respond to my blue hair or whatever? Life’s too short to not express yourself as authentically as you dare to!
I’m glad you’re both doing okay. Health scares are awful but it’s encouraging when people find something positive in them, like learning how to enjoy life. I admire that strength in people.
I agree 100%.
Everybody can live their life as a gift (health scares not required) or they can live as a victim (poor me, the world is a scary place, things happen, I have to do___, I have no choice). Everybody has the choice to reach for the good at any time
Words to live by.
Oh my gosh–what a horrific wake up call. I’m glad you’re doing well, and I take your message to heart.
Agree, and I am taking your message to heart too. Goddessrena and Marjorie Rose – thanks for sharing and for your wisdom
Angela, I dunno if u have seen this, but I had to post it to u 🙂
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Micro-Mini-Pebble-CHRISTIAN-DIOR-Perfume-Dior-Dior-Paris-/350530019685?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item519d37a165#ht_500wt_961
You’re killing me! If it were in my budget, I’d send off for it right away. Of course, I’m always scared by these sales, too, since you never really know if the fragrance is still in good shape.
Sorry, I just got excited 🙂
Do u think its real?
How can u know if the fragrance is in a good shape, when it’s a vintage? If it’s sealed? I have been tempted a lot to buy some vintage fragrances, but never did, scared that the scent might be bad. But that is the trick of it, I guess 🙂
It could very well be real–it looks legitimate to me, but you never can be sure. Both light and heat can damage fragrance, so even if it’s sealed it could have turned. It’s hard to say. Lots of people find wonderful fragrances in these auctions, though.
Perfect. We were given a set of china for our wedding with gold decoration on it, but with the caveat that it had to be used as “everyday” china. We have, and have enjoyed it immensely, even for takeout pizza! A couple pieces have broken, and some of the gold is already rubbing off, but I am so glad of that advice/rule. Carpe perfume!
What a terrific gift, made even more terrific by the rule that accompanied it! As a kid, I always wanted to be living the lush, full life, eating–as you do–from the “good” plates. Well, now I’m an adult and it’s time to remember all that.
Oh, I wish my mother felt that way! She has all this lovely china, and it never gets used. Maybe holidays. And she’s so protective of it! Hard to believe it’s terribly rewarding knowing it looks lovely hiding away in a cupboard!
Do you think you could convince her to use it? Or would that just stress her out too much?
What happens, is she brings it out. Realizes she never uses it (which she regrets). Feels obligated to clean and organize everything ELSE in the china cabinet (which is a chore). Gives us all a little lesson in family history (which we dutifully half listen to). And then we use it once on our best behavior before it gets stored away for another few years. Rinse and repeat!
What makes me sad, is it really does have the most meaning to her, and she doesn’t use it enough to really get to enjoy it. Maybe I’m wrong? Maybe she gets satisfaction knowing it’s safe, but it seems hard to believe!
Maybe she could take it in baby steps–you know, leave a plate or a tea cup out of the cabinet for daily use and see how that feels. It sounds like she truly loves the china, but loves it more for what it represents than for its beauty?
A favourite book title: “Use the Good Dishes”…
I’d read that one!
Beautiful article, Angela, as always. And so, so true. It’s easy to get caught up in the ‘save it for best’ mentality but I try hard not to get caught up in it. After all, if the worst did happen, I would rather my friends and family have memories of me wearing my ‘fume collection rather than just having to deal with the collection afterwards. Same with jewelry and dishes-memories of their use rather than recollections of their existence in a cupboard somewhere. As others have said Carpe Diem
It’s so true–you set a great example for your kids by being someone who appreciates the little things and values herself enough to wear the best perfume now.
You said it, Angela.
Lovely, lovely review!
After the recent round of reviews of Dioressnece I did buy a small decant of the pre-reformulation Dioressence and as the price is not crazy, I will upsize it soon. It is divine. I do also have plenty of vintage Miss Dior. So must not complain.
That ad for Dior-Dior is SO carnal! I’m amazed. I wonder if Rene Gruau was still designing ads for Dior in 1976. Must check.
The Dior-Dior ad reminds me of the Elie Saab ad, only–as you note–more carnal, and also more joyful.
I’m a huge fan of Gruau–at least of the Dior ads. Wouldn’t it be fabulous to have one of his drawings?
I could settle for a mere reprint!
I’d never seen this Dior-Dior drawing before, and it’s fabulous. Gruau’s Diorissimo image is a beauty too, though much more demure. And what’s the one with the gloves and tulle draped on a chair?
I love the Dioressence image, too! I went online and see that there are Gruau books out there. I need to track one down and put it on my coffee table where I can indulge in all those gorgeous sensuality and joy when life feels drab.
Shoot, after looking at the prices, it might not be something that happens right away. Still, what beautiful images!
OMG. I just checked Amazon – those Gruau books are at a premium!
The Gruau books were beyond my budget, so I treated myself to “100 Years of Fashion Illustration”, by Cally Blackman. Definitely worthwhile!
I’ve seen that book, and it looks wonderful. You’ll have some lovely afternoons ahead of you. For my birthday, I cashed in a gift card and bought the Balenciaga book that the new Balenciaga museum in Spain just released. It’s exquisite! I love a good picture book.
In my dreams. The furthest I could get would be one of the single magazine ads you can often buy on eBay. But even then I always wonder if I should be saving my money to spend on perfume, not advertising.
I saved the image as my desktop image. I could swap them out from time to time. Free.
Thanks for the wonderful reminder, Angela. I tend to hoard my lovely things when I slip into a deprivation mindset. I start to unconsciously let myself believe that I’ll never afford, find, or make time for a similar extravagance, so I deny myself the one sitting right in front of me, rationing my experiences out in bits and pieces. It’s good to remember that life has continued to bring beautiful things across my path, and will do so again. As Auntie Mame said, “Life’s a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death.” We’ve got to learn to enjoy the damn banquet!
You bring up such a good point when you mention the “deprivation” mindset. Still, I think it’s lucky to enjoy something squirreled away that you’re afraid you won’t have again. Somehow, in enjoying it (and maybe this is pure superstition!) I think more of it will come into your life.
Even if that is a superstition, I think it’s a good one 🙂
I hope it’s true, too!
On my parents 25th anniversary my father gave my mother a bottle of Indiscret. She had worn it when they dated, and it had been her favorite. She was not one to indulge herself, so this was the first time I had smelled it. I loved it because she loved it! They were going out for dinner and dancing and they practiced in our living room so I could be in on the fun. I recall the rustle of her moire skirt and the scent of Indiscet. I encouraged her to wear it often, but she told me it was only for special occasions. That evening was 46 years ago. Next month she will be gone five years. This post made me look for the bottle. It is still two-thirds full. More lost to evaporation than special occasions.
Oh my gosh, I can see, hear, and smell the scene, and it hits me right in the heart! I hope you’ll wear that Indiscret for your mother. Every sniff you take, she’ll be enjoying it, too.
Thank you, Angela, for the trigger.
Enjoy it!
Poignant story, beautifully told. I too have the scene fixed in my mind . ‘More lost to evaporation than special occasions’. Sigh.
It’s not on the fatal scale, but it’s on the not using the beauties I have scale: For many months last year I could smell a wonderful aroma wafting up from my fragrance drawer, which only meant something was evaporating. I have so many bottles and decants that it seemed an impossible task to determine what it was. Well, it turned out to be my very expensivo 5 ml decant of Grossmith Shem- el -Nessim that I only wore ONE TIME when it first arrived. It was so gorgeous and I was just holding on to it and I never got to enjoy. Now I know better. I should just wear the gorgeous fragrances I have rather than keeping them holed up in my drawer – esp. the decants that I try so hard to get. So often my decants are for very precious fragrances, and it is frustrating that one like SeN would just disappear before I hardly even used it! Now I can smell another evaporator, and I need to get cracking.
Oh no! Sometimes those atomizers do let fragrance evaporate–or sour. I hope you were at least able to salvage some of it. Today, I used up the rest of a tiny vial of vintage No. 19 parfum. I sure smell great, but I doubt I’ll ever smell exactly this way again…
Nothing – nada. It was completely dry. It was very upsetting. Why couldn’t it have been a decant I didn’t really care about? That’s how it goes. Oh – No. 19!! I have some vintage parfum. I was just thinking about that one today. Such a beauty. Enjoy your smell while it lasts!
Heartbreaking!
Lovely review and wonderful sentiment. I think maybe I’ll break open one of my little glass sample vials tonight to try something long gone.
Do it! It’s a beautiful summer night, and it deserves to be celebrated with a wonderful perfume.
I feel most comfortable when I’m overdressed. I always wear a fragrance even if the neighbour’s kids don’t want their dog to smell like perfume after I’ve hugged it. I wear an unobtrusive scent to the dentist. If I have to listen to his music then he has to smell my light fragrance. Fair is fair!
The book title about using the good china is so true so I always put out the good stuff and silverware when a friend comes for tea. What/who am I saving it for? Nothing/no one. Every day is an occasion and perfume is the icing on it.
You and I share overdressing in common! I don’t even own a pair of pants. I’ve had well-meaning friends warn me that a dinner party is “casual” and that they’ll be wearing jeans, because, of course, they know I’ll show up in a full 1950s skirt and red lips if I get the chance.
I love it that you hug dogs, too. I’m an animal lover through and through.