From pavement to perfume: the untold story behind Dior’s Rose Star fragrance
We can’t avoid our destiny, but can you imagine literally stumbling upon it? That’s what happened on April 18, 1946, when Christian Dior went for his usual walk in Paris—he quite literally tripped over a metal star lying on the pavement. Rather than brushing it off, Dior took it as divine intervention—a sign from the stars that opening his own couture house was not madness but fate.
Nearly eight decades later, that same symbol acted as a guiding star for Dior perfume creations director, Francis Kurkdjian as he crafted the newest jewel in Dior’s La Collection Privée range of fragrances: the Rose Star.
La Collection Privée Rose Star (Photo: Courtesy of Dior)
Kurkdjian captures rose's essence and star's symbolism in fragrance (Photo: Courtesy of Dior)
La Collection Privée range exists in a distinct olfactory and cultural realm from some of Dior’s more familiar scents such as Miss Dior, J’adore and Sauvage. While those are designed for broad appeal, La Collection Privée presents a couture-inspired narrative, exploring the intimate history and aesthetic codes of the house itself.
This is exemplified in the creation of the latest addition to the collection: Rose Star. It’s the first time that two of Dior’s most treasured symbols—his lucky star and his beloved Centifolia rose—have been united in a single bottle. This union wasn’t arbitrary; both emblems trace back to the founder’s deepest passions and defining moments.
Dior’s love affair with flowers began in childhood at his family home in Granville, where his mother Madeleine cultivated his love of gardens and nature. While he admired other florals, it was the rose he was partial to. He called it “the reigning queen” and went on to cultivate it across his properties, from Normandy to the Château de La Colle Noire in Provence.
Rose Star layers zesty, fruity, spicy, velvet and honeyed notes beautifully (Photo: Courtesy of Dior)
Kurkdjian—who, like Dior, loves flowers and admits to being “incorrigibly superstitious”—wanted to find a way to capture the rose and the symbolism of the star in a bottle. This he did by approaching the new scent in La Collection Privée as a couturier does a new garment. He took the lead for Rose Star’s “fragrance silhouette” from the essence of the two symbols: the five points of a star reflect a rose’s five olfactory facets: zesty, fruity, spicy, velvet and honeyed.
The fragrance unfolds in layers: first the zesty freshness of lemon, followed by the fruity notes of lychee, raspberry and pear. A hint of spice comes next, courtesy of Sichuan pepper, while musky rose petals create an enveloping softness. Lastly comes a honeyed accord that mesmerises with its depth. Through these layered notes, Kurkdjian shows that Rose Star is more than a fragrance, it is essentially Dior’s diary, translated into scent.