“Remarkable” —Hamish Bowles, Vogue The overdue restoration of Catherine Dior's extraordinary life, from her brother's muse to Holocaust survivor When the French designer Christian Dior presented his first collection in Paris in 1947, he changed fashion forever. Dior’s “New Look” created a striking, romantic vision of femininity, luxury, and grace, making him—and his last name—famous overnight. One woman informed Dior’s vision more than any other: his sister, Catherine, a Resistance fighter, concentration camp survivor, and cultivator of rose gardens who inspired Dior’s most beloved fragrance, Miss Dior. Yet the story of Catherine’s remarkable life—so different from her famous brother’s—has never been told, until now. Drawing on the Dior archives and extensive research, Justine Picardie’s Miss Dior is the long-overdue restoration of Catherine Dior’s life. The siblings’ stories are profoundly intertwined: in Occupied France, as Christian honed his couture skills, Catherine dedicated herself to the Resistance, ultimately being captured by the Gestapo and sent to Ravensbruck, the only Nazi camp solely for women. Seeking to trace Catherine’s story as well as her influence on her brother, Picardie traveled to the significant places of Catherine’s life, including Les Rhumbs, the Dior family villa with its magnificent gardens; the House of Dior in Paris; and La Colle Noire, Christian’s chateâu that he bequeathed to his sister. Inventive and captivating, and shaped by Picardie’s own journey, Miss Dior examines the legacy of Christian Dior, the secrets of postwar France, and the unbreakable bond between two remarkable siblings. Most important, it shines overdue recognition on a previously overlooked life, one that epitomized courage and also embodied the astonishing capacity of the human spirit to remain undimmed, even in the darkest circumstances. Includes Black-and-White Illustrations

“Remarkable.” —Hamish Bowles, Vogue The overdue restoration of Catherine Dior’s extraordinary life, from her brother’s muse to Holocaust survivor Miss Dior is a story of freedom and fascism, beauty and betrayal, roses and repression, and of how the polished surface of fashion conceals hidden depths. It paints a portrait of the enigmatic woman behind the designer Christian Dior: his beloved younger sister Catherine, who inspired his most famous perfume and shaped his vision of femininity. Justine Picardie’s journey takes her to Occupied Paris, where Christian honed his couture skills while Catherine dedicated herself to the French Resistance, until she was captured by the Gestapo and deported to the German concentration camp of Ravensbrück. With unparalleled access to the Dior family homes and archives, Picardie shines a new light on Catherine’s courageous life and Christian Dior’s legendary work, and reveals how his enchanting “New Look” emerged out of the shadows of his sister’s suffering. Tracing the wartime paths of the Dior siblings leads Picardie deep into other hidden histories, and different forms of resistance and sisterhood. She explores what it means to believe in beauty and hope, despite our knowledge of darkness and despair, and discovers the timeless solace of the natural world in the aftermath of devastation and destruction. The result is an exquisite and unforgettably moving book.

Miss Dior is a wartime story of freedom and fascism, beauty and betrayal and 'a gripping story' (Antonia Fraser). 'Exceptional . . . Miss Dior is so much more than a biography. It's about how necessity can drive people to either terrible deeds or acts of great courage, and how beauty can grow from the worst kinds of horror.'DAILY TELEGRAPHMiss Dior explores the relationship between the visionary designer Christian Dior and his beloved younger sister Catherine, who inspired his most famous perfume and shaped his vision of femininity. Justine Picardie's journey takes her to wartime Paris, where Christian honed his couture skills while Catherine dedicated herself to the French Resistance and the battle against the Nazis, until she was captured by the Gestapo and deported to the German concentration camp of Ravensbrück.Tracing the wartime paths of the Dior siblings leads Picardie deep into other hidden histories, and different forms of resistance and sisterhood. She discovers what it means to believe in beauty and hope, despite our knowledge of darkness and despair, and reveals the timeless solace of the natural world in the aftermath of devastation and destruction. 'Extraordinary . . . Picardie uses her investigative reporting skills . . . the result is Netflix-worthy and the pace page-turning . . . Catherine's story shines - the quiet Dior who preferred flowers to fashion, the unsung heroine who survived the abuse of the Third Reich to help liberate France.'SUNDAY TIMES

"This volume showcases the perfumes of Christian Dior against the backdrop of his life--the Belle Epoque of his youth, the "Roaring Twenties" of his young adulthood and the postwar period of his success as a fashion designer and perfumer. From 1946, before his first collection had even been debuted, Dior was interested in perfume, launching the iconic Miss Dior fragrance (along with the perfumer Paul Vacher) in 1947, and later gaining great success with fragrances such as Diorissimo, Eau Sauvage, Poison and J'Adore." -- From Amazon.

Christian Dior, the legendary French fashion designer, caused a worldwide sensation in 1947, in a Paris still groping to recover from the devastations of wartime occupation. Reintroducing the flowing, ankle-length skirt, Dior gave women back their long-lost sense of freedom, femininity, and joie de vivre. Dior's collection, with its pinched waist and generous folds of fabric, was dubbed the 'New Look' by the press, and Dior himself was crowned 'The King of Fashion'. Dior immediately re-established Paris as the centre of the fashion world and for the next thirty years the House of Dior, with its subdued and refined pearl-grey velvet-covered walls, played host to the aristocracy and international stars of stage and film. The Duchess of Windsor, Olivia de Havilland, Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, and Ingrid Bergman were amongst those who graced its corridors. Dior's daily inspiration emanated from the world of the intellectual and artistic elite, in which he moved with such people as Erik Satie, Francis Poulenc, Henry Suguet, Jean Cocteau, and Raoul Dufy. With elegance, precision, and impeccable research, Marie-France Pochna recreates this one-of-a-kind world of glamour and luxury and situates Dior's fairy-tale career in the rich tapestry of Paris cultural life.

An exquisite exploration of the relationship between Christian Dior and perfumes, celebrating sixty-five years of inspiration, innovation, and style.

The House of Dior’s official biography reveals the secretive and surprising man who revolutionized fashion, with new insight on his spirituality and relationships and a contemporary perspective on his legacy. In 1947, when Christian Dior’s model spun her wasp-waisted skirt and tipped a hat over one eye, the iconic designer became an instant celebrity. His groundbreaking New Look was quintessentially Parisian—the perfect combi­nation of fanciful and elegant that glorified the female form and seduced his international clientele. Yet it was by mere chance that Dior—hapless in the face of personal and professional tragedy—met a friendly priest who helped him to rebuild his faith and to find the strength to chart his glorious destiny. He went on to upend the downtrodden postwar era with his joie de vivre and his pursuit of a single goal: to make women “not only more beautiful, but happier” through the proportions of his marvelous designs and a color palette that reflected the Parisian sky. Today, the legacy of this witty yet staunchly private man shines on as his intuitive creativity continues to inspire the House of Dior’s designers to reinvent the woman of tomorrow.

Celebrating Dior's floral inspirations in fashion and perfume, this unique volume features a portfolio of rose portraits by acclaimed fashion photographer Nick Knight. For Christian Dior, perfume was "a door opening into a hidden world." His first, Miss Dior, inspired by the lush gardens of his childhood home in Normandy, forged an inextricable link between his fashion and fragrance creations. Other scents were inspired by evenings in southern France, lit with fireflies and scented with jasmine. The rose bowers of his family home in Granville; his old mill country house; and the Château de la Colle Noire near Grasse--where jasmine, tuberose, and May roses reign supreme and are still cultivated--inspired Dior's most memorable creations. Flowers were also at the heart of Dior's fashion, from the women-flowers that inspired the late 1940s New Look to the swishing, blossom-like ball gowns embroidered with lavish floral motifs. They have inspired all of the designers who followed him at the House of Dior, from Yves Saint Laurent to John Galliano, and Raf Simons to Maria Grazia Chiuri. This extraordinary volume blooms with color and inspiration, and includes rose portraits by Nick Knight, previously unpublished archival documents, exquisite details of embroidery and fabrics, perfumes, fashion sketches, and sublime fashion photographs.

In February of 1947, the crème de la crème of Paris haute couture have flocked to see Christian Dior's debut fashion show. In a flurry of corolla shaped skirts, the parade of models file down the runway and the mesmerized audience declares the show a triumph. When Clara—a freshly hired chronicler and guide to the busy corridors of the brand-new fashion house—is hand-picked by Dior to be a model, she knows her life will never be the same. A biography docudrama that marries fiction with the story of one of the greatest couturiers in history, this work is a breathless and stunning presentation of Christian Dior's greatest designs, beautifully rendered by bestselling artist Annie Goetzinger.

An exquisite look into the legacy of the rose at the House of Dior, from Christian Dior’s early passion for gardening to contemporary floral-inspired designs. Christian Dior discovered gardening at his childhood home in Granville, France. Roses profoundly influenced the designer, especially with his famous New Look aesthetic, where they were placed beneath the iconic corolla symbol. Published on the occasion of the exhibition at the Musée Christian Dior in Granville, this volume explores the rose’s importance in Dior’s history. The inspiration for Christian Dior’s flowery vision of femininity runs deep throughout the House’s collections; reinventions by subsequent artistic directors pay homage to Dior’s wish to design dresses for “flower-like women.” A focus on a new variety of rose, the Rose de Granville, underscores the perennial significance of the rose today—from inspiring Haute Couture creations to perfume making. This fascinating immersion in Dior’s universe continues with texts by experts Éric Pujalet-Plàa, Vincent Leret, and Brigitte Richart, accompanied by sublime photographs, including shots by the most acclaimed twentieth-century masters as well as contemporary photography.