40 Days and 40 Nights of Fragrance Notes: Lily Of The Valley

Lily of The Valley
by Patti F

My Grandpa (the Roman one, not the Sicilian) had a green thumb. I swear that he could plant a stone, and a week later he'd have a tree growing. He had a talent, legendary among the old neighborhood old-timers, to be able to graft branches from plum trees. He didn't talk much, but he showed his love in non-verbal ways. On Sundays, after dinner, he'd sit me down in the living room, give me a stick of Juicy-Fruit gum, and read the comics to me. He tended his flower beds with great pride and care, showing me in Springtime where the green leaves of his bulb annuals were popping through the ground next to their house. In the early Summers, he would place tiny, delicate bouquets of lily-of-the-valley in a whiskey shot glass, and set them on the windowsill in Grandma's kitchen. It was his little gesture of love for her, and it touched me deeply, even as a child. I knew what he was saying to her, without uttering a word. It was always her favorite flower.

It is impossible to begin any discussion on lily-of-the-valley without talking about Diorissimo by Christian Dior. Created in 1956 by Edmund Roudnitska, it is the standard by which all other lily-of-the-valley fragrances are judged. Of course, reformulations have happened over the years, and perfume lovers lament the changes and bid for vintage on ebay and swap teeny vials of the precious drops. I'm fortunate to have a bit of the original, in the aluminum bottle from Grasse, a gift from my Mom from one of her trips there. My other bottle, an eau de toilette spray, is lovely, to be sure, but they're not the same. It's about twelve years old. Diorissmo the original is a burst of complete joy. Rich, intense, but at the same time innocent and shy, the vintage Diorissimo laughs in the sunshine with its wearer. Nostalgic without being dated, it seems perfectly at ease right now. My eau de toilette version is much lighter, greener, lemony, and I sense jasmine and rose in the blend. It's still beautiful, but comparing the two is like this: imagine a trip to the Costume Institute at the Met. You're lucky because on that day you're allowed to see a vintage Dior suit. You scour ebay, find the same suit in a Vogue pattern, run to the best fabric store for the perfect textile, and throw all your tailoring skills into making the perfect garment. It's close, but it'll never be the same.

Every year, on May 1st, France celebrates the day in dedication to the lily-of-the-valley flower. It's traditional to give little bouquets to loved ones. Occasionally the great perfume house of Guerlain will offer a limited run of their Muguet fragrance, packaged in a different bottle every time. I found my bottle of Muguet on the Neiman Marcus website in 2003. It's an eau de toilette in an impossibly beautiful swirled, stoppered bottle. This Muguet is lighter than Diorissmo, more soliflore to my nose, and true to the flower. There's an edition this year, in a different bottle from what you see here. I like mine better.

It seems that the Italians love lily-of-the-valley (thinking again of my Grandparents!) because the flower takes center stage in two fragrances with similar names, both from Italy. Capri by Adrienne Vittadini and Caprissimo by Carthusia both feature lily-of-the-valley as their main event. Capri is the breeziest green floral with a hint of beachiness to recall the beautiful coastline of the island. The base is woodsy with a bit of light musk. Caprissimo is much deeper, with lilac and rose, and ending in the richest base of myrrh, musk, lush woods, and ambergris. While Capri is a walk in the Italian sunshine, Caprissimo is a stroll down a cobblestone street after a late evening stop at a local trattoria.

I Profumi di Firenze, another quality Italian perfumery, offers its lily-of-the-valley in the gorgeous Caterina de Medici. Combined with subtle rose and the signature iris of Florence, it is as regal and elegant as its namesake. I'm on my third bottle.

In 1993, Gucci presented its Eau De Gucci, created by master perfumer Michel Almairac (who did so many of my favorites!) -- it came and went much too quickly. This happy lily-of-the-valley fragrance seems so un-Gucci to me, when I think of the leather tradition of that company (we won't even talk about the logo bags.) Sparkling with bergamot and neroli and blended with notes of jasmine, tuberose, lilac and violet, Eau De Gucci dries down to a perfect vetiver-sandalwood base. The progression of notes is so logical, so subtle, with the lily-of-the-valley present from start to finish, it is one of my favorites, and I'm hoarding. It's completely satisfying, joyful, feminine, and should never have been discontinued.

Demi-Jour comes from Houbigant, one of the oldest French perfumeries. Few Houbigants have gained fame over the years, and we mostly think of Quelques Fleurs when we talk about Houbigant. Demi-Jour is a strange scent. It has such huge aldehydes on the top that I'd like to compare it to Chanel #22 as one of the aldehydiest perfumes ever created. If you can get past that, the lily-of-the-valley will reward you. Blended in the mid notes are violet, rose, heliotrope and orris, but they stay back and let the lily-of-the-valley have her starring role. Oakmoss in the base just makes me happy.

One of the most beautiful lily-of-the-valley fragrances I've ever found is Fleur De Fleurs by Nina Ricci. I remember the day I discovered it, shopping with my Mom and her lady friend in the huge Kaufmann's store in downtown Pittsburgh. One spray of the tester, and all three of us were buying. Lemony and green at first, the heart of white florals emerges with the lily-of-the-valley shining through the blend. The base contains sandalwood, civet, and musk. There has never been any fragrance quite like it. I have heard that Ricci recently re-launched Nina, but with reformulation, and I hope that if Fleur De Fleurs ever comes back, it'll be the original formula. My Mom still wears hers, and so do I. Sparingly.

Other fragrances based on the lily-of-the-valley are Santa Maria Novella's Muguetto, which is a true soliflore and as light and fleeting as they come. I wore this one for a short time, but it lasted on my skin a short time, and off it went to a more grateful owner. Laura Ashley used lily-of-the-valley in her beautiful No. 1 and Dilys, the latter being a favorite of both my Mom and my Grandma. Caron's Muguet De Bonheur isn't as happy as the name would indicate. I have a feeling my bottle was part of the massive reformulation going on at Caron. It is sharp and distracting. Annick Goutal has had a Muguet in the past, I'm just mentioning it here but I do not personally know that scent. I'm not much of a Goutal fan.

I would definitely be remiss if I did not mention the great Muguet Des Bois by Coty. It's still around, thank goodness. I am sure it has changed over the years, but it was always on my perfume tray when I was a young girl. Mom, Regina and I all shared a bottle, and we went through plenty of them. You can find it in the drugstores or discounters or perfume kiosks just about anywhere. Get one. It's cheap and it is what it is, which is a pretty, true lily-of-the-valley scent that'll put a smile on your face and won't lighten your wallet. That is, unless you have a desire for a more prestigious Muguet, whereupon you can call the Guerlain Boutique at Bergdorf Goodman and reserve your bottle of the 2011 Muguet, it'll set you back around $500 or so.

Do you love a lily-of-the-valley fragrance? And which ones do you know of that I did not know about or mention here in this review? Tell us all about them!

Reviewer: Patti F
Photos: Patti F
Graphic Credit: Melanie Parker
Disclaimer: The fragrances pictured above and mentioned in this review were all purchased by the reviewer, with the exception of the small gold Muguet bottle, that was a gift from her Mother.