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silver-edged frames, topstitched onto children's cotton voile sleeping bags to swaddle a cosseted infant, and printed atop fine silk scarves — not to mention the tone-on-tone caning pattern that threads through his ready-to-wear collections for men and women. It's fascinating to see how Castellane has kept those references relevant. Take the lily of the valley, which evokes stories of Monsieur Dior's wild superstitions. According to vogue.com, every collection he presented included at least one model holding or wearing a bouquet of his favorite flower — his good luck charm — the delicate lily of the valley. (He would carry a stem as well, as the models paraded down the runway.) His most famous perfume, Diorissimo, exudes notes of this bell-shaped blossom. Castellane has dressed dining tables with hand-blown Italian-made glasses, each painted with a sprig of lily of the valley, etched the flower onto thin-lipped wine glasses, and adorned Limoges porcelain with a riot of lush verdant bouquets of it. In 2020, the house's resident designer, M a r i a G r a z i a Chiuri, unveiled the Dioriviera capsule summer collection, which played upon the house's iconic toile de Jouy patterns reinterpreted in a contemporary blue version populated by animals. Chiuri has dressed pillows, placemats, a deck chair, even items as utilitarian as a pencil and notebook with the playful pattern, in keeping with the roots of this storied French brand. Clockwise from top left: Pillow from the Dior Birds collection, large pillow $1,150. Limoges porcelain Toile de Jouy Bleue teacup $230 Set of eight dessert plates handmade in France, set $1,100. Limoges hand-painted Toile du Jouy Bleue teapot $700. Miss Dior Cannnage dessert and dinner plates are eight-sided, Monsieur Dior's lucky number, dessert $110, dinner $130. Portrait of Christian Dior by Bernard Buffet. From the book Dior and His Decorators, Vendome Press. © CHARLES NEGRE © CHARLES NEGRE