Diorama (1949)
by Christian Dior

Diorama has Roudnistka's signature all over it! To my nose it smells VERY much like his Le Parfum De Therese (Frederic Malle label) and also bears genetic resemblance to Diorella. What sets Diorama apart, at least to my nose, is the noticeable addition of cumin/coumarin. This makes Diorama wearable by both men and women, moreso than the previously mentioned Roudnistka frags. Beautiful.

(This review is for the re-issued EdT and not the vintage Diorama).

This is very Routnitska in every possible way. Unfortunately I only smelled the vintage Diorama briefly, so I can't comment or compare on the differences between the vintage and the current version. I understand why reviewers have described this as 'buttery' because of its richness. Overall, it comes off like Diorella on steroids. Specifically, if you took the melon/peach top notes of Diorella, quadrupled the amount of fruit, and then let the fruit get to the point of just being overripe, you'd have the topnotes of Diorama. Likewise with the floral notes. The strength of fruit and floral notes overpower any woody or herbal notes that may be present (which I assume they are, given the fragrances depth, but they aren't clearly discernible), and the effect of this richness is to give the overall fragrance a 'butter' feel. It's almost too intense at first, but dries into an incredibly well balanced, classic fruity/floral.

By today's standards Diorama is on the slightly feminine side of unisex and could easily be worn by a guy. I liked my sample so much I arranged for a bottle purchase from Paris, and it's one of the highlights of my collection.

Diorama is one of the few fragrances that have left me speechless at first sniff. Another was her cousin, vintage Diorling. In fact, I looked down at my Diorama edt sample again to make sure that I was not smelling the Leather Goddess that is vintage Diorling. Anyways, the white floral notes of tuberose and jasmine came classily strolling out along with a hint of leather. Then emerged just a tiny smidgen of spices (saffron and/or cumin perhaps, but only a minuscule amount) all luxuriously wrapped in full fat, creamy, honest-to-God fresh butter. My words cannot do this fragrance justice. All I can say is that by the end of the 3rd hour, Diorama had dried down into a luxurious buttery floral leather scent that is simply hands-down gorgeous. I would adore to own a bottle of this!

Diorama starts out as a sweet and decidedly indolic white flower fragrance, dominated by jasmine, rose, and tuberose. It has a very satiny, buttery quality about it, a trait that I associate with floral scents of a certain mid-twentieth century vintage. (Patou's Joy is a perfect example.) Because it largely eschews aldehydes, Diorama avoids any "old lady" associations, and leans instead toward the sensuous and seductive side of the white flower spectrum. Compared to something like Fracas or Narcisse Noir, Diorama is a real lightweight!

As it develops, Diorama's white flower accord is joined by some oriental spices and subtle green notes, both of which help the scent remain bouyant, despite the heady tendencies of all those indole-soaked blossoms. Diorama mellows and softens with age, revealing a smooth, powdery base as it dries down.

What I like most about this scent is a certain balance, so classical in nature, which keeps at bay the overbearing lushness that makes some older white flower fragrances challenging to wear in a contemporary setting.

I have no idea what's in this, but I keep thinking "buttery tuberose". I'm not even sure I know what tuberose smells like... But it's a white floral nevertheless. Dries down slightly flat and plasticky I'm afraid... on a cuminy/green base. I can tell it's well done even though it's not my style at all.