What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when I say ‘roses’?
Pretty? Delicate? Petals? These would be my guesses too. That’s why I was blown away when I learnt that the secret weapon in Dior’s latest skincare range, Prestige White Collection, is none other than these pretty.delicate.petals. But not just any good old garden variety. We’re talking about a special species from Granville, France: Christian Dior’s childhood home.
Roses have always had a fond place in the couturier’s heart. The young Dior grew up helping his mother Madeleine tend their rose garden in Granville in France’s north-west. It has been said that his New Look collection, comprising of Dior’s signature full circle skirts, was inspired by the rose.
Roses are unmistakably captivating. My favourite perfumes tend to have Rose notes. Their scent and beauty have enchanted artists, poets and designers alike, their therapeutic properties have been studied since antiquity. Roses have the power to cleanse, heal and sooth. The clever scientists at Dior know this.
15 years ago, they set out to create a superior rose that they could incorporate into Dior’s skincare line. Well well. Guess where they found a particular hardy species whose petals are immaculately white, that bloomed and thrived despite harsh weather conditions? Along the coast in Granville! Talk about coming full circle! It took years of cultivation and grafting to birth the Dior rose, and many more rounds of analysis to lead to the discovery of an anti-inflammatory extract in the rose’s bud, which form the key ingredient in Dior’s Prestige Collection: the White Rose Elixir.
The Dior Prestige White Collection, as its name suggests, is rather special. It is a potent skincare line specifically formulated for delicate Asian skin. As you probably know, Asians love clear, white, radiant skin. We have issues with pigmentation. If I went tanning in China, they’d think I had issues. Forget diamonds, white skin is an Asian girl’s best friend! But living in Australia, even with daily SPF application, pigmentation is almost unavoidable.
The problem with even the best anti-pigmentation creams and most radical laser techniques is that they are only temporary measures, and they only work on the superficial layer of skin, the epidermis. Our skin cells have memory, so sooner or later, the spots reactivate and reappear. And in fact, the real culprits of pigmentation lie deeper within the dermal layer of skin.
During times of inflammation (think UV damage, sleep deprivation, pollution, too much sugar…), cells in the dermis (called fibroblasts) send messages to cells in the epidermis (the melanocytes) to trigger melanin production. That’s how we get pigmentation and dark spots. Unfortunately most creams are not able to penetrate deep enough to get to where the messages are being made, but the scientists at Dior have discovered a way to get to the root of the melanin problem…
They have devised a strategy to get the key ingredients into the dermal layers to neutralise the pigmentation messages. Dior Prestige White Collection cream combine the age-defying power of Rose de Granville and a brightening technology to illuminate skin and prevent dark spots. The creams contain water-soluble structures called ‘White Rose Pearls’ which act as carriers for the active ingredient, White Rose Elixir. Thanks to their unique formulation, they are able to penetrate into the dermis. On application, the cream forms a very fine coat that melts instantly into the skin. Oh, and it smells divine!
Here’s my little analogy to make things simple. When the going gets tough, the guys downstairs sends messages to the guys upstairs, asking them to write ‘SOS’ all over their ceiling. In black permanent marker. Graffiti style.
The key ingredients in Dior Prestige White Collection are like a ninjas. Ninjas dressed in white. They are smart, sleek and selective. Oh, they also smell like roses and get the job done. Instead of targeting the upstairs guys (who are just doing what they’re told to do! They’re innocent, really!), they infiltrates downstairs and annihilates the graffiti message before its gets sent upstairs! Nifty ninjas!
Dior Prestige White Collection is a simple, 2-step program. Le Nectar Blanc (The Nectar) is a highly concentrated silky serum of White Rose Pearls that deeply penetrates the skin to regenerate and clarify, whilst La Créme Èclaircissant (The Creme), applied by using a tiny golden spatula, is a lightweight but super rich cream with melt-away texture to smooth and illuminate the skin. Genies in bottles, in short.
Something else really impressed me about the Dior Prestige White Collection is that the Creme is available in refill format. Dior has such a sustainable approach to beauty- active ingredients are sourced naturally and products are made locally. Even the creams are all hand-poured in France. Who knows? These stunning jars just might become collectibles in the future!
Roses may have pretty, delicate petals, but as demonstrated on the coast of Granville, they also have the power, purity and potency to change the face of an entire race.
Dior Prestige White Collection is now available from the Dior counter at Myer Melbourne.
Wear: Vintage Everything // Habbot Heels
