A touch of Dior has landed at the Beverly Hills Hotel just in time for summer.
For the second year in a row, the French fashion house has taken over the legendary hotel’s pool area, decorating it in Dior motifs and installing an adjacent Dioriviera pop-up boutique unveiling a capsule collection evoking a Mediterranean beach vacation.
The pool has been transformed with all the loungers, deck chairs, sunshades, cushions and cabana drapery decked out in a bright coral pink fabric called toile de Jouy Soleil, named for the sunny images throughout. The beautifully designed fabric works nicely with the pool’s turquoise water. There is also a toile de Jouy Sauvage design, with lion and nature sketches, which comes in aquamarine and other hues. Other colors in the collection include lemon yellow and candy pink.
Placed around the pool and lounge areas are life-size, seashell-covered animals such as lions, giraffes, monkeys and tigers, adding a jungle feel to the space surrounded by tropical plants.
The Dioriviera pop-up store. Photo by Paul Vu.
A few steps away, a pop-up boutique features the Dioriviera collection, which was first designed in 2018 by creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri. The space is made to look like a beachy apartment with raffia wallpaper, bamboo accents and decor. It’s filled with styles geared for the beach and beyond with ample daywear.
There are swimsuits, belted striped cardigans, dresses, scarf tie blouses, mid-length skirts, handbags, totes, sandals, straw hats, towels, pareos, silk scarves and Dior Book totes. In addition, Dior Maison items are on offer including tableware sets and linens.
More Dior Maison items are on display in the nearby citrus garden separating the hotel from the pool where there are Dior Maison Dioriviera deck chairs, umbrellas, floor pillows and cushions on display.
Inside the citrus garden with Dior Maison Dioriviera outdoor furnishings. Photo by Paul Vu.
To experience Dior’s beauty offerings, you don’t have to go far. This year, for the first time, there is a pop-up Dior Spa located inside the hotel’s large spa. Three treatment rooms are decorated with vibrant coral pink toile de Jouy Soleil accents. Last year, a smaller spa was located in a poolside cabana. This year’s spa expansion allows outside guests to take advantage of the seven signature face and body treatments Dior is offering.
For example, there is a 90-minute treatment called the Californian Glow by Dior, which is dedicated to skin recovery. There is also a 60-minute high-performance antiaging treatment, called the Kobi-Dior, inspired by Kobido techniques developed in Japan.
In addition, there is a selection of Dior’s skin care and fragrance collections for sale, including L’Or de Vie, Dior Prestige and La Collection Privée Christian Dior.
One of three treatment rooms inside the spa at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Photo by Paul Vu.
For the past 20 years, actress Charlize Theron has been the face of Dior’s J’adore perfume campaign. Recently, she was also named Dior’s new ambassador for high jewelry and skin care. The Oscar-winning actress will be the first Dior ambassador for high jewelry and is expected to showcase the most exclusive pieces designed by Victoire de Castellane, artistic director of Dior Joaillerie for the last 25 years.
The Beverly Hills Hotel is one of six Dioriviera pop-ups around the world, including locations in France, China, Turkey and South Korea. They join eight Dior boutiques and 12 resort concept stores.
A special Beverly Hills tote, on the left, done in toile de Jouy Sauvage. Photo by Paul Vu.
Paul Vu
“Following the tremendous success of last year’s collaboration, we are thrilled to once again partner with Dior to create a transporting experience that is as stylish as it is sensory,” noted John Scanlon, the hotel’s general manager. “The timeless appeal of our legendary pool provides the perfect backdrop to celebrate summertime with a splash of sophistication and whimsy, while the spa’s toile de Jouy aesthetic and specialty curated treatments capture the radiance of the restorative summer season.”
The Beverly Hills Hotel is one of the oldest resorts in the Los Angeles area and an iconic luxury location. It was commissioned by Margaret Anderson for a 1912 opening, two years before Beverly Hills became a city. The original hotel was designed by Pasadena, Calif., architect Elmer Grey in a Mediterranean-revival style. At the time, it was more of a dude ranch in the midst of bean fields, with horseback riding as one of the main highlights. Beverly Hills remained a small town for a while; in 1920, the now world-famous city had only 674 residents while neighboring L.A. had 574,000 people.
But the city and its fame have grown since. The hotel affectionately called the “Pink Palace” for its pink exterior, has had several Hollywood moments and brushes with fame. A number of movies were filmed here, including “Let’s Make Love,” with Marilyn Monroe; “Designing Woman,” with Gregory Peck and Lauren Bacall, and “California Suite,” written by Neil Simon. Hotel guests in the 1950s through the 1970s included the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Princess Margaret and John Wayne. John Lennon and Yoko Ono hid out in a hotel bungalow for a week.
It is a well-known Hollywood gathering spot and the hotel’s Polo Lounge is known for its power lunches for movers and shakers in the entertainment industry.
The first Dioriviera pop-up landed at the hotel last year, taking on a sandcastle theme. Instead of seashells, the jungle animals were covered in sand and the sand motif extended to the pop-up store. The principal color theme was gray and pink for the toile de Jouy styles. This year’s pop-up is open through Sept. 2.