From Surfboards to Scooters all the way to Men’s ski capsules, the French fashion house Dior isn’t afraid to branch out of the fashion world. The label’s latest luxury item has defiantly come as a surprise to most, but not to all. Creative director Kim Jones has personally designed the Dior gardening kit, which is said to be a tribute to founder Christian Dior’s widely known love of gardens and flowers. In his memoirs he states “Close to the earth, I always feel more secure.”
Technically this isn’t Dior’s first gardening kit, The first Dior kit was designed by Cordelia de Castellane. The set was called Lucky Milly and it was designed to elevate the gardening experience. However, The newest gardening kit is Dior’s most expensive, priced at £7,100 GBP (approx. AUD$12,530 or USD$8,700), drawing the ire of fans across the globe.
Fashion and youth culture website, HYPEBEAST shared a sneak peek at the Dior gardening kit last week, leading to swathe of comments either mocking the exorbitant price tag or wondering why the set was created. One person even stating “How tf does a gardening kit cost more than my car.”
The set includes a foldable stool, an elegant spade and a rake. The stool’s foldable frame is draped with bull calfskin leather, which is available either in beige or black. The curves of the calfskin leather, which doubles up as the seat, also pay homage to the iconic Dior Saddle bag. There is a magnetic flap patch pocket on one side of the leather which is designed to store small gardening essentials. The frame features Dior branding on the legs and silver D-ring hardware.
The Dior gardening set, which has been made in Italy, is complete with an elegant stainless steel spade and rake. Both the rake and spade appear just like any other available in the market because of practical purposes, as they are meant to level the soil and dig and plant. The handles of the tools are covered in the bull calfskin of the same colour that forms the seat. Each tool has ‘DIOR’ engraved at the ends of the handle, which brings exclusivity to the tools.
Unfortunately for some of us, the designer gardening kit is exclusive to a few countries in Europe, so the rest of us have to wait. According to the Dior U.K. website customers can only purchase the kit in-store, and customers must complete an online form to book an appointment with a boutique.