May 1st: A Lily of the Valley Tradition

The charming custom of offering lily of the valley on May 1st in France dates further back than one might think: it was Charles IX who first offered these tiny bell-shaped and deliciously fragrant flowers to his mother, Catherine de Medici, as a good luck charm. The custom stuck ever since.
Happy May 1st!

For those of you so inclined, you can read about Lily of the Valley (or Muguet in French) in detail, its history, role in perfumery as a raw material, ways to render a synthetic LOTV note as well as a list of fragrances celebrating this green floral note consulting my older article: Lily of the Valley as Perfumery Material and Fragrances with this Note on this link.

 photo via hannasform.blogspot.com