Sunday, May 1, 2011

Language of Flowers

The language of flowers was highly utilized during the Victorian era.  The use of floral gardens by the Royals existed in the Victorian age and it helped to create the list of meanings used to describe these beloved flowers. 

During the Victorian age the language of flowers was as important as being "well dressed."

Image: antique Language of Flowers brochure from the 
St. Louis Exposition (1904)

The scent and message of a bouquet became a silent language to what was not dared to be spoken.  Dictionaries were used to explain the language of flowers and were especially used by lovers.

Recapping the Royal Wedding, I noticed not only did the florist that Kate choose speak of her desire to use the language of flowers so did her baker who made the wedding cake.  

 Image: timesunion.com

So Duchess Katherine's bouquet that she carried became of keen interest to me.  What did her bouquet mean in the language of flowers?
  Her bouquet reportedly had:
Lily of the valley- representing purity
Hyacinth- lovliness
Myrtle- love, emblem of marriage
Sweet William- gallantry (we can all guess why she choose this)
References: victorianbazar.com (for an online dictionary of the language of flowers)
                       treehugger.com
So, for May Day I couldn't think of anything more perfect than a post on the Language of Flowers.  The before and after could be how we can look at flowers in a whole new way.  I think it would be wonderful if the language of flowers caught on and became a new floral trend for today.

I will be linking with these lovely ladies.  Go and visit their blogs:
Seasonal Sundays  at The Tablescaper
Before and After Party  at Thrifty Decor Chick
Mosaic Monday  at The Little Red House
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch
Wow Us Wednesday  at Savvy Southern Style

22 comments:

Lynn said...

A fun post Sherry! Certainly hope no one gets lettuce:@) I thought the Royal wedding was so beautiful, and I love your orange and purple violas!

Carolyn said...

Hi Sherry,
I love the simplicity of the bouquet!

Carolyn

The Pineapple Room said...

Love this post! Thank you for sharing this information...I love flowers but I never knew this! And I LOVED her bouquet when I saw it...now I love it even more now that you shared what the flowers meant! Thanks

Brenda Pruitt said...

Wasn't she just the most lady-like bride? Well, I love all the names for herbs and flowers. It's how I create my memorial gardens.
Brenda

Mary said...

Oh I LOVE this...your sweet flowers in your creamer & your beautiful language of flowers
brochure! What a lovely tie in with a most lovely bride & her bouquet!

podso said...

Interesting post, and fun too! Have a good week, I think we'll be talking about the wedding for awhie, it was all so lovely,

black eyed susans kitchen said...

This is such a lovely post! So interesting to know what each of the flowers meant.

MaroDe said...

I loved your flower explanation, makes so much sense!Lovely post!

Vee said...

Oh how interesting! I enjoyed reading about Kate's bouquet and your mosaic is simply lovely.

Jeri ~ said...

What a lovely post!

Snap said...

Perfect post for May Day! Well done! Happy Monday!

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

Thank you for sharing the language of Kate's bouquet and it would be fun if we went back to the Victorian way of sending messages with flowers.

Pam Kessler said...

Very interesting post. I have always loved Lily of the Valley and was so excited to see it in her bouquet. Can you imagine what is going through her Dad's mind on the car ride? I would be a nervous wreck!

Stacy @ The Next-to-Nothing House said...

Be still my heart....is there anything as lovely as lily-of-the-valley? I adored this post and will never look at a wedding bouquet the same again.

Karen said...

Wonderful blog. I'll be back. I'm your newest follower!
Karen
Ladybug Creek

Mage said...

That was a great help indeed for careless-choosing-flower-maniac like me. I'm impressed by the Duchess bouquet, so wonderfully meaningful. Glad you've put some resources, bookmarked! buy aion account

Karie said...

Love the post. Great photos. Thanks for sharing. Karie

BECKY said...

How delightful, Sherry! I never knew about the Language of Flowers, except that they whisper loveliness, joy and delight to my soul!! Thank you for sharing this!
Have a joyful week!
Becky

Sunny Simple Life said...

I have an old book on the language of flowers. It is so lovely just to look at. I loved her bouquet. Simple and elegant.

The Tablescaper said...

What a wonderful post. How neat to look into the language of flowers of Kate's bouquet.

Thanks so much for being a part of Seasonal Sundays.

- The Tablescaper

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Thanks so much for sharing this. I love knowing the meaning behind the various flowers...so lovely! Her bouquet was really beautiful! I just bought a chandelier and I think it has Lily of the Valley or some type of bell flower on it. :)

Pattie @ Olla-Podrida said...

What a lovely post! I enjoyed it very much. I have one of those cow creamers and never would have thought to fill it with flowers. Yours looks so pretty.