When Artificial Flowers Can Make a Home Feel Just as Warm
Opinion Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the author/producer’s interpretation of facts and data.
By Bill Primavera
Is anyone here old enough to remember the song “Artificial Flowers” by Bobby Darin? It was probably the most miserable song ever recorded, about a little orphan girl who survived by making artificial flowers from silk, wire and wax.
As I recall, she freezes to death by the end of the song and then enjoys a garden of real flowers in heaven. Wow, they don’t write ‘em or sing ‘em like that anymore!
Actually, I can’t understand a word of lyrics today. But I do enjoy flowers, whether fresh, dried or artificial.
Most people don’t favor artificial flowers over real flowers, but they turn to them when the real thing is impractical. Examples are winter weddings, permanent floral displays and crafts, to name just a few. The main lobby where I live is an artificial flower display that rises from the rim of a two-foot-high vase to over six feet from that point. Its height is necessary in its home, which rises a full two stories.
Typically made of polyester and plastic materials, the bulk of the world’s supply of artificial flowers are mass produced in China’s Guangdong Province where manufacturers create a constant supply of silk flowers of all shapes, sizes, colors and species. It is fitting that much of the world’s artificial flowers come from China because, according to historians, China is where they originated.
Of course, the first silk flower-making processes were far different than those of today. Three thousand years ago, silkworm rearing was invented as a way to produce its soft silk. Silkworms, the larva of silk moths, do not survive on their own in nature and are dependent on humans for reproduction and survival. It really is a marvel that the ancient Chinese cultivated such a complex system for silk production.
About 1,500 years ago, the Chinese began using silk to craft artificial flowers, too. Such finery was not enjoyed by the masses. Early on, the ladies of the Imperial Palace ordered silk flowers to be worn in their hair. The trend spread to the well-off outside the palace, and when trade routes to Japan and Korea opened, it gained popularity in those countries and beyond.
Fast-forward to the 12th century when Italian merchants also began crafting artificial flowers using silkworm cocoons. Though the Italians were the originators on the European continent, their French neighbors soon followed suit. The French mastered the art of making artificial flowers and quickly surpassed the flower-making abilities of the Italians. By the 15th century, French-made faux flowers were considered the best.
Following the French Revolution, many artisans fled to England, spreading their craft to the British. Eventually, English settlers brought silk flowers to America. The silk flower business simmered for a couple of centuries until the Victorian Era was born in the 19th century. With the opulence of this era came lavish floral arrangements of both faux and live flowers. Many were made of silk, but craftsmen used a number of other materials to make them, too, including satin, velvet, muslin, cambric, crepe and gauze. By 1920, florists were supplementing live blooms with silk flowers to make up for shortages when flowers were out of season.
Today, the polyester and plastic materials used to make silk flowers give them durability and vibrancy that was unheard of in bygone eras. Modern silk flowers, instead of being an artistic rendition of the real thing, so closely mirror live blooms that many can’t tell the difference without a very close look.
My inventive wife, Margaret, long ago purchased a supply of artificial yellow tulips to display on our dinner table at Easter. For a better display and to help in the deception that they may all be real, she intersperses the fake tulips with the genuine fresh ones.
If you’d like flowers with a little staying power, give silk varieties a try!
Bill Primavera is a realtor associated with William Raveis Real Estate and founder of Primavera Public Relations, Inc., the longest-running public relations agency in Westchester (www.PrimaveraPR.com). To engage the services of The Home Guru and his team to market your home for sale, call 914-522-2076.
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