The Very Best Flower Crowns of Perpetuity
Few accessories have actually aroused such commentary, for and versus, than the flower crown, so stylish of late amongst the neo-hippie festival crowd. Despite critics, these decorative headpieces, whose history in folklore and art can be traced back to ancient civilizations, show no signs of fading from favor.
It's an appearance that has roots. In agrarian societies, tied to the land and the seasons, flower crowns had terrific symbolic meaning. Worn for useful and ceremonial factors, they could highlight status and accomplishment (see Olympic olive wreaths). The language of flowersand herbs was popular, with each carrying its own significance. ("There's rosemary, that's for remembering. Please keep in mind, love. And there are pansies, they're for thoughts," states Ophelia in Hamlet.) Loaded with significance, flower headdresses were woven into the social and sartorial customs of destinations as remote as Russia and Hawaii.
With increasing industrialization, the flower crown became a romantic indication of the easy "nation" life (longed for, in an elegant version, by Marie Antoinette) and significantly appreciated for its ornamental value. While bride-to-bes continued the ceremonial customs of flower-wearing, it was the earth-mother hippies who have most influenced the device's present version. Finding themselves partying instead of plowing, these flower kids would truss their slept-in hair with wildflowers to signify their connection to nature.
In still more current years, the blooms have even taken a subversive turn on the runways, with Rodarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy adorning designs with burnished coronets and cast-metal petals-- and releasing a fresh wave of flower mania among the fashion flock while doing so. In honor of the summer solstice, a motivating look back at flower crowns throughout history.
In agrarian societies, tied to the land and the seasons, flower crowns had excellent symbolic meaning. With increasing industrialization, the flower crown ended up being a romantic sign of the easy "nation" life (longed for, in a stylized variation, by Marie Antoinette) and increasingly valued for its decorative worth. Discovering themselves partying rather than plowing, these flower kids would truss flower crowns their slept-in hair with wildflowers to signify their connection to nature.