in a vase: violets are…purple

Viola odora

When the violets really get going, they can scent a whole area. I love that smell…reminds me of Yardley’s violet scent, which I wore as a girl.

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They are itty bitty little things, so it was necessary to find a small container to show them off. The thimble in the above photo will give you an idea of scale.

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This hand painted pitcher fits the bill perfectly and, ironically, the painting is of violets.

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My Great Grandmother’s hands were never idle. She was always crocheting or quilting. I have quite a few pieces of her handiwork. Carrying out the theme of old fashioned flowers in an old fashioned container seemed to call for using one of them as a doily to complete the picture (I think this one was meant to be an antimacassar – now there’s a word I bet you haven’t seen lately, if ever) Antimacassars were used on the backs of chairs to protect the upholstery from the hair goop used by men back in the day. The goop was called Macassar. In my book, the doily’s value far outstrips that of any old upholstery.

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I’m enjoying the powerful aroma being pumped out by these babies right now. But where did some folk poet ever get the idea that “violets are blue”? More posies await each Monday. Click HERE to open the door and enjoy.

11 thoughts on “in a vase: violets are…purple

  1. Beautiful, rickii – is this a teeny Limoges vase? Are you saying it’s coincidence that it is painted with violets?! Thanks for sharing your tiny creation with us ps the Golfer used to be forever reciting ‘roses are red, etc’ but he still didn’t twig the connection when I wore a red wedding dress and my bridesmaids wore the colour of violets…. 🙂

    • Cathy~I don’t know the source of the vase, and yes – I only noticed as I was filling it that the image was violets. The red wedding dress and violet bridesmaids’ dresses sound like a wonderful break from the tried and true.

  2. Colour is almost as difficult to explain as perfume; I have noticed that most men see colours differently especially the blue/purple thing and I suppose the poem was written by a man! your tiny vase with its violets is lovely and I wish I could smell the perfume.

  3. Anna~That word is a favorite of mine, with very few occasions to throw it out there. Many of those old skills grew out of a combination of scarcity and winter with time on their hands. I’m pretty sure women will find creative outlets that fit their times and situations. I just hope that there will always be artifacts left behind to remember them (us) by.

  4. I love violets. I think my neighbors are secretly dismayed that I have allowed them to take over some corners of the garden. I have white, blue, and purple ones – but none seem to have any scent. A pretty and charming little vase!

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