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Pansies, are a flower that symbolized memories. I have been running through my memories lately, the good and the not so good. Sometimes memories haunt you, and other times they bring comfort. When I think of pansies, I think of my grandmother. She was the most loving individual I have ever known, she had this energy of love about her, she accepted everyone for who they were, and she never ever complained, no matter how hard her life got. She will be gone 12 years in August, and I can hardly believe it. She died from complications of Cancer of the Liver. She was ready to go, she missed my grandfather who had died when I was just a child, and she was at peace with herself. I was not so ready to let her go, but that is true of loss in general, we are never ready, we never want to see it coming. I was there when she passed, at her side, in her home, caring for her mid-way through my nursing school training. I had never seen anyone die, though I had seen someone already gone in my travels as a nursing student, and it was not a frightening thing. But I blamed myself for a long time, since I had given her a dose of morphine to treat her pain minutes before she passed. I felt it was my fault, now I know I could not have stopped it, she was in a coma at the time. I miss her every day of my life, she was my best friend. She loved pretty things, and I know she would have loved this dress.
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This Floratta Long Dress in a Pansy print by *Reale* is so lovely, so elegant, yet casual and comfortable at the same time. I think it incredibly well textured, with lovely lace edged skirts and flexing ties at the neck. It comes in several prints, but the moment I saw pansies, I saw a favorite flower of my grandmother's and knew I had to have this version.
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How do you accessorize a dress so lovely, how do you add interest without taking anything away? I was thrilled to come upon the lovely and appropriately named Melancholy Set in White from {Violet Voltaire}, something I picked up at the amazing Armoire Jewelry Showcase. The floral theme and colour fit so well, and the delicate nature of the prim work is so very feminine. I added a simple Pearl Ring from Caroline's Jewelry, and The Blossom Bag in Blanche from Paper Couture to finish the look. The perfect simple yet elegant shoe is the Stiletto Moody Pinup Pump in Patent, this is the colour change version, the one I would recommend, as the colour options are amazing.
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Another lovely up-do style from TRUTH, the Victoria style is perfection for a summer night out in a fresh dress. You can see the casual curls, and it is easy to wear with long earring or an up-turned collar. This skin is another lovely colorful mod by -AnaLu-, the *InRainbows* line is really great for all those fans of natural lipped skins with a more dramatic eye. My eyes are by Miriel, and lashes are from MMS (now LeLutka).
I hold on to my memories tight, sometimes too tight where it concerns the sad ones. But I do have something in my possession that is now more precious then the pressed pansies from my grandmother's 85th birthday party. Before she died, I found a book called "To Our Children's Children". In it are lists of questions to ask your grandparents or parents, asking them to recall moments of their lives. You can use it to document your own life for your children, or use it to interview someone else. The questions are wonderful, and before she died, I managed to tape-record my grandmother answering a great many of them. I haven't been able to listen to them yet, not sure why, but I am ready to sit and listen to the memories, and remember her, and her voice, and most importantly her brilliant deep belly laugh.
Shopping Details:
Dress - *Reale*, Floratta Long Dress (Pansies)
Bag - Paper Couture, The Blossom Bag (Blanche)
Shoes - Stiletto Moody, Pinup Pump Patent Color Set (White)
Earrings - {Violet Voltaire}, Melancholy Earrings (White)
Necklace - {Violet Voltaire}, Melancholy Necklace (White)
Bracelet - {Violet Voltaire}, Melancholy Bracelet (White)
Ring - Caroline's Jewelry, Pearl Ring
Hair - TRUTH, Victoria (Blacks)
Skin - -AnaLu-, *InRainbows NAT05 .rosepurple.
Lashes - MMS (now LeLutka), Thora Lashes
Eyes - Miriel, Hazel Eyes (Big)
4 comments:
that is an amazing post and what a fab way to honor your grandmother. it brought back memories of my grandmother too, she loved roses and violets.
thank you for that heartfelt post.
xoxo, caLLie
I am reading this and getting tears in my eyes, simply because your memories brought back memories of my own grandmother. She was a self-taught seamstress, working for wealthy families in Manhattan from the late 1920's when she arrived from Ireland as an immigrant. She learned to make outfits that looked like "the real thing" (my mother owned an incredible number of "Chanel" suits) but she also knew when you had to have "the real thing". I can sense her now tugging my mother's sleeve and saying "I could make something LIKE this...but it would not BE this." Such a perfectly elegant gown, flowing and beautiful. Thank you for posting, for the outfit and for bringing back memories.
Such a beautiful tribute to our beloved Grandmother. Thank-you for doing this post Sis - I am so proud of you and all that you have given of yourself to care for the ones you love, often ignoring yourself. Yeah you made me cry (never difficult to do), but you also made me smile - when you are ready to listen to those tapes I will be right there with you. <3 always, Twin B.
I cried my way through the entire post. There is something so special about grandmothers, and often we don't really see it until after they are gone from our lives.
I was lucky for every moment I had with her. When I was in Chef School and she would still teach me how to cook like I was a complete novice, so very particular, and how she would laugh when I would get covered in flour when baking pies. I used to do her grocery shopping, and always picked up one special "surprise" treat for her each week. I used to sleep over with her right up until the end, when I was in my early twenties. How I made my then boyfriend spend New Year's Eves with her, because there was no one else I wanted to be with, and didn't want her to be alone. Can you imagine, a twenty year old guy celebrating New Year's sober at my 80 something Baba's (grandmother's) house? I used to give her pedicures and put cream on her feet, sitting on the floor and watching her close her eyes and enjoy the foot massage. And I used to put my head in her lap as she played with my hair for hours, it was so delicious to be touched that lovingly, and it was so automatic.
I was very lucky indeed. Thank you all for sharing your own grandmother stories. They lived through times tougher then ours, and saw technology develop, things change so fast. They led remarkable lives.
~ Ketsy
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