Carolyne Roehm

Celebrate Spring, April 2006 >> Vintage Flowers

Vintage Flowers When I was a girl in the 1950s, both of my grandmothers wore hats. I always admired the gorgeous, fabric flowers that often embellished their showy picture and petal versions inspired, no doubt, by Elizabeth Taylor. The flowers looked so real that my young heart’s desire was to pluck them right off! (But of course I didn’t.) One of my grandmothers was a great collector of beautiful things and I often accompanied her to estate sales looking for silk flowers and other treasures. Later, as a designer in the fashion industry, I was fascinated with Coco Chanel’s trademark white, silk camellias, which were a mark of distinction in the 1930s and '40s. While in Paris, I pored over the archives of La Mariè, Chanel’s manufacturer, and studied the delicate construction of the wearable works of art. Another prominent fashion bloom I find captivating is Christian Dior’s lily of the valley, also made by La Mariè. It is an endearing favorite of mine, in part, because it is my birth flower. (Wait until you see how I am featuring it in my upcoming Wedding Collection!) As I began planning my gift-wrap collections, I naturally gravitated to the fashion world–rather than the craft world–when seeking out flowers. I knew it was there that I would find the very highest quality and most realistic of blooms. I was lucky enough to come upon a stash of vintage flowers from a German man whose family was in the silk flower trade. These pre- and post-war antique flowers were made in Eastern Europe, some in occupied countries. They are dazzling in detail. Though they are made of cotton, silk, velvet, organdy and other fabrics, they are so subtle and beautiful that you almost feel as though you can smell their fragrance. Many of them were individually shaped and starched over metal forms and tinted by careful hands. The handmade blossom is a dying art that one hates to see go. But I am thrilled to be able to offer these rare beauties as part of my collection. They are so fitting with sumptuous papers and ribbons but also capable of making a statement solo. I love the idea of pinning one to the bulletin board or placing it in a vase on the bedside table. They are that beautiful.