I am happy to announce that Floreti Designs™ is now a member of the ETSY WEDDING TEAM! visit our Team blog at EtsyWeddingTeam.blogspot.com. There you will find many unique sources for handmade wedding items from a carefully selected group of the finest wedding artisans on Etsy.
Here are just a few handmade treasures from our team:
I strive to bring something interesting and inspirational to my readers. When I first opened Floreti online shop in 2004, I decided to write an article about history and origin of silk flowers, since there was very little information available about this great art online. I set out to do my own research. Went through a number of art and history books, encyclopedias, back alleys of the library research rooms, and online resources; the article below is the result of my findings. I hope that you will find it an easy and enjoyable read. And hope that it will spark in you a greater interest in silk flower art. This article is also available on my web site at Floreti.com.
There are many different accounts of silk flower origin. The one that seems to be most accurate is this art has originated in China with proliferation of silk production.
SILK
Chinese legend attributes the wife of mythical Yellow Emperor, Lady Hsi-Ling-Shih, with the introduction of silkworm rearing and the invention of the loom around 3000 BC. Although, there are archeological evidences that sericulture existed as far back as 5000 BC. For thousands of years silk has been used for many different purposes from the creation of exquisite garments, in household, to utilization in medicine.
Silk was also used in silk screen painting or printing. Chinese learned to successfully use dye and ink on silk medium around 400 – 300 BC, during the Zhou dynasty.
SILK FLOWERS
Silk flowers are said to have originated around 1500 years ago in the imperial palace, in China. The flowers were created for and worn by the ladies at the palace. In Chinese, silk flowers are called Juanhua.
Closely to 200 BC, Chinese migration to Korea and open trade with Japan greatly influenced Korean and Japanese cultures, especially their artistic expression, even more so, after Japan reopened its border at the end of 11th century AD. Thus, allowing the art of silk flowers to travel to Japan and eventually to Europe, around 1500 – 1700 AD, with a growing trade with Portuguese. Finally, it came to France the heart of fashion then and now. From France this form of art had spread to many other countries.
Today, with technological advances most of silk flowers are made of plastic, polyester, latex and other manmade materials. They are not of real silk even though they are still called “silk flowers”. The flowers are done on the scale of industrial production. Utilizing cutting molds, and press irons. There are very few places left where silk flowers are still done out of natural fibers and all by hand, the way Chinese and Japanese have done it more than 1500 years ago.
Hence, I am proud to bring you luxurious quality and unique design in this timeless form of art – silk flowers.
- Irina Floret
Bibliography
Tregear, Mary. Chinese Art. New York: Thames and Hudson Inc, 1997. Munsterberg, Hugo. The Arts of Japan an Illustrated History. Rutland: Charles E. Tuttle Company, Inc, 1957. Stanley-Baker, Joan. Japanese Art. London: Thames and Hudson Inc, 1984.
I love creating couture handmade silk flower jewelry, hair accessories, dress embellishments for bridal wear, as well as casual fun pins and floral clips for everyday wear.
