Today we give flowers in appreciation of people for various reasons. The meaning of the flower is not as important now, as it was a century ago. However, the language of flowers is where the tradition began.

In Victorian times, people often had entire conversations without speaking a word simply by touching flowers. A married woman, for instance, might have left an arrangement of begonia and monkshood on her entryway table to warn a lover that her husband was home. Begonia signifies the need for caution and Monkshood warns of a deadly foe. A young man might have caressed the petals of a viscaria while making eye contact with a young woman. If she in turn touched a striped carnation, his hopes of a dance were dashed on the red and white petals of a lovely flower.

Victorian mobsters were much more elegant in delivering threats than today’s gruesome method of decapitating horses and leaving the bloody remains in someone’s bed. A bouquet of poppy and monkshood with a delicate sprig of heather snuggled inside said the same thing; grant my wish or die. While young lovers living under the eagle eye of disapproving guardians might have worn a spray of spider flower to show the desire to elope. Conversely, one may have worn the spider flower while the other wore a yellow carnation. Ah, the tragedies of young love, willing to throw everything away only to be thwarted by a heartless ‘no’.

The gift of a ‘single perfect rose’ keeps florists in business year after year. Do you know why? A single perfect red rose declares your love. Yellow signifies a loss of regard, white promises purity, and the leaf of a rose offers hope. No wonder people are enthralled with roses!

The Victorian widow is a feature of romance novels even today. In Victoria’s time, however, widowhood was not a good state to live in. Often widows rushed into a second marriage to secure the family’s fortunes or provide protection for their children. If the widow was not ready to remarry though she might have carried, a spray of zinnias to show that she still thought longingly of her deceased husband.

Today we give flowers for their beauty or scent. We do not need them to speak for us anymore. That, in some regard, is a sad thing. It would be so much easier to hide our reaction to a rejection in smelling a yellow rose or a striped carnation while we turn away than in trying to maintain our dignity in a conversation.

On that note, I will end this with by offering you a cyclamen and a cattail, and hope you have a wonderful day.

I found this at www.trafficpsyche.com .. I was thinking of buying one but need some review first.. can anyone advise whether should I or should I not proceed with this..

Thanks.

PS: I have made my decision as of today July 18, 2008. I’ve posted it in my comments..

Recently the levels of exposure regarding ethical and environmental issues have reached an explosive high. On a daily basis, newspapers and magazines, exposing documentaries and worthy speeches (from well known celebrity faces) have been pummeled into our consciousness. There are a few consumers that seem to have jumped on the bandwagon of Eco=cool (which unfortunately may mean short lived changes until the next cool trend emerges), but for the most part I have seen a more thoughtful approach in the minds of many avid shoppers.

Our knowledge of the dangers that face the environment and the revelations of high profile shops unethical working conditions compounded with the dismal credit crunch, have lead to myself and many others reconsidering their well heeled shopping habits.

As someone who has often been rather tight on the purse strings and known to frequent high street stores, I have often bought items on the basis of their low price tag. My love of fashion and design has meant that I generally only bought the essentials from the budget stores (plain white shirts, tracksuit bottoms, strappy tops) wanting to discover unique statement pieces from vintage stores, charity shops and car boot sales to ensure I wasn’t yet another clone.

It’s a great feeling going to a social event without the fear of being faced with someone in the same outfit (even worse when they look infinitely better). I think more and more fashion fans are cottoning on to the fact its good to be unique and being able to answer the question ‘where did you get your … from?’ with the comforting knowledge they won’t be able to go and buy one themselves.

Currently I am keeping my eyes peeled for any shops that have an eco/environmental slant that can also maintain my need to ‘feel special’ in an outfit.

Poppy Valentine in Portobello, Notting Hill, have listened to their customers worries and the climate of ethical/environmental awareness and have involved themselves in the research and development of a new bio leather which will reduce environmental harm.

Their newest bags in the popular Hepburn range are made from vegetable tanned leather which uses less harmful chemicals and no chrome during production. As well as the aforementioned benefits of their process, it also gifts the bags with a beautiful soft and slouchy appeal which is far more favourable for a day outing than the rather rigid, boxy examples that are around in many of the high street stores.

You may already be aware of Poppy Valentine through their printed/vibrant clothes and accessories that are completely individual and made from fabrics that the designers have sourced over many a dedicated year: trawling through thrift stores and antique markets. Undoubtedly there will be something in their store to suit people who seek inspiration from different fashion eras from the 40’s (which with the release of Edge of Love is an era sure to be emulated by many a fashionista) to the psychedelic 70’s. Their choice of fabrics also capture trends of the s/s 08 season with both ditsy and bold floral print and abstract print dresses, bags, and blouses.

Initially the plain leather bags in their contemporary collection don’t have the wow factor as they do not feature any intricate embellishment, unusual design features (such as the gold frog a la Marc Jacobs) or capture any of the major bag trends of this season (over sized clutch, ruffling, tassels) but this isn’t important. They are unarguably usable, long lasting and wearable and that is vital in these times of money woes.

I appreciate a bag that is honest, it does exactly what bag is meant to do, the slouchiness of the material makes it comfortable to bash against your side on a days jaunt, the bold but plain colours (oyster, red, black) make it a bag that will go with many an ensemble and it isn’t emblazoned with tacky logos. It’s a bag that won’t go out of fashion and will look great against some of the multi-coloured prints around this season and why must functionality be a bad thing!

The other bags in the collection combine their ‘Blossom Print’ with their leather and carry a sweet retro feel which will look fun in the summer, but not as useful all year round.

We have to come to the realisation that a lot of the clothes and accessories we have bought in the past, with their shockingly low price were so wallet friendly for a reason. In a sense, many of us will have to retrain ourselves with new knowledge of what is acceptable to pay for an item, which may mean spending more. The knowledge you aren’t contributing to a system that harms people or the environment makes it more than worth it.

I think the Poppy Valentine leather bags are very reasonable at £120 and you aren’t getting a fad item that you will regret and keep hostage in the fashion graveyard at the bottom of your wardrobe next year, it will come out day after day, year after year, a classic bag that isn’t a gimmicky show off.

A visit to their shop will inevitably give you a hint of the rush you feel when searching for one-off treasures at car -boots, markets, and take you away from the hoards of crowds that still flock to the high street budget stores rifling through piles of garments and trampling on items fallen from the hangers.

I look forward to seeing the next collection – I’d love to see some more soft leather bags with more design detail, interesting pockets and straps.

Blue Hands is the Welsh quintets follow up to Under the Crooked Moon and marks the departure point both in sound and inspiration. Showcasing an array of influences from just about every source, David Bowie, Neil Young, Kraftwerk and Edith Piaf are all apparently present, as is the Old Testament! Even Hollywood actress’ of the silent movie era are drawn upon. Orphans of The Storm tells the story of the silent actress Lillian Gish’s near death experience filming the movie of the same name.

But, there is something about this showcase of influences that doesn’t quite ring true and sounds more like PR spiel. Is citing the aforementioned Miss Gish and John the Baptist really evidence of ‘Hollywood Reporter meets the Old Testament’. In some instances, references seem to be thrown in for no particular reason, on King of England the serial killer Son of Sam is name checked right next to Fred Astaire.

At least, The Hot Puppies are not playing it safe and have tried to experiment, even if the results are not always successful. In the alleged Kraftwerk influenced, How To Choose a Wife synthesizers have indeed been used, but the end result is confused, and sounding in places like a programmed demo on a Casio keyboard. Again, on King of England it feels like the same Casio keyboard has been dragged out and just left to play. However, the experimenting does pay off on the seemingly two separate sounding songs that make up Secret Burial.

The most successful tracks appear where singer Becki Newman is allowed to showcase her yearning vocals without the addition of synthesizers. On Dear Brutus Newman is initially accompanied on pianos and it seems like The Hot Puppies have found their niche, but then the synthesizer comes in and competes for attention. Elsewhere, Newman’s voice soars on Somewhere, sizzles on Where the Werewolves Meet, and is powerfully heartbreaking on Blue Hands, the strongest track of the album. Other nice moments on the album are provided by the sing-a-long catchy chorus Disney would be proud of, on Clarinet Town and Orphans of the Storm showcasing the whispered subdued lead vocals of Luke Taylor.

With their burgeoning ability to straddle genres, The Hot Puppies could have music critics eating out of the palms of their hands. But, it seems they can’t decide whether they want to record ballad quality songs or live out all their synthesizer fantasies. So, The Hot Puppies have settled for doing it all and therefore suffer the consequences.