As much as we Southern Ladies love our Pearls, we do have an inordinate fondness for Roses and Lace- touches that fairly exude feminine fashion! A lace handkerchief carried with a wedding bouquet, rose corsages pinned to lace blouses or dresses are classic pairings. My sister and I were already wearing lace trimmed blouses with little corsages from a young age. One Christmas, our aunt and uncle were taking us out on the town to the ornately beautiful Alabama Theater decked out in our finery, with our little pocketbooks too.
I think fashion is at it’s best when it is classic and simple- and this idea isn’t new, Leonardo da Vinci said it best way back in the 1500’s- ‘Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication’. A Classic Black Dress with Pearls can take you anywhere, darlin’ – Karl Lagerfield famously said: ‘One is never overdressed or underdressed with a Little Black Dress’.
The least expensive way to update a Black Dress or even a Wardrobe of Classics is with Accessories. A friend of mine received a beautiful Christmas bouquet of white roses this week just when I was trying to figure out what to wear to an occasion, I thought these three White Silk Roses pinned on a Lace Patterned Wrap might be just the thing. Winter clothing is often structured, it can benefit from soft beautiful accessories.
Coco Chanel loved using a floral pin- either in the same tweeds she favored or with Millenary Grade Flowers- like her iconic Camellia pin- she repeated Pearls and Floral Pins over and over in her classic designs. I think Southern ladies were doing this long before Chanel came along but we sure do appreciate her highlightin’ it for us! A word of warning- pins and brooches can be heavy- so make sure what you pin it on can support the weight and alternately some fabrics are heavy so make sure your pin can pierce the fabric- if not? Use a heavier pin behind it and clasp the pins on just the fabric’s surface. Holiday dressing isn’t all about glitz and bright colors, sometimes neutrals can be just as beautiful, just make sure you add Red Lipstick-the iconic ‘Cherries in the Snow’ would perfect this time of year.
Try Roses and Lace to soften your Winter Wardrobe. And if you are looking for some last minute gift ideas, a Warm Wrap or Scarf, an Accessory such as a Beautiful Brooch or Floral Pin and a great Stocking Stuffer would be the all time best selling red lipstick– Revlon’s® ‘Cherries in the Snow’ ! Of course if you have no time at all- send a Bouquet of Roses!
Love y’all, Camellia
photographs are obviously mine- the vintage photograph of me and my sweet sister are from our private collection and the Cherries in the Snow lipstick photo is from AOL images and may be subject to copyright. The rose pins were purchased from a small vendor several years ago, the scarf was purchased locally.
Christmas actually starts months ahead of December in the South… lots of folks started Christmas Club accounts at their local banks last January, or put things on layaway back in the summer. Folks put up pickled peaches, preserves and cracked pecans for days on end looking forward to pecan pies, toasted pecans, pecan tassies and topping those sweet potato casseroles. And then there are a very few women who start their fruitcakes- real ones made up back in early Fall, when the mixing it all together, baking and the soaking with likker starts in earnest. If their faith teaches against the evil spirits of alcohol, the fruitcake making women enlist a man or a friend who is of another persuasion to ride over at least two counties to the ABC store to buy the Bourbon or the Dark rum- with a warning, ‘For heaven’s sake, please don’t let a soul see you buying this! -it’s for fruitcakes not for drinking!’ These are the Southern Spirits of Christmas. Truth be told most like to put a nip in their eggnog too and the menfolks generally have a spot where they can slip outside and imbibe. Can’t stand either fruitcakes or eggnog, never developed a taste for Strong Spirits myself, yet-I freely admit that it is nearly impossible to cook Southern food without some Spirits accompanying the other ingredients. For instance, after Hot Pecan Pies come out of the oven, a sizzling sprinkle of Bourbon raises up a Pecan Pie like nothing can. One could argue that Rum aids and abets many desserts, a Bread Pudding or the accompanying Hard Sauce really does need to be Spirited, flavored extracts just won’t get it done. Some of the best beverages in the world were conjured up right here in the South. Co-Cola (yes, that’s, how we pronounce it) Bourbon, Sweet Tea, Buffalo Rock and Jack Daniels are just a few. It is the moderation of these Southern Spirits which is key. And while strong drink might be evil to some- it does bring a certain Southern Comfort to some with a bittersweet heartache and even a Festive Spirit to the holidays. Now, about those Bourbon balls…don’t get me started!
No matter what the budget is, Southerners love to decorate their homes at Christmas! A beautiful Christmas tree, a wreath on the door, family heirlooms or sentimental ornaments gathered throughout the years and fresh poinsettias are particularly well suited to the Southern home. The very best holiday decorating includes the home’s year round décor worked in with special holiday touches. Pine is a particularly Southern fragrance, they grow prolifically in the South, and we all love to gather pinecones. I personally love Loblolly Pinecones- perfectly formed or Longleaf pinecones- huge and beautiful. Gathering pinecones to pile in a basket feels just right at Christmas.
Camellia's Cottage 