Last weekend I shared some photos of the front yard, and a Knockout Rose bush that is blooming profusely this year. Our yard has two levels and this bush is nestled in a little grotto area that is shared by a much used bird bath and surrounded by Black-eyed Susans.
I thought I'd clip a few sprigs of blooms and bring them inside to enjoy up close.
I thought they'd feel at home in this petite Staffordshire Crown China teapot, trimmed out in a lacy pink pattern of flowers with gold trim.
I also just recently found this little white chippy box and thought it might work for one of my
"Vintage Seed Box" embellishments. Spring and Roses go together beautifully with one of my two vintage Redoute framed prints from the 40's, that I had on my baker's rack on the sunporch.
Below, I included some interesting information about Redoute. Knowing a little about the artist makes these beautiful prints all the more interesting.
Pierre-Joseph Redouté (10 July 1759 in Saint-Hubert, Belgium – 19 June 1840 in Paris), was a Belgian painter and botanist, known for his watercolours of roses, lilies and other flowers at Malmaison. He was nicknamed "The Raphael of flowers".
He was an official court artist of Queen
Marie Antoinette, and he continued painting through the
French Revolution and
Reign of Terror. Redouté survived the turbulent political upheaval to gain international recognition for his precise renderings of plants, which remain as fresh in the early 21st century as when first painted.
Paris was the cultural and scientific centre of Europe during an outstanding period in
botanical illustration (1798 – 1837), one noted for the publication of several
folio books with coloured
plates. Enthusiastically, Redouté became an heir to the tradition of the
Flemish and
Dutch flower painters
Brueghel,
Ruysch,
van Huysum and
de Heem. Redouté contributed over 2,100 published plates depicting over 1,800 different
species, many never rendered before.
Marie Antoinette became his patron. Redouté received the title of Draughtsman and Painter to the Queen's Cabinet. In 1798, Empress
Joséphine de Beauharnais, the first wife of
Napoleon Bonaparte, became his patron and, some years later, he was her official artist.
What perfection is found within the bloom of a rose.
My heart is heavy with all the devastation in Oklahoma. We are in the same "tornado alley" as they are. Storms start in North Texas and then take the northeast route each Spring. Many of us here in Missouri have basements, but Oklahoma has so much bedrock that basements aren't incorporated into a home's structure; not much comfort, but a little. I'm praying for all those who have lost so much in these storms this week.
I'll be linking up to these parties this week:
xoxo,
