Tag: flowers

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You Made Your #Flower Bed Now Lie In It!

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Sherlock Holmes, a character in Jane Eyre Gets Real by Annabelle Troy, is no stranger to looking beneath the surface of things. He knows that underneath beauty’s facade there often lurks a dark soul; he was, for instance, onto flatmate #DorianGray from the second he met him. But that’s another story… Holmes, being a beekeeper, knows that a type of honeybee, the Diadasia diminuta,  sleeps inside an orange flower called Globe Mallow. They also like to make their bed in the California poppy and other buds which close up at night–how cozy! An adult bee will sleep about an hour per night … Continue reading You Made Your #Flower Bed Now Lie In It!

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Oopsy Daisy

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June is #flower month for the characters of JANE EYRE GETS REAL. This week’s post has been compiled by Heidi, the classic little girl originally created by Johanna Spyri. A child of nature, Heidi loves the name “Daisy” (the 162nd most popular girl’s name in 2020) and has decided to share with you her favorite females, real or otherwise, with this moniker. (Finding anyone named oopsy is a bit harder…) Daisy Buchanan: famed belle depicted by F. Scott Fitzgerald in #THE GREAT GATSBY Daisy Ashford: pen name of nine year old girl who wrote 1919 British classic THE YOUNG VISITORS, … Continue reading Oopsy Daisy

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Don’t Deface Queen Anne’s Lace!

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Jane Eyre, the heroine of Jane Eyre Gets Real by Annabelle Troy, is not pleased being stuck in contemporary NYC during #Covid-19. As spring commences she longs to be back in Thornfield Hall, dodging madwomen and strolling through the surrounding woods, picking flowers to make into medicine and jewelry. Jane’s favorite wildflower has always been #Queen Anne’s lace. Queen Anne herself was the last of the Stuart monarchs, reigning only five years (between 1702-1707). Best-known today as the gouty, rabbit-loving lesbian from the film The Favourite, where she is played by Oscar winner #OliviaColman, the real Anne was probably quite likable … Continue reading Don’t Deface Queen Anne’s Lace!

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Charm Or Opulence: Which Do You Prefer?

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Jane Eyre, the lead character in Jane Eyre Gets Real, a whimsical mash-up novel available on #Amazon, knows all about the language of flowers. To the Victorians, sending a bouquet of white violets meant you were asking someone to gamble on love; if they returned a dark pink rose it meant they shared your passion but a light pink one signified they wanted to leave you in the friend zone. In a debate on the merits of charm versus opulence, two autumn flowers speak for themselves. Aster Daisy: I’m sweet and unpretentious. If I were a house I’d be a thatched country cottage; … Continue reading Charm Or Opulence: Which Do You Prefer?

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What the Bee Sees

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  As Alice in Wonderland and several other characters in Annabelle Troy’s novel Jane Eyre Gets Real can attest, the Victorians knew their flowers. They had a whole secret language which devolved around them: the pink carnation stood for gratitude, the yellow rose for friendship, violets for youth. If you wanted to express the first flushes of love you might send a bouquet of purple lilacs, while nothing signified consolation better than a red poppy. As you might expect daisies symbolized innocence and sunflowers happiness. But did you know that the iris was code for a message, the jasmine for amiability … Continue reading What the Bee Sees

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Jane Eyre’s November Garden

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Thanksgiving means food but it can also mean flowers and fruits: anything that celebrates the earth. Jane Eyre, an English girl at heart but now living in NYC between the pages of Annabelle Troy’s novel Jane Eyre Gets Real, reminisces about her garden at Thornfield in the autumn. “Mr. Rochester and I were proud of these November flowers: Calendula will flower until frost. They look like daisies, are orange, yellow or apricot, and grow to 2 feet in height. Candytuft–delightful name–are known as “autumn snow” because of their pure white color; they bloom in fall and spring. Also known as iberis. Cyclamen have … Continue reading Jane Eyre’s November Garden

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Counting Your Chickens Before They’re Hatched: Very Victorian Spring Problems

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This year the spring equinox was March 20, so it’s official: we have sprung! Victorians, who loved all categories, enjoyed celebrating this season with their usual aplomb. Hence, the cast of Jane Eyre Gets Real presents Very Victorian Spring Problems:   Your Chickens Have A Better Love Life Than You Do You Dress Your Children In White & Expect Them Not To Get Dirty Your Greenhouse Looks Like A Mausoleum   Everyone Else Has Gone A-Maying But You’re Stuck At Home Baking Scones  Your New Pet Refuses To Play Fetch   Rabbits Are Taking Over The School System The Flowers In Your … Continue reading Counting Your Chickens Before They’re Hatched: Very Victorian Spring Problems

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A Most Angelic Flower

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“When the March sun began to melt the snow on the slopes, the first snowdrops came out”–quote from Heidi The snowdrop that Heidi would have seen blooming in the Swiss Alps represents the common genus; there are twenty other varieties. But Heidi, a character in Jane Eyre Gets Real by Annabelle Troy, has always known that simple things are best. Known to flower as early as January, the little snowdrop poking its way out of the cold creates an image that is both pure and hardy. According to one folk legend, the first snowdrop appeared when an angel saw Eve, cast out … Continue reading A Most Angelic Flower