Mourning Wreath T-Shirt

Did you know that it was common practice in Victorian times to create jewelry and wreaths from the hair of deceased loved ones? This particular pin is inspired by a mourning wreath at a Swedish heritage institute a few hours from me. The wreath had the hair of three out of five children, who had died over the winter. Since it was the dead of winter in Minnesota, flowers were not available to weave into the wreath, so the grandmother who created it hand-felted vibrant red flowers, eternally vivid.