My health may fail, my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; He is mine forever. Psalms 73:26
Sometimes in the spring when there is an abundance of flowers in my garden--especially my favorite Cecile Brunner roses--I’ll make up some “tussy mussies” for my sweet friends using a doily, a button and a bit of scrap ribbon. I thought it would be fun to include one of these sweet packages on a card, even though my lovely pink darlings have already bloomed. . .
So just what is a “tussy-mussy?" Well. . .according to the Word Detective, it is:
For a little bunch of flowers, "tussy-mussy" carries more than its share of mystery. The term apparently first appeared in the 15th century, but its derivation is unknown. There was an earlier form in Middle English, "tusmose" or "tussemose," as well as some use of simply "tussy" around the same period, and some indication of an earlier word like "tus" or "tusse" meaning "a cluster of flowers," but the clues are thin and most dictionaries simply classify "tussy-mussy" (or the earlier form "tuzzy-muzzy") as another case of "origin unknown." The "mussy" part, by the way, is simply a case of "reduplication," the humorous alliteration found in terms such as "cutesy-wootsey."
Although I’ve always thought of them as dating back to the Victorian era, the Word Detective says no, “The term faded from use in the early 18th century, and was only revived in the 20th (the Oxford English Dictionary contains no citations between 1706 and 1958). The Victorians may have indeed been brandishing "tussy-mussies" on festive occasions, but it seems that they must have been calling them something else.”
We do know that the fragrance of the flowers helped to keep things a bit sweeter smelling in the days when baths were few and far between!
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| Up Close |
CARD DETAILS
Stamps: Our Daily Bread Designs Customer Favorites Series 1
Ink: Craft Stampin’ Up! Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Ranger Distress Antique Linen, Tea Dye
Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze
Designer Paper: Prima Madeline
Accessories: Wilton cake decorating doilies, Recollections Roses, SU Antique Brad, crumb cake seam binding, ribbon and vintage rick rack, Zva Creative Pearls, Cuttlebug embossing squares, piercing tool, Tattered Angels Shimmer Mist, SU Vanilla Smooch Spritz, instant coffee/alcohol/water, Spellbinders Nestabilities Scallop Rectangles.
Special Notes: The doily was spritzed with a mixture of instant coffee, alcohol and water.
Challenges:
Have a blessed day!
- Christian Paper Crafts ~ Bible Verse Thursday 117
- Our Daily Bread Designs
- Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #129: Favorite Flowers
- One Stop Craft Challenge #141 Vintage
- Anything Goes Challenge Blog #46 Pick a bunch of Flowers
- Paper Play Challenges Week #30 In the Garden
- Craft Your Passion #69 Anything Goes (voted for ribbon and flowers)
- Through the Craft Room Door #7--Embossing Heat or Dry
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| My Favorite! |
