Thursday 17 March 2016

April Birthday Gift Ideas - Daisies and Sweet Peas



Here are some ideas that I hope will inspire you to make an April Birthday really special by incorporating one of the April Birth Month Flowers, either the Daisy or the Sweet Pea!

If you aren't yet familiar with the Birth Month Flowers
 for each calendar month, 
you can find them 

When I think of Daisies, the first thing that comes to my mind are the little wild daisies that dot my lawn, showing me that it's due for a mowing!

Of course there are many other types of Daisies and I have some of the tallest, largest, 'Marguerite' type daisies growing in my little back garden. 


Unfortunately, as they grow in a bed that gets very little sunshine because of the high garden wall behind them, they tend to try to grow up towards the light and end up flopping over, almost to ground level! 

Still, they make a bright spot or two late in the year when there's not much colour left in the garden.


But when I made the hand-painted collage Daisies for my April Birthday Cards and Gifts, it was the little wild daisies in my lawn that I used as my 'model'.


Some people call them weeds - and I suppose they do fit the definition of 'a plant growing in the wrong place' when they are in my lawn! 

Though if ever the summer weather is hot and dry enough to shrivel up the grass, the daisy leaves keep it looking nice and green so I'm actually quite fond of them.




The Daisy is said to represent Innocence, Loyal Love and Purity and it is also traditionally given as sign of Friendship, especially referring to the sharing and keeping of secrets between friends. 





So a Daisy Birthday Card or Gift is a great way to celebrate a close friendship!



I don't know what kind of daisy Shakespeare had in mind, but this poem certainly confirms that the Daisy is likely to put in an appearance on the grass in April! 


The other Birth Month Flower for April is the Sweet Pea.



In my experience, April is far too early to see Sweet Peas in flower but maybe there are countries with different climates where Sweet Peas flower as early as April? Tulips, Forget-me-nots and Wallflowers - and the last of the Daffodils - are the main flowers blooming in my garden in April.


Even though I sow my Sweet Peas in outdoor tubs in November to give them a good start, they are still a long way from flowering in April - though some warm weather at the end of the month, and throughout May, sometimes brings forth blooms by the beginning of June.


But I love Sweet Peas - they are one of my favourite flowers and the summer just wouldn't be the same without them. So even when I don't have time to sow many seeds for the garden, I try to make sure the Sweet Peas get sown.





Apart from their wonderful fragrance - the deep blue and purple ones in particular! - their colours are some of the prettiest and I find the fragility and translucence of their petals very appealing, especially for painting in watercolour.

Most of the flowers we are familiar with have some sort of special meaning attributed to them. HERE'S a website where you can read about the meanings of many of the flowers we all know and love.



The Sweet Pea signifies 'blissful pleasure' but can also mean 'good-bye'. So you might want to bear this in mind before choosing to send a Sweet Pea Birthday Card or Gift if you think the recipient will have knowledge of these things!





Here's a large selection of 
Greeting Cards and Gifts 
for someone with an 
April birthday.

Just click on the image below to see the full collection -

Whichever you choose, you can be sure that the April Birthday Girl - of any age! - will be delighted to receive such a special Gift or Greeting Card! 

And there are lots more to choose from in my Zazzle stores.



Whether you are looking for a small gift, something as small as a pretty Daisy Hair Band or Sweet Pea Tote Bag, maybe, or a more expensive item such as Smartphone or iPad Case - or something in between, you'll find plenty to choose from.

And there's even Gift-wrapping Paper and Gift Bags to match the Birthday Cards and Gifts! Here's a Faux Patchwork Giftwrap combining all of the patterns in my "Daisy Chains" collection.


As ever, if you can't find the gift that you're looking for with the design of your choice, please contact me through one of my stores and I'll be pleased to create it for you at no extra cost.

I hope I've given you some useful ideas
for celebrating a 
Very Happy April Birthday!










2 comments:

Fliss said...

Love daisies,I always used to make daisy chain necklaces when I was a child and now I do it with my grandchildren.

Judy Adamson said...

Hi Fliss - thank you for your comment. Daisy chains are such a fun idea! I wonder who first thought of it and why they chose daisies?