Photo: WBZ NewsRadio / Suzanne Sausville
NEWTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Traditional Ukrainian floral crowns have found their way into the Commonwealth through workshops taught by a Newton flower shop.
Derby Farm Flowers & Gardens at Piccadilly Square offered weekend Vinok Fundraising Workshops, with the proceeds going towards Newton-based Sunflower of Peace, a non-profit that provides medical and humanitarian aid to Ukrainians. Vinoks are floral head wreaths used in traditional Ukrainian ceremonies and are typically worn by unmarried women especially on holy days, said Derby Farms Flowers Co-Owner Lucinda Chrislip.
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"The women dress themselves, adorn themselves, with these flower crowns. The colors, the flowers have special meanings and represent different places or regions they might be from," Chrislip said.
According to the flower shop, Ukrainian women have donned Vinoks since the 2014 revolution as a symbol of Ukrainian pride and protest.
"We all feel helpless in what's happening in Ukraine right now. We send flowers when we feel helpless at times, and when we want to uplift or show compassion, and I think this is just another way to use flowers in that same way," Chrislip said.
WBZ's Suzanne Sausville (@wbzSausville) reports.
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