Eternally Pretty Poppy

It was difficult to contain my squeal of delight when I spotted this adorable and oh-so-summery poppy ring from Bellaceti. Isn't it wonderful? I love the bright colours and simplicity of this sweet ring, and would probably spend half my day secretly smiling at it were it on my finger.

The poppy is California's state flower and a favourite of many because of its cheerful, delightful appearance. Red ones, in particular, often elicit memory of Canadian soldier John McCrae's poem "In Flander's Fields", inspired by the death of a fellow warrior during World War I; poppies have often been associated with sleep and death (remember the sleep-inducing poppy field in Wizard of Oz?). They've been around forever, having been cultivated as far back as 5,000 BC in Mesopotamia (with the ancient Sumerians), and will grow just about anywhere - lucky us, right? They're also quite prevalent in Greek litearture, with Hypnos (god of sleep), Nyx (goddess of the night), and Thanatos (the god of death) portrayed as either bearing or wreathed in the blooms.

This ever-blooming poppy is made of a pressed glass orange flower and rests atop green seed beads strung on nylon monofilament in circles, also reminiscent of poppies. It's...poppy perfection! The ring is just $12 and has a slightly stretchy fit and will thus fit sizes 5-7, although a larger or smaller size can be purchased via a quick email to Bellaceti. There's oodles of really pretty and really fun jewelry there, so be sure to check it out. And don't forget to check out racehorse retirement home Old Friends on CBS tonight (I posted about the segment last night).