Birthday Crowns

Have you ever worn a crown on your birthday? Perhaps you did as a child or perhaps your children have worn one. Judging by all the different types of birthday crowns offered on-line or at party stores, it seems as if birthday crowns are not just for children anymore.
When I turned 50 I decided to mark that special birthday by making a crown. It's the blue one in the picture. Turning 50, to me was a big deal! I was transitioning into my crone years.
I adorned it with my totem symbols, the turtle and owl along with a lovely carved cabochon of a queen, a women at the height of her power. For me that crown set the tone for the decade to come.
When I turned 60 I crochet a simple crown, using the somber but royal color purple. The yarn had a bit of sparkle to it, but all and all, a unpretentious statement. As the decade matured, there were many times when I felt that slippage from being visible to becoming invisible.
As my 70th birthday approached, and I began to design my new crown, I began to wonder if there was any history behind the birthday crown. There really wasn't. I found a lot about the history of birthdays, birthday cakes, birthday gifts, the birthday song. I did however find one little blurb which stated that the lack of any history on early birthday celebrations may be due to a lack of wealth. Only the nobles could afford a birthday celebration thus, many historians believe that this "nobility only" could be the reason behind the custom of wearing a birthday "crown." Whatever the reason behind the birthday crown, I like the idea of being Queen or King for the day, and if you made the crown, so much the better!
For my 70th birthday crown, I chose to make it out of watercolor paper. Why? because I love how it absorbs whatever is placed on it turning it beautiful. The colors I chose belong to the dawn and the flower, the snowdrop, belongs to the first stirrings of spring. The symbolic meaning of the snowdrop is that of rebirth.
Many nights prior to making my crown, I dreamt about snowdrops. When I looked up it's meaning I knew they had to be on my crown. My 60's were a winter, and now I feel the life force stirring again, a rebirth, a new spring. The pearls represent the wisdom I garnered from all winters in my life, and though I find it hard to believe that I am 70, I'm looking forward to it's spring full of growth and new beginnings which will lead to a summer full of warmth and...