landbaby

“He tore the mantle from her face, and the cold stars o'er it shone.
Then quickly to the lighted hall her lifeless form he bore. Young Charlotte's eyes was closed for ay, her voice was heard no more.
And there he sat down by her side, the bitter tears did flow”....

Frozen Charlotte pins; new pieces we have in the shop that are both eerie and beautiful. We’re super excited about these.I wandered into the shop when these stunning little pins were being delivered. At first glance, they just looked like small imitations of the classic ‘Jelly Baby’ but alas how wrong could I have been!
On closer inspection the Frozen Charlotte pins are, without sounding too much like Gok Wan, subtle and classic with a fascinatingly morbid history to them.

The Frozen Charlotte doll gets its name from the eerie cautionary folk ballad which tells of a girl who refuses to wrap up warm on a cold winters night travelling to a New Year’s Ball and freezes to death on the journey. There are very, very few versions available of the ballad online, but here’s a link to one I stumbled upon on youtube. (Unfortunately it’s just a young lady in her room with what looks like excellent storage facilities, but you get the idea....)

The Victorians used the Frozen Charlotte doll as a lucky charm and keepsake; putting them in Christmas Puddings, children’s bedrooms and some even used as toys for bath play. But please do not use your Frozen Charlotte pin as a substitute for a rubber duck; they are much too pretty and delicate for that! And for this we have the amazingly talented Katherine Lees to thank, whose current projects are all heavily influenced by Victorian designs combining intricate, delicate craftwork and stunning pale yet interesting colours & tones.

You can check out and keep up-to-date with Katherine’s work here
OR pop into Landbaby, we have bits and bobs of Katherine’s work in the shop and it is really complimented by our lovely new flooring, pale walls and other gifts and trinkets we have in at the mo’.  Personally, I absolutely love my own Frozen Charlotte, mounted on a small decorative card with a small bio of the history of the pin, it makes a beautiful gift for both men and women and with Valentine’s Day on the horizon, need I say more!


Images are courtesy of Katherine Lees Wordpress blog