It was during the Victorian era that Christmas began to shift from a religious holiday to a season of gift-giving. The orange, which at that time was a simple luxury, transformed into a symbol of generosity.
Amy and Christiane had so much fun creating a print to celebrate the special nature of the orange. While the symbolism in the print comes from the idea of a simple gift at the holidays, oranges are widely available and delicious year-round.
Orange Traditions
Amy's grandmother was one of 8 children, and grew up during the Depression Era with very modest means. Typically, the only present she received each Christmas was an orange, a gift from the church where her father was a minister. At that time, oranges were not readily available and were considered an amazing gift. In honor of that tradition, Amy's family continues to incorporate oranges into their Christmas gifting, and Amy's mother often uses arrangements of oranges and cloves in her holiday decorating.
To Amy, Christmas oranges represent the simplicity of how the holidays used to be before over-commercialization. She would love to see a return to understated, thoughtful gifting, and hopes our Orange Grove pattern helps honor that intention.
Like Amy, the orange also hold special holiday significance to Christiane. She says her favorite part of Christmas growing up was her family's stockings. When she and her brother would wake up (usually hours before their family was anywhere near ready to start celebrating), they’d find their stockings filled with small wrapped gifts sitting at the ends of their beds. They always opened them together and had so much fun despite the fact that they weren’t filled with anything especially exciting. There was maybe small a toy or two, but the majority of the stockings were filled with gift-wrapped necessities like toothpaste and soap. A tangerine was always at the bottom in the toe, and they would eat the oranges immediately.
Health Benefits of Oranges
In the wintertime at Amy’s NJ house, there is a flying dragon orange tree that grows these tiny little oranges. When they are cut open it is Amy’s absolute favorite smell in the world. It’s earthy and citrusy and has a complexity of scent that she’s never encountered before.
While these small oranges are almost inedible because they are so sour, they can actually be used for medicinal purposes when cooked. They produce a small amount of juice that is rich in vitamin C, which helps boost immunity. The fruit also contains antioxidants and can be anti-inflammatory, anti-allergenic, and anti-emetic (soothes nausea). Some people even process the plant’s thorns and stem bark to treat toothaches or viruses!
Even if you aren’t using these oranges for their medicinal properties, the aromatherapy can be quite wonderful. Many people find the smell of orange (and other citrus) energizing.
Perfect for Transitions
While our Orange Grove print was originally dreamt up with the holidays in mind, we chose to launch this pattern in the early fall because of its bright colors and tropical spirit. The vibrant leaves and critters dispersed throughout are a nod to the shifting of seasons, the perfect transition from warm weather to autumn and the early winter holidays. Plus, citrus is refreshing any time of the year. We felt like we just had to have it now!
Shopping the Collection
Orange Grove is available in both our long and short sleep sets, short robe, shorts, and capri separates, and our sleep shirt. No matter what you like to sleep in or what season it is, there is the perfect pajama for you in this beautiful print.Â
Do you have any special memories or family recipes with oranges? If you want to share, tell us about them in the comments.
