Announcing the launch of the F&B Daisy Chain. A project to promote one giant unbroken chain of love, gratitude and thoughtfulness.
Today we launched a new project and we couldn’t be more excited! We think you will be too!
The F&B Daisy Chain project was born from increasing clarity about our mission and purpose as a company. We exist to provide a chic and contemporary way for people to nurture and nourish their most important relationships. In these challenging times where we can feel isolated from those we love and cherish, flowers are the medium so many people have turned to carry their messages of love, gratitude and thoughtfulness.
They say a picture tells a thousand words, but truth is flowers say so much more. Whether it is “Happy Birthday – can’t wait to have cocktails!”, “Congratulations on the new baby!” or even ”I’m sorry your boyfriend is a dickhead”. With flowers you can say a bunch.
Inspired by “chain letters” of the pre-Internet era, this project is designed to keep alive a chain of love and gratitude through gifting a complimentary bouquet from Fig & Bloom. We are giving you the chance to send a loved one a free large size bouquet from Fig & Bloom. That’s right, FREE OF CHARGE!
Your recipient can then send a free bouquet to someone they nominate… and so on… and so on… until the chain ⛓️ is broken.
(We hope it never is!)
Nominate a Friend
The F&B Daisy Chain is set to bloom from two small seeds. And it’s not too late to enter the draw to be one of the lucky two recipients who will start the chain!
Enter the draw by TAGGING A FRIEND on this Instagram post and and tell us why you’d like them to receive a bouquet.
If you are selected, you’ll start the chain by sending us a short video message explaining who is receiving the flowers and why they are important you. And over the coming weeks & months we will amplify all the messages of love.
What is Chain Mail?
Did you know that before chain letters swept the internet and appeared in your inbox promising a win of $7,000,000 they were used for things like raising funds for orphans and sending messages from God?
The concept of a Chain Mail is loosely defined as messages designed to be passed on for either selfish, charitable and even vicious purposes and have taken a vast amount of formats over the centuries. They often either promise a reward if you comply and continue the chain – whether monetary or moral, or a curse or misfortune if you don’t. Daniel VanArsdale, a folklorist who compiled the Paper Chain Letter Archive, defines chain letters as writings that “explicitly” ask recipients to make or purchase copies for distribution. This correspondence often involves a slight variation in the original message, by perhaps updating a name, address, or altering the message slightly.
Even if the changes are slight, they can be indicative of a form of ‘evolution’ – a subtlety that inspired VanArsdale, who was a mathematician by training, to further research the medium. In his collection of over 900 chain letters, the subjects range from a 1896 fundraiser for an orphanage to a 1982 note urging recipients to relay a message forward or face devastating consequences!
Where did they come from?
There is evidence of a form of Chain Mail dating as far back as Ancient Egypt, where in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, there is a promise declared to the reader who copies a certain image within the text who “shall find it of great benefit to him both in heaven and on earth,” while the “man who knows not this picture shall never be able to repulse the serpent Neha-hra.” In Asian, printed prayers known as dharani encouraged eighth-century residents of Japan to expel “evil karma” by copying their text and placing them in pagodas.
Around Medieval times, another form of chain letter forebearer is the apparent “Letter from Heaven” which was supposedly a letter straight from Jesus himself! The apparent divine messages often conveyed instructions such as ‘celebrate the Sabbath on a Sunday rather than a Saturday.
Chain Mail experienced a peak in the 20th century due to rising literacy rates and more reliable postal service. One of the most well known chain letter series of the 20th century was the “Send-a-Dime” scheme, which exploded in America during the Great Depression. Commencing in spring of 1935, these letters contained a list of five or six names and addresses. Recipients were asked to send 10 cents to the person in slot number one, remove this individual from the list, move the four remaining entries up one slot, write their own contact information in the newly vacated final space and pass the chain along to new participants.
In the 1990’s and 2000’s, the increase in email popularity and the beginnings of social media really evolved the Chain Mail’s format and mission. I’m sure you’re all familiar with the email asking for personal details, or threatening 7 years of bad luck if it’s not passed on!
This brings us to today – in a time when we’re in and out of lockdown, being restricted to our home space for perhaps longer than we’d wish and getting just a teensy bit bored?! Chain Mail is making a resurgence, as an interesting and nostalgic way to communicate that can feel more meaningful than sending an Instagram DM. We’ve heard of friends sending recipe Chain Mails, little love notes and photo challenges.
This trend of taking time and care in communicating a meaningful message has inspired us at Fig & Bloom to say the least! Who wouldn’t want to receive a beautiful bunch of flowers with a caring message to brighten up their space??
You can view our current and past participants below for our fabulous F&B Daisy Chain project and see their heartfelt reasons for passing on the love!
