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Essie Mae Arsan
All Saints' Day Wreaths
The first of November, All Saints' Day, is an important day for Catholics in Louisiana French communities. Many communities observe this day of remembrance for deceased relatives and friends by visiting cemeteries, cleaning loved ones' graves, and decorating the tombs with flowers. Priests then bless the graves. All Saints' Day is also an occasion for an affirmation of family ties.
Essie Mae Arsan, a long-time resident of Thibodaux in Lafourche Parish, makes the traditional wreaths (couronnes) of waxed paper flowers that are placed on tombs. African-American and Anglo families alike once made these wreaths for this significant occasion. At the present, there are only a few individuals like Essie Mae Arsan continuing this traditional art.
When Mrs. Arsan was a child, the waxed-flower wreaths were made by her grandmother. Her mother carried on the tradition, and now Mrs. Arsan does the same. She learned the art from her mother and grandmother, and has been making wreaths since she was 12 years old. Today, she is teaching a granddaughter who she feels will carry on the tradition.
The wreaths are made of wire, crepe paper, and paraffin wax. The style, form, and colors of Mrs. Arsan's wreaths remain essentially unaltered, but some of the materials and methods have changed. The traditional colors for the flowers are purple and white, which represent mourning or death and eternal life or resurrection. Mrs. Arsan uses white and brightly colored crepe paper for her flowers; there are seven or eight flowers on each wreath.
Mrs. Arsan first cuts the petals from crepe paper, making them all the same size, about two inches high and one and a half inches wide. One by one, the petals are wrapped and overlap each other around the end of the stem of floral wire. As the petals are added, the wire is twisted around the base to secure them. The base is tied with strong thread and the stem is wrapped with green floral tape.
The petals are then separated and shaped like a rose. The flower is briefly dipped in a pot of hot liquid paraffin, which stiffens and protects them. In the past, a double boiler was used to melt the paraffin. Today, Mrs. Arsan uses an electric hotpot with a thermostat that keeps the paraffin at about 250 degrees. After the flowers dry, they are fastened to a wire circle made from a coat hanger. Mrs. Arsan wraps the frame with strips of green paper and then dabs it with wax to make it weather-proof so that it will last all year.
Wax flowers were also used for other purposes in the past: bridal bouquets and wedding decorations. Mrs. Arsan makes her wreaths for regular customers for All Saints' Day and sometimes for other occasions like decorating tombs at Easter or on the birthday of the deceased. She also makes pine straw baskets.
Mrs. Arsan is a member of the Louisiana Crafts Program and has demonstrated her craft at festivals throughout Louisiana, including the Black Heritage Festival, The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, the Louisiana Folklife Festival, the Natchitoches-NSU Folk Festival, and the Native Crafts Festival.
Few individuals like Essie Mae Arsan maintain this traditional art.