The natural world is a big part of life in Laos. Natural elements are incorporated into ceremonies, and everyday life, in beautiful ways. So when we were looking for something to create a bit of sparkle in our jewelry it was this little flower that stood out.
Dok hak is commonly known in English as the crown flower. The scientific name is Calotropis Gigantea. It is significantly used in wedding ceremonies.
In a Lao wedding bacis, strings unite the bride, groom and family in blessing. There will be offerings made of flowers and the dok hak (literally translated love flower) are placed on bamboo sticks as in the photo above. I was fortunate enough to experience a Lao wedding ceremony and the one part I really enjoyed was elders from both myself and the groom sat together and we had to give each one a bouquet of flowers held together in cone leaf, and pray in front of them. It was a wonderful recognition of our founding family members.
These small acts in Lao life are what makes the culture very special, the acts of giving and receiving, of joining at times of joy and times of trouble, and the rituals with their natural elements provide strength for the participants.
When you know these acts of kindness and joy around the flowers, you see them in a different light. So maybe give a little love - in a flower - a dok hak.
See the dok hak collection here.