Elfreda

Description

Elfreda – Red Thread Collection

This shirt is in honour of my grandmother, Elfreda — a name I’ve carried since birth, meaning “elf strength” and “strong, resilient one.” Though she passed just after I was born, I’ve always felt her with me — in the established garden she nurtured and, in the strength, she passed down through her name.

Elfreda was a woman of her time — strong, determined, and visionary. A MummaBear of boys in the 40s and 50s, she had to be tough, yet she balanced discipline with warmth. I’d love to sit with her now, to ask about her experiences as a Mumma, her balance of family and business and how she carried her grace. But I’ll settle for just the knowing she did it with all the most beautiful qualities.

Family meant everything to her. I’ve seen the pictures and heard the stories of Poppy’s and Nanny’s home alive with connection — the buzz of gatherings, music, dancing, food and the kind of parties that stitched people together. I can still smell the perfume she left on her dresser and sometimes I imagine her walking a garden with me.

She was beautiful, resilient and rooted in the values of hard work and love. Stoic really. She’s the one who gifted me many of my passions and an affinity with gardens — that sense of patience, growth and being grounded. Gifts I’ll always cherish and bring me close to her.

The Elfreda shirt carries her traits: resilience and elegance, practicality and beauty. Crafted from lightweight 105 GSM cotton floral with 140 GSM linen plaid accents, it’s a design that blends strength with softness — just as she did.

This piece is dedicated to the thread I share with Nanny.

*** Jes & Leesa wear a size 12 comfortably