A spectacular sea of handmade forget-me-not flowers has bloomed across the Museum of East Dorset in Wimborne, as the award-winning museum marks the start of Dementia Action Week with a striking tribute. More than 9,100 knitted and crocheted flowers now decorate the museum’s historic townhouse, tearoom and exhibition spaces – a powerful show of support for those affected by dementia.
The project began in February with a call to knitters across the UK to create woollen forget-me-nots in recognition of Dementia Action Week. The response was extraordinary, with flowers arriving from across Dorset, Lancashire and even as far as Scotland – many parcels including heartfelt notes commemorating loved ones touched by the condition.
An army of volunteers has since stitched and glued all 9,100 blooms into place, transforming the museum into a vibrant display of care and solidarity. The forget-me-not is the recognised emblem of the Alzheimer’s Society’s annual campaign, designed to bring people together in remembrance and support.
The museum encouraged community involvement by offering free wool and patterns to anyone who wanted to contribute.
Long-time museum volunteer Sally Palmer was instrumental in gathering support. Sally, who has volunteered at the Museum of East Dorset for thirteen years, said: “I just kept asking people who came into the tearoom if they knitted. If they said yes, I gave them a leaflet and asked them to get involved. I also rallied my friends who contributed about 500 flowers.”
It was museum director Francesca Hollow who originally imagined the large-scale installation. “We are overwhelmed by the support of this campaign and would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who got involved. When we launched it we hoped for a few hundred and our post bag just kept getting bigger! Whether you knitted a handful or hundreds—our display shows that every flower is equally important.”
The campaign doesn’t stop with the flowers. Sally has also created ‘Freddy the Dementia Teddy’ to support the cause. Freddy, along with knitted forget-me-not pins, is available in the museum gift shop for £9.95 – with proceeds helping fund the museum’s growing range of dementia-friendly initiatives in the local community.
To find out more about the Museum of East Dorset’s work supporting those affected by dementia, visit www.museumofeastdorset.co.uk.
