The Umbrella Girls

The Umbrella Girls are a series of watercolor paintings that have made Isabel MacFarland famous. Isabel’s first painting was made as a Christmas gift to Charlotte. The umbrella in the paintings is the one that Julia described to her sister as being the one that she wanted. Therefore, the Umbrella Girls are symbolic of Julia.

The Brides Box

The brides box is what Emmy and Julia come to call the wooden box that Nana had given to Emmy. The box originally contained the embroidery floss that Nana left for Emmy to practice her stitches. Emmy replaced the floss with her sketches because she believed the box was a better container than her geometry folder. To Julia, this box became a symbol of what was about to separate her from her sister when she realized Emmy had an appointment to talk about being an...