{image source: flickr user law_keven at www.creativecommons.org }
I remember the buttercups that used to dot my elementary school playground.
I went there for nine years so I knew the field well. The buttercups would shoot up faster than the blades of grass between mowings.
{image from wikipedia}
When we were younger, we'd hold them up under eachother's chins & it was, " Do you like butter?"
A little older and it was, "he loves me, he loves me not"
{He loves me!}
You never really knew if he was going to love you or not with buttercups because some types have 5 petals and others have 6.
I loved making flower chains & never really grew out of it. I remember doing them in the Spring as I waited for my turn at long jump in high school track. One day I remember making necklaces for the other sprinters & somehow convincing even the guys to wear them as crowns... (My coach must have loooved that ;)
ahahahaha (It really still makes me laugh out loud.)
More than anything, I just remember always picking them up & playing with them when I see them. Long talks on the field with my best friend, scooping down to pick a buttercup, subconsciously. Crumbling the old flower centers into little pieces between my fingers & rolling them around.
I love these pics of the plants from NC State... (above & below)
{image source for above pics: http://www.toronto-wildlife.com/Plants/Buttercup_family/more_tall_buttercup.html }
It's for pretty much all of these reasons that I've known for a while I wanted to do a buttercup design for my textile line. When the power went out for days this Summer & we needed to get out of town, we made an impromput visit to see my dad in Illinois & have him meet the baby... The car ride is 13 hours and it was the first time after Luke was born (in May) that I'd had some time to sketch. I worked on "buttercup" in my lap...
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{The beginnings of it... as you can see, drawing doesn't come easily to me & there are lots of erase marks & mess ups}
The design (like all of them) is just an interpretation... not a botanical study. I add my own little things here & there and I'm sure I leave out pretty important parts, but it's the feeling that I'm after...
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{One of my first strike-offs}
I'm working on the final colorways now but I'm really happy with the light earthiness of this first one...
A few more options are on their way & I hope you enjoyed a peek into the process.
...
Do you have any buttercup memories?
If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.