Friday, October 30, 2009

Marigolds and Oranges


OCTOBER'S BIRTH FLOWER IS THE MARIGOLD
Their rich, autumn-colored hues make marigolds very appropriate for this time of year. As with most flowers, meanings ascribed to them vary among cultures and time periods. Early Christians called marigolds Mary’s Gold, and placed them by statues of the Virgin Mary. The Welsh believed that if marigolds were not open early in the morning, a storm was on the way. In the complex Victorian language of flowers, marigolds were appointed the flowers of grief and despair. Once considered the most sacred of flowers in India, garlands of marigolds were placed around the necks of holy statues.


Other sources say the marigold, also called calendula, signifies affection and grace. And some have called it "summer bride" or "husbandman's dial" because its flower head follows the sun as it moves across the sky. Also appropriate for the season, the marigold appears to have healing, even magical, powers. Fresh petals can be used to relieve the pain of a bee sting and a thrifty skin cleanser can be made from dried petals mixed with almond oil and fragrant rose or orange blossom water. Some cultures have used marigolds as love charms and a water made from marigolds was believed to induce visions of fairies when rubbed on the eyelids. Others thought that marigold flowers added to the stuffing of a pillow would encourage prophetic or psychic dreams.


Meaningful and magical as these late-harvest flowers can be, we don't often think of marigolds when building a bouquet—though this one, above, is actually quite charming. Equally charming is the effect the warm, orange color of the marigold can have on our interiors. And while the color orange may not suit every taste, used in small doses or large, it does add a spark, a warmth, and an element of surprise that suits many styles.

















If you do love orange,
and your dining room walls happen to already be painted that color,
it isn't difficult to imagine that you might also enjoy decorating for one of our most fun-filled fall celebrations. The following images were borrowed from Decor Village.

HAVE A HAPPY
HALLOWEEN !!!

17 comments:

Linda@ Lime in the Coconut said...

OK...I am REALLY a convert now. First of all...I love orange...and indeed I do have walls painted that color (though I call it Mango and mamey). But what I NEVER knew is that marigold is related to calendula...I use calendula oil all the time at work!

Go figure! Yep...a convert!

Linda@ Lime in the Coconut said...

OK...I am REALLY a convert now. First of all...I love orange...and indeed I do have walls painted that color (though I call it Mango and mamey). But what I NEVER knew is that marigold is related to calendula...I use calendula oil all the time at work!

Go figure! Yep...a convert!

the gardener's cottage said...

i never knew the two flowers were related either. how interesting. see, i learned something new today!

thanks

~janet

p.s. love all the orange images.

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

I love rooms with touches of orange. Then I realized my dining room walls are a coppery color which can be read as an orange {especially in pictures}. My birthday is this month so I wonder if that has anything to do with it. : )

Anonymous said...

I'm an orange fan and I love these images! (funny - we both used one of the same images in our posts today :-)). And who knew that Marigold's could be used for bee stings and cleanser? I learned something new today! Great post. Have a good weekend...
pk @ Room Remix

Anonymous said...

Great images. I love orange in any amount, but the rooms with just a cameo appearance by the hue were some of my favorites here!

annechovie said...

Beautiful post, Tracy! Marigolds remind me of my childhood. Have a wonderful weekend.

Content in a Cottage said...

I never knew the marigold was the birth flower for October. My mother turned 89 on Oct. 19. Too late to give her a bouquet...maybe next year. I have to admit that orange used to be my least favorite color after purple but it's growing on me. Especially if it's named bittersweet or curry or another disguised name. Happy Hallowee. ~Rosemary

Roeshel said...

I'm new to your blog - and I love all of the inspiration that your provide and have enjoyed looking back through the posts! Nice to meet you! :)
~Roeshel

Pamela Terry and Edward said...

To me, orange is the colour of October! Lovely post! And Happy Halloweeeeeen!

Anonymous said...

Cute stuff. Love the Halloween Pumpkins. Happy Halloween.
Rh

Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality said...

Oooo, pretty pics, Tracy!

you were asking about my round table, it's 52" and that's all I could get in my DR. I measured for days before determining what size table I could use & I finally found one that would work. I do think you could squeeze 8 around a 60" just fine. I love my round table!

Unknown said...

great post, and i love how your orange rooms varied from just a hint to a whole lot o'orange.

love marigolds too, though i'm pretty allergic!

Melanie said...

I love orange too. I don't have it in my house now but it is a very happy color. I have deep reds in our house but I might do our bedroom in gray with orange accents.

kayellen said...

Orange is such a happy color :)
Love it in fall decor too!!

Happy Halloween and first day of November..really hard to believe it is here!!

Nice pics of designed vingettes and rooms!

Have good week:)

KayEllen

Maria Killam said...

Very clever, everything coordinated with the marigolds! I did not know they were October's flower!
Lovely images!

Averill said...

You've won me over, too! Just about all of these images are going into my inspiration files. Thanks, Tracy!