​Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”.

Gender: Feminine 
Element: Water
Planet: Venus

In Victorian days, the yellow rose was given to represent jealousy.  The modern symbolism is to honor friendship. This is the rose to give to cherished friends to let them know you value them. 
The peace rose, a yellow rose with hints of rose on the edges of the petals, represents peace as well as friendship. I’m wishing all of my  friends and followers a Valentine’s Day filled with dear friends and a peaceful heart! Happy Valentine’s Day!

Red  is the featured color in  this week’s Exploring Rainbows course for the Renaissance Institute,  Notre Dame University of Maryland. We’re immersing ourselves in the color red - exploring how it is used in art, advertising, language, songs, fragrances and flavors, sports,  superheroes,  cartoons and characters, legend and lore and more!  How fortuitous that both Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day fall in this week’s calendar!  Join us if you’d like and make red your focus for the week.  

 Put on your rose colored glasses and consider looking at the world in a different perspective this week. In our rainbow course, Exploring Rainbows, I've encouraged the class participants to seek out  red. 

Red is the color of extremes. It stimulates, excites and inspires action. It is associated with love and joy, passion, sex, anger and rage. Spending some time to learn more about the color can unfold in a variety of ways. I'm calling their homework "Homeplay". There are a number of ways to play. Join us!

1. The first is by simply being observant. Look for red in advertising logos, clothes, foods, in movies and television, internet posts, sports teams. Notice super heroes, cartoons and mascots dressed in red. Listen for references to the color red in songs and in phrases and quotes. Look for references to red in other cultures, fairy tales and fables, religious and spiritual association. Be aware of how red is used in art - fine art, crafts, mandalas, mosaics, stained glass.

2. The next level of participation is becoming actively involved. Put on your favorite red sweater and  the ruby ring tucked in the back of the dresser drawer that you haven't thought about for ages. Go to a restaurant (check to see if they are open and practice safe distancing) with a red interior - you can find one by doing a google search on 'restaurants, red and the name of your town'. Order red foods and look around the restaurant for shades of red. 

You can go to a museum or gallery website, purposefully looking for red in paintings, collages and sculptures. When was red used? Was red used more often in certain time periods? Not at all in others? Why? Do certain artists use it more than others? Visit sites or blogs featuring  light shows, festivals and fairs, seeking out the color. Are you  more likely to find red associate with certain cultures? What are they? Do more research and discover how they view red, currently and historically. 

3. Another way to play with red is to become immersed by creating something red! Get out the paints, yarn, or fabric. Gather foods in various shades of red, then play with the fragrances and flavors of red. While you're cooking and creating, play songs with red in the title. Explore a catalogue to plan  for your garden this spring and see how many flowers and plants (many plants have red in the leaves) in different shades of red. 

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Yesterday  I ran across a stack of baby animals I painted years ago and decided to use them to create  collages. This  morning a post from  the past showed up on Facebook,  featuring several. It seems  the universe is encouraging  me! 

After  cutting them out, I placed them on some 18” by 24” canvases that I  had planned for other projects, just to see  how they’d look. Here are a few . . . 

When we think of a red rose, romantic love immediately comes to mind.  But there are so many kinds of love - love of beauty, gardening, nature, family, life. When I  posted this rose on Facebook recently, a friend shared this beautiful story, celebrating her mother-in-law’s love of  roses. She gave me permission to share it. I hope  it  will touch  your  heart the way  it did mine!
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​The lavender rose is associated with enchantment, splendor and royalty. In the Victorian era, its message  in the language of flowers was “love at first sight”. This rare beauty is rich in meaning. Send it to that special person with an essence of elegance, or someone  who deserves special appreciation  because of the way they share their gifts. Send it to the person who immediately enchanted you, in a romantic, or friendly way. Receiving a lavender rose is said to be an unforgettable experience! 

Our weekly herb series will  continue through out the month of February with roses. The orange rose is burning with  passion! If  you want to send a message declaring your fascination and desire, this is the color to choose! Adding a red rose, to declare  your true love, would certainly be an ideal combination!

In an earlier post, I mentioned the Language of Flowers from 1846, when each flower, and the numbers of flowers in a bouquet, represented a message. The chart below will give you a framework for choosing flowers but you can also use your own creative combinations, along with other flowers and herbs, such as rosemary for remembrance. Most florists are familiar with the symbolism of flowers and can help you create the perfect bouquet to send a one of a kind message. 
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Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”.

Gender: Feminine
Element: Water
Planet: Venus
​

 As we begin February, the white rose, symbolic for new beginnings, is a lovely harbinger! We’re watching a new month and a new week unfold, and this is the first day of Black History Month. Depending on the ground hog’s discovery  tomorrow, we may  soon be celebrating another new beginning - the arrival of  spring

Traditionally, the white rose stands for purity and innocence. According to one Christian legend, at one time all roses were red. The Virgin Mary, the most pure and innocent of all, washed her veil and draped it on a red rose bath  to  dry. When she  removed it, all of the roses on the  bush  had turned pure white.

Another legend states as Aphrodite rose out of  the ocean, the sea foam around her turned into thousands of white roses. From this story’s original white roses, red  roses were created. There are several versions of the red rose obtaining its color and fragrance. I’ll add more detail when we honor the red rose! 

That associations with purity  and innocence have remained, and 'new beginnings' and 'ever lasting love' have  been added. 

One  of three steps  in creating my  collages -
​papers painted and ready to  be combined for the backgrounds. 

The ivory rose sends a message of care and thoughtfulness, pure, with no romantic intentions. 
The pale pink rose symbolizes gratitude and appreciation, the perfect rose to send as a thank you. 

Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”.

Gender: Feminine 
Element: Water
Planet: Venus

The rose, cherished internationally, ia a native of the United States. The  oldest  known fossil was  found on a slate  deposit  in Florissant, Colorado, and is estimated to be thirty-five million years old. In 1987, legislation was passed to make the rose the National Floral Emblem of the United States. It is also the state flower of the District of Columbia, Georgia, Iowa, North Dakota and New York. 
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Through  out history, the rose has been associated  with  psychic powers, healing and protection.  At one time it  was used extensively in cooking, and our own Baltimore Coffee and Tea Company features a divine  Eastern Shore Victorian Rose Tea. 

But with all  its  powers and virtues, it is best know for its association with love.

“The rose is the emblem of all  ages, the interpreter of all our feelings, the rose mingles with our festivities, our joy, our grief. Modesty borrows the delicate blush; it is given as the  prize  of virtue, the image of youth, innocence, and  pleasure.  It  is consecrated  to Venus, the  goddess of beauty, and like her, possesses a grace more exquisite than beauty  itself.” 

                                 ~  From the  Language of Flowers -  1846, Illustrated by  Kate Greenaway

Flowers took on a new role in the Vitorian era. The Victorians attributed meaning to flowers, creating an elegant and silent language. Roses were a favorite.  Over the years, meanings have been expanded and altered. (Yellow roses once symbolized jealousy but the modern interpretation is friendship, for example). 

As we approach Valentine’s Day, when an estimated  250 million roses are sold in the  United States, it seems the perfect time  to honor the rose.  The next few weeks will feature roses of different colors, their messages, stories and legends. 

Over the next few weeks, as we approach Valentine's Day, I'll be revisiting some of the herbs associated with love and romance.. When it comes to matters of the heart, there are no limits to the human imagination in pursuing, wooing and attempting to ensure their love will be returned. Some of the uses are romantic and beautiful, elegant and sublime. Some are tender and heart warming.
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Herbs can add a sensuous dimension to all aspects of life. Their beauty, aroma, flavors and touch delight. Some are showy and enticing with an distinctive and noticeable fragrance. Others you might walk by, or even step on, and not even notice! Often the greatest gifts are found in herbs you might not immediately notice. Hopefully these little snippets will entice you to learn more about the endless history and legacy of these treasures. 

Our  herb series continues with the Rose, the Queen of Flowers and the undisputed floral symbol of love. The Society of American Florists predicts that nearly 250 million roses will be sold for Valentine’s Day. 

The rose is a perfect example of beauty, romance and sensuous living. She is a vision of delight, her petals are velvet, her fragrance is divine and her delicate flavor is sublime.  i wish you all the gifts the rose offers - love, friendship, beauty, romance and sensuous pleasures.