Marigolds

There is a scene maybe mid-way through the movie Monsoon Wedding involving marigolds that pops into my head from time to time. The wedding planner, Dubey (Vijay Raaz), has just had another exasperating moment setting up the wedding, and a basket of marigolds falls on him. The flowers rain down, and he eats one (marigolds are edible). The falling marigolds make the scene so much more emotional. I have no idea why I think about this scene, but I do. I was thinking about it earlier this week when I was drawing my original design for today's piece.

Marigolds are one of my favorite flowers. Their use and symbolism goes back to ancient Egypt and the Aztecs. They're considered both celebration flowers and mourning flowers; I love the fact that they can be both. Their bright colors, mostly yellows and oranges, associate them with the sun. Marigolds are also considered "companion flowers," often grown near vegetable gardens to keep pests and diseases away. While I enjoy all types of marigolds, I particularly like two varieties of French marigolds, Durango flame and Lucifer. Both varieties include red coloring, which is rare in marigolds. I used the colors of these two varieties as my inspiration today. 

Originally, I was going to create my marigold with actual petals and use layered satin stitch to create the flower. I wasn't in a satin stitch mood this morning, so I switched it up completely and went with a French knot flower instead. It was completely unplanned, so it's not as centered on the fabric as it probably should be, but I'm not mad about it. 

Tomorrow is the first day of tree week! I'm excited to get this week started, particularly Wednesday's tree which may feature actual functioning lights. Don't miss out!

Details:
Stitches: French knots, back stitch
Thread palette: DMC 742, 743 (6 strands), 815 (3, 6 strands)