Purple and White Bearded Iris 'Batik'
If you hadn't yet guessed, iris is my favorite flower. And like the gorgeous iris photographed above, I have several different varieties planted in my backyard garden.
People have been cultivating the iris for thousands of years. The beautiful showy flowers are available in every color of the rainbow. In fact their name comes from the Greek word for rainbow. The flowers have three upward facing petals as well as three downward sepals. Usually the iris' blooms last for a short three days.
In past cultures, symbolism was assigned to many things and each flower had a meaning. Though it is not something we think of nowadays it is still a lovely thought. The iris symbolized eloquence. And each color had its own meaning with purple irises symbolizing wisdom, white symbolizing purity, yellow symbolizing passion, and the blue iris symbolizing faith and hope.
I designed these iris seed beaded earrings and bracelet based on the purple iris that grows in my backyard:
