My name is Charlotte, sometimes known as Ms Lottie, occasionally as The Slightly Mad Quilt Lady. This is my blog, where you'll find me writing a lot about my quilting and textile arts and a little about my family's life in a small seaside town in New Zealand. Haere mai!

Friday, September 5, 2014

Kowhai Flowers


There's a Kowhai tree down the road that I keep my eye on.  When it flowers I know Spring is on it's way.  Kowhai (pronounced caw-fi, hear it here) is also the Maori word for yellow.  After the tree flowers, it develops woody pods with distinct circular divisions, each containing a hard seed that is also yellow.


The Kowhai is special to me.  We chose to give our daughter Kowhai as one of her names.  I love the yellow colour of the flowers, especially when they are against the bright blue of a sunny sky.


Yet yellow is the smallest pile of fabrics in my stash.  I like butter, daffodils, sunshine and buttercups.  Lemons, grapefruit, and fluffy yellow chicks.  And now I'm seeing a spring theme to all the things I'm writing down.  I think I'm hanging out for some warmer weather and sunshine, but until that happens maybe I can lift my spirits by petting some yellow fabrics instead.

3 comments:

  1. I have always loved the Kowhai since I first came to New Zealand, such a glorious colour, and unlike you I seem to have amassed a huge collection of yellow fabrics!

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  2. Beautiful photos Charlotte - you know I love the Kowhai too! Funny I've been thinking a bit about yellow fabric lately too...!!

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  3. There is something special about the Kowhai tree and flowers, ours hasn't flowered yet, I hope it is OK.

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