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The Number 3 for Good Fortune - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

From time immemorial, the number 3 has played an important part in everyday human life.  Three is considered the fundamental number, a synthesis of 1 and 2 representing the unity of heaven and earth.  Number 3 points to the intellectual and spiritual order, the divine qualities in the cosmos and in people. It is often viewed as a number of good fortune. In numerology, people with a number 3 personality are optimistic, creative curious, good-natured and helpful.  But they may also be naive and proud, with a tendency to exaggerate and give promises easily.

The Earth Laughs in Flowers - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

The weather has been unusually warm here in the Desert Southwest (sorry about that to my northern friends!).  Winter was only a glancing blow a few times.  Since the days have been warm with plenty of sunshine, the grass in the back yard is beginning to green up and some fruit trees are already blooming, masses of pale pink and white flowers.  One of my geraniums is blooming, the hot fuchsia color is so welcome, and the hardy roses are putting on lovely reddish new growth.  Am sure they will be in full bloom in several weeks. And, happily, the much beloved Spanish lavender is setting buds.  Soon the cacti and other native desert plants will be in full bloom - maybe not the showiest of flowers, but gorgeously sublime nonetheless.

The Magical Color of Purple - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

Since purple is a fairly rare color in nature, an almost magical aura has been associated to it throughout human history.  The first historical record of a purple dye, called Tyrian purple, indicates that it began to be manufactured in the Phoenician city of Tyre in the eastern Mediterranean in the 14th century BCE.  The dye was extracted from the glands of several types of shellfish, but especially the Murex brandaris.  The process to extract the dye took about three days.  Thousands of putrefied, crushed shellfish were left to bake in the sun.  Salt was then added and the mash of glands were boiled down.  (Can you imagine the overwhelming stench of the process!!!).  It took about 12,000 shellfish to extract 1.5 grams of the pure dye, barely enough to dye a single garment the size of a Roman toga.  In 301 A.D. during the reign of Roman Emperor Diocletian, one pound of purple dye cost 150,000 denarii or around three pounds of gold. This is the main reason the purple color was reserved for emperors or individuals with titles of royal authority.

Think Green for Artisan Christmas Gifts - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

Red and green are colors that are closely associated with Christmas.  Last week I shared how red became a Christmas color.  You can read that post here:  Think Red for Artisan Christmas Gifts.  This week, green, the other Christmas color, is explored mainly through the symbolism of holly, mistletoe and evergreen trees.

The color green and its association with the time around Christmas has a pre-Christian origin, more specifically tied to the Winter Solstice.  Evergreen plants, like holly, mistletoe and pine, spruce or fir trees have been used for thousands of years to decorate and brighten up buildings during the long, dark, cold winter when life could be very tenuous.  Ancient peoples were scared of the short days and freezing nights and mistakenly believed that the Sun might disappear altogether. Evergreens reminded people that spring would come and that winter wouldn't last forever.  Historical records show that the Romans wove wreaths of holly to hang on their walls and doors to celebrate the winter solstice / Saturnalia. They also exchanged evergreen branches as a sign of good luck. The ancient Egyptians would bring green date palm branches into their homes during their mid- winter festivals as a symbol of "life triumphant over death." To the ancient people, the color green represented life, nature, peace, eternity and the hope of the future.