When I choose my dreams, I often go to the bay in New Jersey where I grew up. I sit on a white concrete bench, embedded with grey planks that match the salt-washed boardwalk. Along the boardwalk cement barriers rise knee-high and often embedded with posts or rocks, to keep the soft, sandy yards from spilling forward during hurricane season. They’re chunky and the flecks of sand and stone sparkle as the sun rises and sets. It smells like honeysuckle because the vines grow over the walls and benches.
Honeysuckle creates the mildest of floral scents, close to nothing beside the spray of salt air. In fact, I wonder if you can smell it much at all in other places. Does it merely neutralize the harsh fishy scent of the waves?
Honeysuckle Daydreams
Honeysuckle flowers (lonicera caprifolum) symbolize togetherness and friendship. They stretch out with creeping vines that use tiny, curled tendrils to cling as they climb. They’re like morning glories yet, subtler. I’ve never seen one that wasn’t a pale, off-white.
You can’t really even say they look yellow. They’re lighter than the sand. If you pluck a single bud, you can pull the stamen forward through the middle of the flower. At the end, a single drop will form. If you lick it, the nectar tastes like honey. I imagine the clinging vines create the illusion of togetherness. This plant must rely on its surroundings to flourish.
Honeysuckle Colors
Historically, the color of the flower further influences the meaning. White flowers represent innocence and purity creating a symbol of pure love. Yellow flowers symbolize friendship, trust, and respect for platonic connection. Pink flowers represent playfulness and romance while red flowers are passionate.
These brighter tones aren’t the first that enter my mind. However, Pantone elevated its profile with their 2011 color of the year. Their honeysuckle’s deep burst of pink splashed across all the bridesmaid dresses that year (including on the promotional posters for the Bridesmaid movie).
Courageous. Confident. Vital. A brave new colour, for a brave new world. Let the bold spirit of Honeysuckle infuse you, lift you and carry you through the year. It’s a colour for every day – with nothing “everyday” about it. A dynamic reddish pink, Honeysuckle is encouraging and uplifting.
Personally, I prefer the quiet white against soft green leaves (albeit more #cottagecore than trendsetting).
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