Primrose & Bluebell: A Favourite Print; Inspired by the Flowers of Spring

Inspired by the untamed beauty of my garden and the soft colours of an English spring, this primrose and bluebell design has become a firm favourite in my collection. In this post, I’m sharing the story behind the print, the process of bringing it to life, and why it holds such a special place in my heart.

Falling for a favourite

It's not supposed to happen, but it does, having favourites. And the print version of this design, set on a dark background, printed in yellow and blue is definitely one of mine. I love the warm, Arts and Crafts feel that comes through in this specific colourway— with a quiet richness and harmony that really resonates.

The Inspiration – Spring Blooming

The inspiration came, as it always does from my surroundings. My garden, though “garden” might be a generous term, is a rambling, slightly chaotic patch of land encircled by farmland. It’s a place where the wild things flourish, where blackberry, nettles, ivy, dandelion, buttercups and wild grass thrive, despite my ineffectual efforts to tame them. And in spring, when there is suddenly a little warmth and sunshine to add to the rain, the colour starts to come, and it's a lovely place to sit and start to come out of the winter grey.

Pockets of self-seeded primroses pop up across the grass, their pale-yellow blooms catching the light, they can be quite hard to see in the green. Around the same time, the bluebells are coming out, and the colours together are just perfect—soft, fresh, and full of spring energy.

From Garden to Fabric to Lampshade – the Design Process

This was the first design I approached as a multi-colour pattern repeat—a little step up in complexity from my earlier prints. It’s still a fairly simple process compared to, say, traditional Indian block printing (with its many intricately overprinted layers of colour), but on my modest printing table, it felt like a new adventure in planning and precision.

I began with a repeating primrose motif, designing a layout that would feel balanced and natural around the central feature of the bluebell. A couple of bees crept into the design too—in appreciation of the bumble bees that nest in the ground; that I’m lucky to share my space with. At this point I also decided the colour separation for each area – not necessarily colour specific, but which aspects of the design would be individual colours.

Each colour would be printed from its own block, with the corresponding place in the other blocks being carved clear. This is where my design has its simplicity, a clear area in the middle of the primroses, for a bluebell to snuggly fit taking centre stage. I made a tiny bee block too – just because. That little bee is quite the star, and it now pops up in many of my designs.

On some of my prints I have picked out a single primrose flower in the main block and made that a different colour – giving another layer of uniqueness to each print run. Fiddly and slow? Yes, but also quite meditative and fun.

Primrose & Bluebell in blue

This fabric, in the blue and yellow makes a particularly lovely lampshade, this one on a carousel frame. This is lined with a bright light blue, which adds a fresh contrast, and finished it with navy fringing that compliments the whole piece beautifully. It’s a little celebration of spring, of bees and blooms, and of those quiet moments in the garden when nature puts on a show.

And although this block is designed as a repeat pattern, I've started printing it as a single print on cards, which makes a really pretty card for someone special.

Primrose & Bluebell is more than just a pretty print—it's a reminder of the quieter joys of the seasons, of noticing the small things, and of taking inspiration from the natural world just as it is. It captures a specific moment in the seasons as colour starts to return, with the pale yellow of primroses and the flush of blue bells, the hum of bees low to the ground; before the more flamboyant colours of summer burst in.