Poet, John Keats, first called the bluebell 'The Sapphire Queen of Mid May' in Fancy (1818). With ancient woods robed this spring in carpets of blue, purple and white, the immortal words “Let the winged Fancy roam, Pleasure never is at home,” have perhaps never been more true. It may be thought that the great poet would have struggled pacing within his 4-walls during the recent Pandemic. This is probably not the case. Keats wrote the poem in December, reminiscing on the joys of springs past and to come.
In much the same way as some of the great Romantic Poets, our designers visit woods covered in swathes of bluebells and simply immerse in their sheer beauty. Often, you have to really 'see' to be inspired. It is later, that memories flood through the portholes of the mind and enable truly inspired art to flow. Like squirrels with nuts, we all ferret away cherished imagery from our past and allow it to take root and grow, later inspiring not just The Arts but also as a means to navigate through everyday life. Somehow, the simple bluebell, a protected British wildflower, delights Moorcroft enthusiasts in a way in which few other seasonal blooms can muster. It is almost as if an instant visual connection with the design occurs, releasing like seeds in the wind, treasured memories of our own. This year, Moorcroft‘s designers are celebrating the arrival of the bluebell, not only with blue, but also the more unusual purple and white varieties of this popular flower. Each is a small limited edition, with great appeal in the Peal of Bells collection of bluebell designs. 
View Peal of Bells Collection
I recently watched a BBC 2 documentary, the ‘Windermere Children,’ about hundreds of children liberated from concentration camps in 1945 and flown to a tiny town in the Lake District to begin new lives. They described their experience at Windermere as ‘heaven’ claiming that as part of the healing process they were allowed to run wild through woodland, and fells around the lake. Simply looking at Nicola Slaney’s Grasmere Bluebells, where the River Rothay babbles merrily and woods are carpeted with bluebells, awakes a song in me. The poetry of the soul if you like. Under a canopy of clouded, greenish-blue trees, the deep waters and the colours of natural world around them appear to diffuse into sleepy cottages, stirring a rhythm of peace and wellbeing.
Demand for new forms of the bluebell never seem to be quenched in Moorcroft design. This year, the website banner holding The Peal of Bluebells draws us closer and you begin to follow that path which disappears into ancient woodlands. Let us hope the Moorcroft blue-haze will go on forever.
By Catherine Gage
