Effulgent Sewn Goldenrod

Latin effulgēns, shining-out — present-participle of effulgere, sharing root with fulgor (lightning). As a color modifier, effulgent implies a saturated-and-radiating-light-out quality, the bright color of Renaissance-Madonna halo-and-aureole gold-leaf-and-pigment emission. Sits at the bright-and-saturated end of the grid, parallel to resplendent and radiant in usage.

Old English sēowan, to-sew. As a color modifier, sewn implies a hand-stitched-and-joined quality, the visual register of hand-sewn-and-stitched-textile hand-needle-and-thread-stitched needle-and-thread-and-bobbin hand-sewn-and-stitched-textile surfaces under hand-sewn-and-stitched-textile workshop-light. Sits at the modifier-and-texture end of the grid, parallel to tied and woven in usage.

Solidago, the late-summer wildflower of North American meadows whose tall sprays of small yellow flowers signal the end of the growing season. The color refers to the flower head at full bloom: a warm, slightly muted yellow-orange with the matte finish of small clustered florets. Cooler than mustard, deeper than dandelion. The state flower of Kentucky and Nebraska, a pollinator magnet, and the original native dye for early American homespun.