" Sunflower Fun " - Weekly Challenge #43

The idea for this week's challenge theme is from Pennyb.  She writes to the Diva:  "In Republic of South Africa, on 12 October we have Bandana Day, which is run by the Sunflower Fund.   This is an organization founded in 1999 in support of the SA Bone Marrow Registry for people suffering from leukemia.  Every year our local retailer (Pick n Pay) sells Sunflower bandanas and the proceeds go towards the Sunflower Fund...everyone wears a Bandana, somehow somewhere on this day!   I wondered if you could incorporate the Sunflower Fund logo somehow as a Challenge during the week 12 Oct??"


So, the challenge this week is to create a Zentangle or ZIA inspired by the sunflower.

Traditional Zentangle - 3.5" sq tile; Sakura Micron Black #01; graphite shading

A few Sunflower facts:
~ There are 82 species of sunflowers (genus Helianthus), all native to North America. Of these, 38 are perennials, and 44 are annuals..
~ The sunflower is the state flower of the US state of Kansas, and one of the city flowers of Kitakyūshū, Japan.
~ It is the subject of Van Gogh's most famous still life, Sunflowers.
~ It is the national flower of Peru, Russia, and Ukraine.
~ A Sunflower head consists of 1,000-2,000 individual flowers joined together by a base.
~Sunflowers most commonly grow to heights between 5–12 ft. (1.5-3.5m).
~A common misconception is that sunflowers track the sun.  In fact, mature flowerheads typically face east and do not move.
~A miniature representation of the pattern of  florets in the head of a sunflower was proposed by H. Vogel in 1979.  In the model, he noted a relationship between the angle at which the florets grow to the golden ratio where 55 and 144 are Fibonacci numbers).

Illustration of Vogel's model- Sunflower head/growth pattern of florets

 ~ Seeds of the Sunflower contain kernels... which are harvested and eaten as snacks and used in recipes.  These harvested kernels are sometimes referred to as 'sunflower seeds'. Oil is also extracted from the seeds/kernels for use in cooking.

Sunflower 'seeds'.

Sunflower kernels..... to enjoy for snacking.

Okay..... are you bored yet??  Then let's just enjoy the visuals of a sunflower's beauty.....

Field of Sunflowers blooming in Dakotas, USA

Field of Sunflowers as sunset.

Thank you for visiting.....
... and happy tangling!!

Sunflower information found at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunflower.