The Collector: Dicus enjoys her favorite flower year-round on mugs and more

It may be a while before irises blossom in her yard, but Shirley Dicus has found a way to enjoy the beautiful blooms throughout the year.

For 25 years, she’s collected the fragrant flowers on everything from plates to artwork to lamps. But the focal point of her collection is mugs – 220 of them.

She pointed to the crowded floor-to-ceiling shelves in her kitchen.

“I’m running out of space, so I rotate the ones I’m a little tired of.”

Her fondness for the flower stems from time spent in her great-grandparent’s yard in north Spokane. Though tulips were their specialty, they also grew irises.

Dicus started her indoor collection about the same time she planted the blooms in her backyard.

“If you get the iris bug, it grows on you,” she said. “Irises can grow from bulbs or rhizomes. In my yard and collection, I specialize in bearded irises that grow from rhizomes.”

Tall bearded irises come in thousands of varieties, so she has no problem finding unique pieces to purchase.

“Artists love to paint them because they have such different colors and textures,” she said.

She cradled a favorite mug in her hands. The fluted ivory-colored cup features mauve blossoms on green stems.

“I had an elderly friend. We’d sit and have coffee, and I always used this mug,” Dicus recalled.

As the end of her life approached, her friend gave the mug to Dicus. Now, when she uses it she remembers the precious hours they shared.

Over the years, she’s added to her collection by scouring thrift shops and second-hand stores. Once, she found a silver spoon at a shop in Chewelah, Washington.

“It had been used so much that the edge of the bowl was worn away,” she said. “There was an iris at the tip of the handle.”

Dicus asked the shop owner how much he wanted for the spoon, and he told her she could have it for a nickel.

Her two newest mugs came via the internet. One of them has a dashing depth of color in its blue interior. The other is taller and still holds her morning coffee.

“I like the colors, the style, and how the pattern goes all the way around the cup,” she said.

She prefers discovering items in person rather than finding things online.

“The computer makes it too easy,” Dicus said. “I like the magic of the hunt. I look for the unusual.”

She especially loves vintage dishes and items from England and Australia. A plate rack holds a selection of plates from the 1800s. A nearby cabinet contains a pair of Crownford Queens Blue Iris bone china teacups, the smaller nesting within the larger.

Irises fill almost every room of her house. Soft light spills from decorative lamps. Purple and blue blooms adorn switch plates and brighten dishtowels and teapots.

While her indoor collection is likely unrivaled, Dicus is not alone in her passion for the flower. She said at one time, two iris clubs existed in the area. Though those clubs folded, a new one has sprung up, and Dicus joined it.

“I like the form of iris and their colors and combinations of colors – I enjoy the hunt,” Dicus said. “And I like talking about growing them with other iris people.”