Color Buzz

A Trip to the DMV

Last week, I had to venture out to get a replacement copy of my Social Security card and to renew my driver's license. Maybe not surprisingly, the outing gave me the opportunity to really appreciate how color affects those waiting for hours in a confined space. 

The Social Security office building was much like a doctor's office. The waiting room was painted a soft, warm peach color, which was actually quite soothing. It was as though a team of color psychologists had come in and given a color prognosis. Everyone in the room seemed relaxed and chatted quietly or read. When the administrators came out to call the next person, it was done so calmly and everyone paid attention. 

Conversely, my trip to the DMV was not as pleasant. The office was housed in an older 1960s government-issued building. The colors throughout the waiting area were a disorderly mix of dirty mint greens and grays. Needless to say, the hapless souls waiting for their number to be called looked haggard and weary and the two and a half hours seemed endless People were restless and upset (I couldn't believe my seven-year-old outlasted me in patience. For that I will forever be grateful!).  

I couldn't help but think what a different experience the DMV trip could have been by simply changing the color of the paint and the lighting. I would love the chance to go there with our team and repaint the place in the same soothing peach colors from the Social Security building.

Fourth of July Colors

I love the colors of the Fourth of July. The red, white and blue ring in the start of summer.  I can tell we are getting close to the big day... I’ve seen the kids running around, collecting boxes of sparklers, and teenagers hiding a benign arsenal of bottle rockets, roman candles and whistling dixies.

Our town is gathering fire engines, classic cars, floats, marching bands, horses and, of course, kids dressed in Americana costumes.  They will parade down the main street as they have done for years.  We all come out to cheer them on.

After that, we gather around the pool, recite historic poems, listen to a speech or two and sing a ton of patriotic songs. Then, it’s off to a huge picnic with field games and moving from table to table trying out what everyone is serving up.

Finally, the fireworks let loose.  It’s the best!  Believe it or not, this is scaled down from when I was little.

I give a lot of credit to our founding fathers and mothers, who were incredibly brave.  I try to imagine what it must have been like for them to stand up for all they believed. They were willing to give up their way of life, their homes, and even their lives for a better world for others.  We are the grateful beneficiaries of their sacrifices.

Turkish Delights

By Michèle Coppin

Spring is the time for renewal and this season, new styles are coming from exotic lands such as Turkey.

With a tradition of unique decorative arts, the Turkish culture, formerly the Ottoman Empire (1299-1923), is a treasure trove of divine inspiration. Arts and crafts were molded by its rich history and religion—Islam.

Islamic art varies hugely from Western art, primarily influenced by the Koran. In this Islamic tradition, depicting human form in art is forbidden. Therefore, Turkish or Ottoman art relies on the pure balance of color, line and rhythm in geometric patterns and designs. Rugs, tapestries, glass work, metal sculptures, mosaics and paintings all share similar characteristics of precise detail, harmony and elegance.

Turkey is also known for its famous blue Iznik ceramics, which are decorated with abstract and intricate patterns of floral and fauna designs. Ornamental square, rectangular, hexagonal and triangular tiles still adorn palace walls.

Iznik pottery melds form and function beautifully.

 
The colors used in this art form are blues, viridians, reds and golds. Touches of green pull these colors together and balance the red and the blue perfectly.

                   
      Dazzle 4005-10C            Berry Blush 1004-1A         Salamander 6001-8B

These colors and patterns are becoming more trendy. I have even spotted them in a window display on my street!

If you would like to expand your knowledge of Turkish history and art, I recommend one of my favorite novels, My Name is Red  by Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk.

The book is about the Ottoman Empire and the influence of art. The story follows the murder of a painter in 1591. In each chapter, the perspective and narration changes, even to such unexpected ‘characters’ as a coin, a dog, and even the color red! This beautifully written novel is a true work of art, full of color, history and suspense. Let me know what you think!

Artichoke Colors

By Michèle Coppin

The Artichoke - of delicate heart erect
in its battle-dress builds - it's minimal cupola;
keeps stark - in its scallops of scales
...
So you have it - a vegetable, armed - a profession (call it an artichoke)
whose end is millennial
we taste of that sweetness - dismembering scale after scale
we eat of a halcyon paste
It is green at the artichoke heart.
(excerpt from “Ode to an Artichoke,” by Pablo Neruda)

The glorious artichoke is the large unopened flower bud of a plant belonging to the thistle family. It originated from Southern Europe, around the Mediterranean, and there is evidence of artichokes being cultivated in Naples in the ninth century.

Castroville, California is the artichoke capital of the U.S. In 1948, it crowned its first artichoke queen, a little known starlet named Marilyn Monroe.  In her honor, the Norma Jean cocktail was created, containing Cynar (the bitter artichoke liqueur), gin, lemon juice, sugar, crushed ice and mint leaves, a delicious and refreshing sundowner.

Low in calories and nutrient rich, artichokes are an excellent source of fiber and vitamin C, and also rich in foliate, magnesium and antioxidants. My favorite artichoke recipe is simply boiled with a little lemon juice. The leaves are removed one by one and dipped in hollandaise sauce, vinaigrette, melted butter or more lemon juice. The heart is eaten after removing the inedible hairy choke.

The beauty of this long process is that you can admire the vegetable at each stage of undress, like an interactive kinetic art piece. The artful artichoke transforms with each step, from its coarse outer purple leaves lined with silver, to tender moss green leaves edged with delicate pink, each one unique and delicious.

Indeed, the colors of the artichoke span many tones and shades of green, purples and pinks that blend together naturally and can be a great source of inspiration.

                                  
 Lyndhurst Castle Sand 5008-1C       Lyndhurst Celadon Green 5004-1B
                       
                                 
                                   Pale Orchid 1003-6C

Color of the Week - Summer Rapture

Last week's Color of the Week was Summer Rapture. Fresh, crisp, light and airy, Summer Rapture captures the moment as we move from spring to summer. Try this cool, breezy color in a kitchen, entryway, family room or even an outdoor space. It would look great with accents of navy and a crisp white like Anthem White. This color reminds me of summer porches with white wicker, rattan and grass cloth flooring.

                                         
              Summer Rapture 6002-5A                    Anthem White 7006-24

   

Cheerful Effects of Yellow

By Michèle Coppin

Vincent Van Gogh once said, "How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun." For Vincent, yellow represented happiness, love and hope. Many of his paintings have an abundance of yellow. He was fascinated with color and its effects, often experimenting with different ranges of tone, like in his famous Sunflower painting.

  

Completed in 1887, this painting was eventually sold in 1987 at an auction at Christie's in London for a record $39,921,750!

Indeed, yellow is cheerful, warm and uplifting, which is why I love this yellow house:

In a drab city street, this yellow stands as a celebration to light, an ode to color, a testimony to the owner’s cheerful composition, and happiness. It also seems to be contagious, as the neighbors’ color choice for their curtains and window flower boxes are becoming more daring.

They have also painted their tiny courtyard yellow, decorating it with Mexican tiles and plants.

Friday Project Series: Father's Day

   

This Father's Day, give dad a little pick-me-up by refreshing his domain with paint touch-ups. It's so easy! 

My daughter Elle was nice enough to take on our kitchen. We live in a 160-year-old farm house with a very active family, so nicks and scratches are a part of life.

 

For Father's Day, Elle took out an old cake pan (perfect for holding small amounts of paint), a brush and a quart of Whitewash Oak. She tried both a 2" brush and a 2" sponge brush. Both worked great.

She then focused on the eye-sores and gave them a quick brush-up.

It doesn’t take any prep, leaves minimal mess and provides big results!

Now we can happily unveil a cleaner, brighter kitchen, sure to put a big smile on dad's face as he’s handed a big plate of pancakes and gets ready for a day of golf and lying on the hammock.

Color of the Week - Enchanted Evening

Last week's Color of the Week was Enchanted Evening, and it is perfectly named. This color captures the tone in the sky after sunset as the cool of the evening begins to breeze in. It's a bit magical to sit outside this time of year with friends as you take it all in for a peaceful moment. I would imagine this as a beautiful color for a bedroom. It's a medium tone color so if you have a large room, try it on an accent wall. For smaller spaces, you could paint the entire room. Try it with Belle Grove Buff, Waverly's Khaki, and Laura Ashley's Imperial Yellow.

                                           
               Enchanted Evening 4003-8A              Belle Grove Buff 3006-10B

                                          
                  Waverly's Khaki 380001            Laura Ashley's Imperial Yellow 815

Friday Project Series - Painting Stripes

By Michele Coppin

Stripes have gone in and out of fashion for centuries. Depending on the time period, stripes have been thin and close together or wide and far apart.

Mary Cassatt was an American artist (1844—1926) who captured scenes of everyday life in her charming, impressionist paintings, especially the social and private lives of women. In this painting called "The Cup of Tea,” two elegant ladies sip their beverage in a room decorated with Victorian-style stripes. The pink stripes are so dominant in this painting, they almost become the subject.

Currently, wide stripes are “in.” They are an easy and simple way to jazz up a wall. With the right color, a single wide stripe may suffice to modernize and bring a wall to life. Generally, higher walls look better with horizontal stripes, as they divide the space nicely and make them appear lower and more intimate, whereas vertical stripes make lower walls appear taller.
 
To paint a stripe:
- Paint the whole wall the base color. When the wall is dry, measure the stripe in pencil. Be sure to keep the marks very light, especially if you are using pale colors.
- With masking or painter's 3M tape, line the stripe following your pencil marks on the outside. (Tip: Wider tape will make your job easier. Press hard on the edge of the tape to avoid paint leaking under.)
- Paint the stripe with a roller. Let dry and repeat. Depending on the color, you may need two coats.
- Remove the tape and touch up the edges with a small brush.

This grey, horizontal stripe serves as a modern touch against the white background.

La Belle Vie

By Veronique Habermann 

Some people struggle to decide on a color for a room. Others get it right the first time; they seem to know exactly what they are looking for.

My friend Nona opened her first SPA (hair salon) a few weeks ago. It is a place she has dreamed of and worked hard for. The location is small, but after choosing the right wall color, she has made it very warm and cozy. It’s a place where you won’t mind spending a few hours with foil on your hair. Besides her warm staff, the expertise of her stylists and the wine, I think her color choice for the space has a lot to do with the relaxed atmosphere.

It seems like she had no hesitation with her choice. She knew what she wanted: a warm, pleasant, intimate and sensual place. But she also had an exact color in mind.

Nona grew up in St. Petersburg and her favorite place to visit there is the Yusupov Palace, a beautiful, long, yellow building on a quiet stretch of the Moika River. The palace was once the residence of the wealthy and respected Yusupov family and was the site of one of the most dramatic episodes in Russian history, the murder of Gregory Rasputin.

Nona has always loved the "red room" there, and while picking colors from a Valspar deck, she found the exact color: Jeweltone. She also used wild lavender for the hallway, and with the help of her very talented contractor, Sevdi Veliu, she chose a textured sandstone paint to add depth.

The wall color, in addition with her choice of dark chocolate wood, really achieves the goal she had in mind. And with a name like "La Belle Vie"...Bravo!

***

Now that spring is finally here, what item at your home is most in need of a fresh coat of paint? Plase, check out the right sidebar to cast your vote!