Category Archives: Colour

Colours of Spring

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It’s here.  Spring!  And it arrived in Toronto with an unbelievable temperature of 25˚ Celsius. (77˚ Fahrenheit)  Considering it is still March this warm weather is just not the norm for this time of year.  The elevated temperature makes for the sudden burst of spring flowers rising up from the ground.  The colours of spring have arrived!  Inspiration grabbing hold of me, I decided to take a walk through my neighborhood with my camera and Benjamin Moore Colour deck in hand.  Climbing (precariously!) through some of my neighbours’ yards I took photos of spring flowers matched up with a Benjamin Moore paint colour.  Some kind neighbours even toured me through their backyards proudly showing me their beautiful spring flowers.  Thought I would share with you too.

Purple Crocus = Purple Hyacinth 2073-40

 

Yellow Crocus = Sunshine 2021-30

 

Glory-of-the-Snow = Summer blue 2067-50

 

Hellebore = Precious Pink 2084-40

 

Not sure what this flower is but I inadvertently walked into a bog to photograph! = Grape Green 2027-40

 

 

Pink Snowdrop = Spring Blossom 2172-70

 

Spring Heather =Taste of Berry 2085-40

All images via Modmissy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Saguaro Weekend

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My ‘Friday Space’ this week is inspired by the desire to getaway.  March so often being the month for travelling to warm destinations I decided that lounging poolside is where I would like to spend time this weekend.  The Saguaro Hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona is a colourful oasis that promises to both shock and calm at the same time.  A departure from the usual colours of desert sand and kitschy Southwestern hues the Saguaro is alive with rich oranges, reds, vibrant pinks and violets that reference the desert wildflowers native to the nearby Sonoran Desert.  In this photo I love how the orange umbrellas pop against the pink walls.  (I am a huge fan of the combination of pink and orange.)  I like the strong linear white roof line that draws your eye around.  The purple building rising up from behind gives another pop of colour.  The mature palm trees give the impression of being in a lush rainforest oasis.  Even the rolled up beach towels lying at the foot of the chaises are bright pink.  And in the middle of it all is the aqua blue pool tempting me to dip in, to relax and unwind.  Pure ‘colourful’ heaven!  Enjoy your weekend.

http://www.jdvhotels.com/hotels/arizona/saguaro

In Anticipation of Spring

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Today we are greeted by the first day of March which really means only 19 more days until the first day of spring!  Thinking of it this way makes it a little easier to get through these last days of winter.  The greys of winter will soon be banished by the colours of spring.  I can’t wait.  When I saw this photo I was reminded of spring flowers. 

New for spring from Ikea www.ikea.com is the GAVIK table lamp.  Made of coloured transparent double glass the lamp when lit spreads beautiful effects in any room.  In anticipation of spring I thought I would also share with you a poem by Lord Alfred Tennyson about flowers.  Enjoy

The Flower by Lord Alfred Tennyson

Once in a golden hour
I cast to earth a seed.
Up there came a flower,
The people said, a weed.

To and fro they went
Thro’ my garden bower,
And muttering discontent
Cursed me and my flower.

Then it grew so tall
It wore a crown of light,
But thieves from o’er the wall
Stole the seed by night.

Sow’d it far and wide
By every town and tower,
Till all the people cried,
“Splendid is the flower!”

Read my little fable:
He that runs may read.
Most can raise the flowers now,
For all have got the seed.

And some are pretty enough,
And some are poor indeed;
And now again the people
Call it but a weed.

Benjamin Moore Color Pulse 2013

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Last night I attended Benjamin Moore Color Pulse 2013 for a look at emerging design and colour trends.  The presentation took place at the Corus Quay in downtown Toronto, which in itself is a very ‘colourful’ building thus creating a very vibrant evening.  Travelling to the far corners of the earth throughout the year, Benjamin Moore gathers their inspiration and translations of world trends.  They visited furniture fairs, art shows, met with artists, attended fashion events the world over.  “Where our physical spaces intersect with our desire for expression, we seek to balance the dynamics of everyday living with cultural, environmental and personal reflections through design and color.  Benjamin Moore’s color forecast for 2013 explores these tenets and translates them into tomorrow’s color palettes”.  This year’s main theme was Intersection – the convergences of space, time, ideas and relationships.  Divided into 4 sub-groups:

  • Interflow: reintroducing colour and texture of the past.
  • Intercylce: repurposing and upcycling, new potential for useless objects
  • Interanimate:  escaping the everyday with bold and dynamic colour
  • Interconnect:  technology evolving into organic form.

In a previous post I wrote about Pantones Color of the Year being Tangerine Tango whereas Benjamin Moore’s colour of the year is not just one colour but rather the ‘pulse’ of many colours.  Benjamin Moore’s ‘pulse’ of colour for 2013 are:

  • Sophisticated reds
  • Soft pinks
  • Deep coral and camel toned oranges
  • Red/orange toned yellows
  • Kelly green and pale green
  • Watery blues
  • Mauvey purples

 

Happy Valentines Day

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I am not a ‘red’ person right now.  Meaning I am not decorating my personal space with anything that is the colour red.  Christmas ornaments – yes.  But furniture, accessories etc. – no.  I used to have a red living room sofa, my family room was red and gold and my cottage had red painted walls.  To be honest, I think I tired of red.  But in honour of Valentine’s Day I thought I would show some fabulous items that could possibly inspire me to add a little red back into my décor.   

The Eames Molded Plywood Chair. www.hermanmiller.com

 

The IPAL by Tivoli Audio www.tivoliaudio.com

 

In an ‘ode to Edison’ the Utility Red Pendant Lamp by CB2. www.cb2.com

 

The Tiuku Clock by Finnish designer Ari Kanerva.  www.arikanerva.com provides a contemporary remake of the traditional Grandfathers’ clock.

 

Kartell’s La  Bohème Stool by Phillippe Stark – cheery and fun. www.kartell.com

 

And finally if February has you feeling ‘blue’ what’s not to love about lounging on some ‘red’ – Pottery Barn Chesapeake Steamer Chaise and Cushion.  www.potterybarn.com

Happy Valentine’s Day!!

Colour of the Year for 2012

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I am so thrilled – the 2012 Pantone Color of the Year is orange, actually Tangerine Tango.  Pantone Inc., the global authority on colour and provider of professional colour standards for the design industries has chosen to “dance into the New Year with this Vivacious and Appealing Reddish Orange”.  Just as Honeysuckle (pink), Color of the Year 2011 motivated us to face everyday challenges with verve and vigor, Tangerine Tango continues to provide the boost needed to recharge and move forward.  Throughout 2011 I wrote a lot about orange and how the colour played a large part in my life and my interiors.  I stated that orange is my new red.  And also, even though orange is made of red and yellow, orange has its own identity and indicates confidence and a sense of playfulness when used in décor.  Everyone has their favourite colour.  I would never say that orange is my ‘favourite’ colour but it is the colour that I notice.  It will turn my head.  It will make me smile.  Case in point; recently while having lunch at Holt’s Café on Bloor Street in Toronto, as usual I was more in tune to the décor than what was on my plate.  On one wall was a huge mosaic done completely in orange.  I found this both curious and interesting all the while noshing on some fancy sandwich.  The sandwich was good, but the orange was great.  So if you are looking for a hit of something new this year squeeze a bit of tangerine into your room!

    

Black Friday

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Today is ‘Black Friday’….let the shopping begin!  Considered to be one of the biggest shopping days, Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States.  Apparently the name originated in Philadelphia where it was used to describe the heavy and disorderly pedestrian and vehicle traffic that would occur on the day after Thanksgiving Day.  More recently the day is better known as the day that puts retailers ‘into the black’.  In honour of Black Friday I thought I would share a few of my favourite black items and some of my own black items. 

Black Leather Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman

Jonathan Adler Black Sprout Vase

Black Slate Mongolian Lamb Pillow – West Elm

Black Wall Clock

My Black Wall Sconce

My Black Bertoia Chair

My Black Tizio Lamp

 

Rock Inspiration

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A friend of mine vacationed this past summer on Georgian Bay, Ontario with her family.  Each summer they tour around the lake in their boat and set up camp on one of the many 30,000 islands in Georgian Bay.  The marvel of the ‘sixth Great Lake’ is the beauty to behold in the windswept pines, the endless beaches, the majestic towering cliffs and the granite rock formations. The rugged beauty of the area inspired the artists of the Group of Seven to paint the Canadian landscape and thus started the first major Canadian national art movement.   Part of Georgian Bay sits on the southern edge of the Canadian Shield of granite bedrock exposed by glaciers at the end of the last ice age approximately 11,000 years ago.    While hiking across Beckwith Island my friend found a rock, probably granite that she immediately fell in love with and decided to carry it for the rest of the hike.  She even had to swim with the rock out to where the boat was anchored.  Although the rock was grapefruit-sized, it became very heavy to carry after a few hours.  But determined she was.  The rock made its way back to the city and took up residence on her fireplace mantle.  The colour of the rock, the sheen, the organic-ness of the rock became the inspiration for my friend’s living room makeover.  Each time there was a question or query as to what her direction or style was my friend looked to the rock.  In came a new deep grey sectional, a ‘greige’ shag area rug, and large matted, white framed prints for over the fireplace, new white drum shades on the black lamps, and a natural stone-topped cocktail table.  A white leather chair is on order and the hunt for a mid-century wood chair to place in front of the fireplace has begun.  The end wall in the dining room was painted in a deep grey as a stunning feature wall.  Accessories in silver and glass have been added also.  The room looks fabulous.  My friend is thrilled with her results.  And all this from a rock!

                  

Loosing 25 Pounds

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I have a secret to share….. I lost 25 pounds.  But that is not the secret.  On Sunday I went to the William Ashley Warehouse Sale in Toronto and finally purchased white dinnerware for my kitchen.  I bought a 12 place setting of white bone china which included round dinner plates, sandwich plates, bowls and mugs.  I have always wanted white dinnerware for my kitchen (which to a designer is the only colour to have) but I already owned a good set of stoneware in a 12 place setting.  Although the stoneware was in a ‘colour and pattern’ that had matched a previous kitchen, I could not justify getting rid of it as it was in excellent condition.  Finally my chance to un-guiltily depart with this dinnerware came along!  My MIL (mother-in-law) needed a larger set of dinnerware for her new Condo.  Yeah.  The 3-R’s (reduce, reuse and recycle – not reading, writing and ‘arithmetic) were on my side.  I quickly packed up the stoneware and out of my kitchen it went, off to MIL.  Now don’t feel sorry for me wondering “my goodness…what will she eat off of now?”  This is where the secret comes in.  After unpacking my new, lovely, white dinnerware and wanting to place them proudly in my kitchen cupboards I removed all the other ‘extra’ dishware which amounted to 30 dinner plates, 20 bowls and 15 mugs!!   And that doesn’t include the stoneware I had already gotten rid of.  For years I have been telling clients/friends/family to get rid of clutter and to not have so much stuff, especially extra stuff in their homes.  Well I was just as guilty.  In compensation for not having white dinnerware I had so many other occasional plates, bowls, mugs that when I removed them I literally lightened my cupboards by 25 pounds.  Hubby was always worried that the cupboards were going to come crashing down off the wall because of the extreme weight.  But not now.  Now I no longer have the need for anything else but my new white set.  And oh, doesn’t my food look better now!

      

My Backyard of Colour

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I have written about changing a room’s décor based on the change of season.  Adding layers in the cooler weather, removing layers in the warmer weather.  Fresh colours in the spring, warm colours in the fall.  In April I wrote about my fondness of the moment for bright colours – hot pinks, vivid yellows and sky blues and how these spring colours were inspiration for me to change the cushions on my sofa to match the season’s colours.  I accessorized with pink, lavender and chartreuse yellow.  In the spring I also wrote about the trees in my backyard with their creamy white petal-like flowers and bright green leaves; how my backyard was coming alive with ‘natural beauty’.  But now that fall is here the scene in my backyard is very different.  The setting is the same but the palette is very different.  Gone are the white and bright greens.  Now there is a riot of fall colours – gold, bronzes, oranges, deep yellows, greens and bright reds.  Each time I walk into my kitchen and see the view looking out the window into my backyard I am in amazement.  How Mother Nature never ceases to amaze.  Once again I have changed the cushions on my sofa and added a throw blanket to match the orange of the season.  I have accessorized with bronzes and gold.  Earlier I stated “I love spring” but with fall and its entire glorious colour I now say “I love the change of seasons”!