Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Risky Business




































The wall color is Behr, Wisteria White. It has just a super subtle hint of purple; but in just the right light, friends have said to me, "Purple Haze!".
I love nuance; things that don't slap you in the face but come at you slowly and in disguise.

I used this color extensively as my white of choice until I found Ralph Lauren's, Picket Fence White, which I just adore.

Putting it on a wall, I have thought it had a yellow cast as it was going on; but in the larger scheme of things, it looks just like it is described. It has a friendly, quaint appeal.


















The white on this wall is probably a conventional contractor's white. The folding door panels are painted in the "Picket Fence White" . You can see how clean the white on them looks in comparison; but while putting it on an interior wall, it truly can look like it has yellow in it. Colors are very tricky. Very, very tricky.

The white in these squares is the same "Picket Fence White". adjacent to the yellow, they really look white. It is a matter of context.

It's always a good idea to test colors. Large swatches of this, believe it or not, very white looking color on the swatch card, looked sand on the test patch. After it got on all of the walls....another story...
It's amazing. When I specified this color for our church, I studied and studied it worrying that it would be too dark. After the painter finished and I came in to see, I thought for a minute that he hadn't painted at all. It looked white.

Sometimes designers will tell a client that the color will intensify the larger an area it covers.

Not always.
As was said, color is very, very tricky. Hold on and trust your instincts. And...give it time to sink in. You have to live with color for awhile. It grows on you. A sudden change can shock you and you may think you won't like it. Give it time. 

I am such a fan of Tricia Guild. I just love color. I love her colors. She has an amazing, amazing sense of how to use it. I spent last night revisiting her book, "Tricia Guild in town" It's so saturated with color, it is hard to get through very many pages without taking the time to absorb what you see. The book is of her own homes as well as others.

After spending time in her book remembering my passion for color, I realized just how inhibited I have been. Far too often, we let what we think others will think inform what we will or won't do. Life is too short not to live your own passion.

Again, I say, "Trust your instincts... And, be true to yourself!"
Do what You love.