Color Buzz

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

   

Friday Project Series: A Beautiful and Useful Cork Board

By Michèle Coppin

Little notes and lists float around drawers and table tops while bags and boxes of semi-precious collected treasures gather dust in closets. Combining these would result in more space and clarity, like perhaps turning the old corks and seashells into a board on which to pin my memos.

I started by cutting the corks length-wise and gluing them on a stiff square piece of cardboard in a random pattern of horizontals and verticals.

 

I like the colors of corks, their gradations of ochres and browns, with the vineyard's name printed down the side and the faded pink stains of wine.

 

From my seashell collection, I chose brown, gray, white and beige specimens to create a border. I glued a variety of sizes and shapes all around the corks.

Thanks to color, the contrasting textures of warm earthy corks blend with the shiny hardness of the shells.

Finally, I pinned forgotten invitations, future plans, memos, photos and souvenirs.

The Royal Ascot

By Michèle Coppin

Started by Queen Anne in 1711, the Royal Ascot is the premier social event of British horse racing. It takes place every year at the end of June and the five days of the "Royal Meeting" provide one of the most unique and colorful occasions on the sporting calendar. Besides going to witness top class horse racing, the crowds also come to see the Queen and other members of the royal family – the Queen always taking center stage.

But the real spectacle of the Royal Ascot is the festive "Ladies Day" parade, as the Royal Ascot brings out the best and most elaborate fashions.

All spectators are expected to dress up, while members of the audience in the "Royal Enclosure" are required to wear formal attire, with hats for the ladies and top hats for the gentlemen (lucky for us Yankees, overseas visitors are welcome to wear the national dress of their country).

The hat competition is fierce, ranging from the bizarre to the beautiful. The more outrageous the hat, the better, in this “heady” celebration of color and creativity.

This year was no exception:

The Queen looks cheerful and elegant in yellow while Prince Philippe is dashing in his top hat.

Checkmate!

Cucumber and watercress sandwiches - very British indeed.

Color of the Week - Gone Fishing

Last week’s Color of the Week was Gone Fishing, which is a contemplative mid-tone teal. It has a deep watery feel. This would be beautiful in a bath, entryway, or accent wall in a bedroom. It has a soothing and tranquil quality. Try it with Betsy's Linen and Lunar Tide as accents or trim. This would also be great with a navy accent.

                      

        Gone Fishing 5004-8A    Betsy's Linen 7005-16      Lunar Tide 6006-3B

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.

Wedding Colors Part II

By Michèle Coppin

In Monday’s post I explored the role that color played in weddings throughout the ages. As I mentioned, in the last few years, colors for weddings tended to lean towards soft shades of pinks, greens and lilacs. Although soft pastel color schemes are always in fashion, experts agree that bright, bold colors and even exotic combinations are the new trend.

Here are the hottest wedding colors for 2009:

Red and Orange: vibrant, fun and exotic.

Red and Pink: exiting combination mixing romance and passion.

Red and Yellow: Modern and hip

Orange: Elegant and radiant with shades of peach and ivory.

[Courtesy of Kim Fuller Photography]

Yellow and Turquoise: Summery and tropical.

 
Green and Yellow: Fresh and young.

Green and Lavender: Soft and sensual



Brown and Pink: Elegant and sensual  - one of 2009's hottest combinations.



I also questioned wedding photographer Kim Fuller for some additional insight. She noted:
 
"Purple is in! The jewel tones seem to be back in fashion this year for bridesmaid dresses. It makes for great photos, especially when you add a bold-colored flower to really make the color pop. Brown and pewter are still popular for the Fall, with a touch of orange or pink as an accent.  Both color palettes go well with most skin types, which is nice."



For more photos and ideas, please check out Kim Fuller Photography’s website.