Color Buzz

Trendy Spring Palettes

by Michèle Coppin

Cowboy Boots 2010-10	Scarlet Sun 1011-1	Seafarer 5007-10A

This season, two very different color trends have emerged: one elegant, bold, dynamic palette and the other's palette is comprised of complementary colors (colors that sit opposite one another on the color wheel.)

Chocolate Cake and Childhood Memories

By Veronique Habermann

                                       
                                     Wooden Wagon 3001-7A

The other day I was stirring a can of Wooden Wagon Valspar paint and I swear I could smell the batter my mother use to make for our traditional family cake, which was always chocolate! Yummy! I laughed to myself as I thought about dunking my fingers in the paint!

                                 

Dark Chocolate

By Megan Leblond

                                               

I am a dark chocolate lover and find myself equally drawn to Valspar's Swiss Chocolate color and Labrador color. The sumptuousness of these deep, rich colors is inviting and soothing. 

                                
             Swiss Chocolate 3010-10                Labrador 3009-9

I am also in love with the color, Mona's Mane, a rich caramel/almond color that shares the versatility of the dark browns. If you’re a nature lover, I recommend pairing any of these browns with River Mist or Limonata to create an earthy space.

                  
      Mona's Mane 3002-9A      River Mist 5003-9A         Limonata 6002-5B

You can also create a gentle elegance with Lavender Mist.

                             
                Lavender Mist 4001-7B


 

Delicious Together: Chocolate and Mint

By Michèle Coppin

Green and brown, one of my favorite color combinations, is also one of my favorite flavor combinations—chocolate and mint.

                               

I remember my first lick of Baskin Robbins chocolate chip mint ice cream. I was 7-years-old and in sensory overload. It tasted like heaven!

                     

Now that my palate has matured, I have since switched to a more refined version of chocolate and mint: After Eights! After Eight mints are 1 ½  square-inches of dark chocolate with a peppermint fondant center. Each chocolate is wrapped in a small, square, brown envelope with gold writing, encased in a long slender green box. They are delicious, elegant and sophisticated and like the advertisements proclaim, “After Eight mints make each evening an occasion.” I couldn’t agree more!

                    

Not only do I love the taste of chocolate and mint combined, I love the succulent color combination. The warm comforting brown hue of the chocolate is perfectly balanced by the cool fresh green surprise of the mint—yum!

                                
           Caramelized Onion 2008-9B            Mino's Eye 6003-9B

What are some of your favorite dessert-inspired color combinations?