Gradients // Part Three: The Color of a Warm Hug
color is the ultimate lifestyle hack
A few moments to say hello in this audio from me :)
One of the first times I recall feeling any sort of [significant] inner conflict was when my kindergarten teacher asked, “What’s your favorite color?”
A favorite?
After feeling a bit anxious about my answer, I picked three colors: pink, blue, and purple.
I never understood how someone could pick a favorite color and stand by that decision. Because it changes, right?
So now as an adult, my answer to “what’s your favorite color” is either, “I don’t have a favorite color,” or, “the morning sky.”
Yes, I’m that person.
Okay, if I absolutely had to choose just one color, it would probably be pink. But then I also love blues. And purple, and olive green.
See? It’s the same problem all over again.
Do you feel this, too? Grr.
Welcome Back to Gradients. Hi, I’m Late.
I’m a little late with finishing up this series. I really do appreciate you for your patience. It was meant to be a weekly series completed in November, but it didn’t play out that way for a couple of reasons.
Let me explain.
It all started one evening when I was driving in the country. The colors of the sky just after sunset were almost too perfect, and I thought: gosh it would be amazing to feel this way every time I walk into my home studio.
So I picked up some swatches.
The thing about swatches is, they change color once you bring them into your space. And then you have to go back and get more swatches.
I did this quite a few times and it just wasn’t working, until I saw a fallen leaf outside on the deck that happened to be the exact shade I wanted. I picked up a few more leaves, took them to Lowes, found swatches to match, and tried to make a decision.
It was difficult. Really difficult. But the process I went through to finally select a color was absolutely the most emotional and beautiful thing.
Another reason I was late finishing this series, is that I wasn’t sure if what I am doing with this newsletter is any good. So I removed the paid option, and decided to wait on that piece for a little while until I’ve got more in the archives.
What I really want right now is to come into my studio, and create in a way that I’m really proud of, and in a way that you will enjoy.
But I have to be authentic, and I needed a step back to be sure I was showing up in a real way. I think if I’m feeling vulnerable, that must mean I am?
I don’t know about you, but (as a creative) Instagram warped the way I show up, and my whole thought process behind sharing to the internet.
The residue from that is very real. But more on that another time.
Light, Space, and Color
Since I was a portrait photographer for more than 15 years, I know a lot about watching light as it changes, and the way it influences a space, an object, or a person. The quality, intensity, and direction of light is what creates the entire mood of a photo (or film).
Light also dramatically influences the colors within a space.
In order to be sure about the swatch selection for my studio, I studied the leaves and the swatches at different times of day, with different types of light coming through the window.
I highly recommend this method if ever you choose to change the color of your workspace. It connects you to the color and to the space in a way that feels like you’ve just found your soulmate.
If you haven’t put much thought into color, here’s your nudge to consider it. The intimacy of choosing a color for the space you work in changes everything.
Look at the swatches change in the light.
Observe them on a rainy day, an early morning, at midnight on your way to sneak a cookie out of the drawer.
If you still like the color over an extended period of observation, using that color in your space(s) will probably bring you lasting comfort, lasting joy.
Our Relationship to Color Goes Deep
Color psychology is a whole thing, and I had kind of forgotten about that. I am not an expert in this, but what I personally learned through the past few months of this fiasco is: I really, really love earthy shades of pink. So much that when the accent wall was finally finished, it felt like I was reunited with a long lost lover, or that some dormant part of myself had come to life again.
I feel a warm hug wrap around my heart inside this room, like whenever I look at a sunrise or sunset sky.
Mission accomplished.
I’ve pondered color so much between November and now. Not only does our inner condition play a part in the colors we’re drawn to on a daily basis— what we choose to wear, for example.
We are also influenced by the colors around us, which have the power to shift our inner condition. We can use color to our advantage in many ways: in the artwork that complements our writings, on book covers or resumes, to inspire creativity within our spaces *wink*, even just to set a good first impression through our clothing colors.
It feels like a game changer to use color with intention, beyond just liking colors or following the latest color trends. To connect with colors and use them with intention is an absolute lifestyle hack, in my opinion.
Color is a hidden language.
Color lives inside every emotion, as a wavelength.
Color is an aura, reflecting outwardly who we are being within.
Color can define a moment.
Color can get us dancing, or define our safe place.
I hope you enjoyed the Gradients series!
Of course, I couldn’t end this piece without asking: what’s your favorite color(s)?
Some Color Psychology Resources
More color language….
