I’m Coastal Home Magazine’s Designer-of-the-Day on their Facebook Fan Page this week. Click here to post your question in the comments.
This is the question they asked me to start! [CH] As an interior designer and color specialist, how do you think color affects people's lives? What are some of the color trends now, and what do they say, if anything, about our collective mood?
I think most people love colour! Colour creates a feeling so when it’s wrong it’s very upsetting! I met one of my very stylish readers this weekend in New York and she told me she had decorated her last apartment in black and white because she was afraid of making a mistake with colour even though she loves it!
In terms of colour trends, colour is definitely moving to fresh and clean! We have been painting our homes in earth tones and spicy shades for more than 10 years and I think consumers are ready for a change. In my experience, the pendulum always swings in the opposite direction. If I’m in a client’s bedroom who has been looking at striped drapery for 10 years, she doesn’t want to see any stripes when selecting something new.
If we have been living in a dark space with dramatic colours, we start to crave light and bright.
A reporter recently asked me why rainbows make people happy? Basically the answer comes down to that ‘The Colours of a rainbow are happy because they are bright and fresh!’ If someone asked me for a happy blue, I would show them a clean periwinkle blue not a grayed blue. Even though people are craving fresh because we’ve been looking at ‘earth tones’ for so long it’s no coincidence that we need and want happy colours right now because of the current economy!
Bottom line though, colour trends are just that! If you love earth tones, don't worry about the trend! (and read the attached comments for how to introduce fresher colours with earth tones).
Post your colour questions here all this week!
If you want your home to have atmosphere including colours that flow to fill you with happiness every time you walk in. Contact me by email for on-line rates or call me directly if you are local.
Related posts:
Why do Rainbows make People feel Happy?
Why are we so Afraid of Colour?
If you are new to this blog, click here to see the Best of Colour me Happy
