50 Shades of Grey
by E.L. James has swept the nation. Ok, maybe not the entire country, but certainly
the female population from...oh let's say 20 years of age to 78! Even writing my
blog took a backseat, because I was so caught up in the power of Grey.
Pondering the book’s
title then led me to thoughts about the color, gray. (Though both spellings
can be used interchangeably, in America we typically use g-r-a-y for the color.)
Given this cultural obsession with 50 Shades, I thought it unavoidable
to talk about color, and the shades of gray.
Color has a tremendous capacity
to conjure emotions, with each member of the color wheel having its own
personality. After reading the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy, I did wonder if
the name Grey was purposefully used by
the author to borrow attributes from the color gray. Their “personalities” share a striking resemblance. The color
gray is seen as sleek and
sophisticated, industrial and unconventional, disciplined and contemplative.
Each year committees in the
fields of fashion and home decor gather nationally to forecast new color trends.
And suddenly, as if on cue, we start to see that color pop up in stores and
permeate the marketplace, from towels at Target, to accessories at Crate and Barrel,
and couture clothing at Bloomingdales. For much of this year the trend setting color
has most certainly been tangerine tango! We have seen it in clothing, and furnishings,
and will continue to see this lively orange/red coral along with its bold citrus
yellow counterpart. New to the color stage
this year, blue and aqua have come out strong.
But what I find most interesting
this year is our neutral base tones. Beiges
and browns are simply stepping back, making room for the refined newcomer. It is
all about gray! With shades ranging from pearl to charcoal, gray is often associated
with a sense of cloudiness, even moodiness. Unlike beige, gray has the power to
be unsettling and non-conforming. Unlike black, it is not bold, but rather more
subtle or subdued.
In architectural interiors
we are seeing refined rooms of gray, accessorized with splashes of bright bold color.
Tangerine, citrus yellow, and lime green continue to dominate, with blue and aqua
boldly entering the scene, as red makes its exit. The gray and crisp white color
scheme can also be a refreshing and soothing combination for architectural
interiors.
The sophisticated refinement
of gray paired with a bright, playful, and youthful splash of coral, citrus, aqua,
or lime can be unexpected, and rejuvenating. Maybe unconventionally refined is what we would call this color scheme--and
interestingly an appropriate description for Mr. Grey himself……
It can be exciting and quite
liberating to try a new color scheme. We often get comfortable with a certain palette
of colors, and we feel nervous about changing it up. But color can be a powerful
force affecting our mood while defining a room's personality. It can be a simple, cost effective way to
create dramatic change.
My suggestion is to look
at the spaces you live in. Have you grown so accustomed to the color scheme
that you don’t really even see it anymore? Making a color change makes us more
aware of our surroundings, as it urges us to be more present in the moment. Maybe it is time for a new shade…..
Take a look at the images
of various gray interiors for inspiration…
And as an interesting footnote…our
eyes can actually distinguish not 50, but 500 shades of gray!
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