Craving: Yellow

Source: thehuntedinterior.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

When I was a kid, my mom allowed me to choose the paint color in my room.  At the tender age of 4 or 5, I chose yellow.  I remember how bright that room was when the sun came pouring in, and the good feeling that it gave me.  Over the years, I have used yellow in my own home in many different ways, and it seems to show up as an accent in my client's spaces on the regular, too.

Source: google.com via Heather on Pinterest

But finding items in just the right shade can be tricky, as manufacturers follow trends, and for the last few years we've seen a ton of chartreuse and citron.  (Another favorite of mine, so I am not complaining!)  A client was particularly craving yellow recently but every single throw pillow and lamp seemed to have a green undertone.  As spring catalogs come my way, I'm noticing a reversal: today's yellow is becoming more clear: lemon or sunshine, or even leaning to the orange: marigold.  (Also quite a lot of butter, but that pale shade leaves me a little cold.)

Using all the yellow items I have saved to olioboard, I thought I would make a simple little round up.  But then I did that thing where I took an easy thing and made it hard: I set off on the search for every yellow thing under the sun (pun intended).  It overflowed into, well, LOTS of boards.

Accent Furniture

Lighting

Seating

Textiles

Etc.

So much sunshine for this very grey Minnesota winter day!

Oh, sources, you say?  That might take a little while....stay tuned, or leave me a note if there is something you must know about.

Check out yellow in some of my old design boards for various clients: living room, living room, dining room, girls' shared room, girls' room, 9-year-old girls' room, plus boards just for fun, like the mixed-gender kids rooms or the floral bedspread 2 1/2 ways.

Tell me: do you love yellow, too?

Flashback Friday*: Freshman Dorm

I have always been interested in the way my space looked. I remember making floorplans and elevations to turn my childhood bedroom into a studio apartment when I was,like, eleven. I've also always had a distinct point of view. Whether or not it was in fashion, I always had a vision, and I always did what I could to execute it well.

I'm not altogether sure this is wise, but I've been digging up photographs of some of my early decorating decisions, and I thought I would share them here. Gulp.

First up: Vassar College, 1993.

The Vision: French Country, via Florida. (very often my vision is one thing with a dash of Florida thrown in, for better or for worse.)

The Elements: Sunflower bed-in-a-bag, white wicker shelving, Matisse posters, classic ceramic lamp, and--ummmm--a display of wide-brimmed hats on the wall.

The Huh? Factor: I've never been a stuffed animal person. I'm not exactly sure where that fox came from, or why I felt that freshman year in college was the time to drag it out.

The Analysis: I had recently spent a year in Switzerland. I had a thing for Laura Ashley cocktail-length dresses. I have written here about the concept of choosing an identity to project upon arriving at college, and looking back, I truly wonder what I was thinking. But I will give it this: it is polished, considered, and, well, coordinated, in a phase where most kids were pinning tapestries to the wall and calling it a day.

What Remains: I still love stylized flowers, particularly combined with stripes. My wicker love has evolved to a love of the more "refined" woven woods: rattan, bamboo, and caning. I continue to love yellow. That's actually a lot to take form this, and it just goes to show that our style evolves, but it doesn't completely change.

I'd love to hear about your decorating faux pas or finest moments.

* The idea for "Flashback Friday" come from my friend Rebecca over at On Being Blythe. We did a post-a-day challenge last February and this was her invention to wrap up each week.