The Mystery of Color Is Different for Everyone.

The way each of us perceives color is through visual sensation. Your individual sense of color and how it feels to you is directly reflected in the way you view the external world. Look at light for example:  It reflects all color.  In bright sun, colors are more strong, when the light softens in the afternoon and evening, colors in the same room become more grayer in hues. Your sense of color is, of course , influenced by light energy but also by interior sense conductors that are in your brain.  Therefore color is not only seen by ones eyes, but also felt as an emotion which inwardly communicates a “feeling “sensor to your brain.  So every color strikes a different sentiment in your brain. 

Take the three primary colors for example: Red incites danger and excitement, Yellow initiates bright sun and vivid daylight and “Be Careful” on the highway.  Blue is a very calm and restful color to sleep with—the sea rocking one back and forth.                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Secondary colors:  Green represents the wonder of nature around us, Purple represents Easter (Christ Has Risen), royalty and masterful, Orange  represents highway hazards.                                                                                                                    A good exercise is to look around you in your home, in your friends homes, at work ,and play a game and try to feel what each setting feels like to you.  Do you feel cozy with a certain color, do you feel sleepy with another, do you get energized to tackle the world with another color.  Then reflect on these feelings.  They will help you start to “paint” the different components of your home and what you want from each room.

Focus on Detail: Pillows

Custom Pillow

Accent pillows are a great way to add personality to your room without the commitment of a larger piece, like a couch. It’s also easy to switch them for seasonal updates. Here we show different kinds of trim: this lovely deer pillow has a self-welt finish.

Best Thing I Found: Avon Glass

I have become enamored with Avon Ruby Glass.  This is a mid 20^th century reproduction of the 1876 Cape Cod Collection of American Sandwich glass.  It was originally made of early American pressed glass made from the factory of Sandwich glass in Sandwich, Massachusetts on Cape Cod. It was a ruby red color.  This was a collection that consisted of wine goblets, water goblets, hurricane lamp candle holders, decanters, dinner plates, salad plates, dessert plates and bowls, vases, pitchers and other pieces. 

It is very affordable and looks wonderful at night on your table.  The ruby color takes on a very dark but translucent depth for dramatic evening dining.

Setting the Stage: Ornate Detail, Simple Layout

There’s a lot of texture, color and personality going on in these two front hall examples. The first one uses an Italian painting to draw you into a story, accented by two yellow French Louis XIV urns.  Despite the detail an intrigue of each of the objects, the arrangement is a very simple and clean geometry, with each side matching. The planter can change seasonally, helping the feeling stay lively and fresh.

The same is true for the second scene here – where, instead of a painting, two Italian wood carvings of women posing brings the narrative to the setting. 

And with all of that splendor… I bet you’d never guess that the console top is faux marble.

Intrigue of Collections: English Creamware

The thing I like about white is that is is restful on your eyes.  In a garden while flowers come alive at dawn and dusk.  With interior objects, the result is the same when you have a lot of it shown together – a collection of light that your eyes don’t get tired of.  This particular porcelain collection is very fragile, with lots of texture and detail in each piece which keeps it forever interesting to look at.  This antique collection originated from a foundry in Leeds, England. Pieces are c. 18th/19th century.

  

Focus on Detail: Parisware

The elegance of Parisware really finishes a room – the varied intricate details of the floral, framed by the gold edges at the top and base. Here is a pair of vases, which look great with Gladiolus. The middle tourine makes a great centerpiece for a mantel or dining room table since it’s decorated on both sides.

A word of caution – If using to display flowers, I recommend putting a plastic container inside these vases or tourine to protect the gold trim .

Intrigue of Collections: Royal Bayreuth Tomato

Here’s just the beginning of a collection – also by Royal Bay Reuth. I love the playfulness of this set.

Setting the Stage: Yellow Bedroom

In the old days, people received guests in their bedroom., which gave the whole room the personality of a sitting room. A place where you did thing – talk, drink, eat. As opposed to the bedrooms of today, where you  basically collapse at the end of a day.

Color can be a very organizing room feature – this room combines many patterns, textures and details. The yellow ceiling paint treatment is inspired by a vaulted ceiling design by Nancy Lancaster.

Above the bed is a custom pet painting of  pug Moe – not only do I love the expression on Moe, but the size makes it easy to take with me on long travels.

Intrigue of Collections: Royal Bayreuth Rose Tapestry

This collection of Rose Tapestry porcelain from the Royal Bayreuth company comes together, a soft meadow of roses woven together with gold highlights and a faint cheesecloth texture.  Sitting against a bright yellow wall, they adapt to a more modern setting. Porcelain dates c. 1920-1940. This pattern is extremely attractive, primary colors, roses, chrysamthumuns, figures of people and landscapes.  One of the most beautiful chinpor patterns.  Comes in many unusual forms not only plates, cups and saucers, but there are picture frames, lace up shoes.

 

As some back history, 

Here’s a little back history: In 1792, Alexander von Humbolt, the great German scientist and expert geoplogis, was appointed by King Frederich Wilhelm II of Prussia to be his inspector of Mines, stationed in the city of Bayrueth.  His first assignment was to report to the King on several applications to erect a porcelain factory in the providence of Thuringia.  The permit was granted to Wilhelm Heinrich Immanuel Greiner and Johann Schmidt to construct and operate such a factory. Wich now today some two hundred years later has become world renown and holds a prominent place in the nation’s porcelain market. This is the oldest of Bavarian porcelain factories still under private management.

 

Rose Tapestry Porcelain Collection

Intrigue of Collections: Sailor’s Valentines

In the 1800s, Sailors used to make these crafty objects from the shells – or maybe purchased them from locals – to bring back to their sweethearts. This collection of unusual versions brings a worldly yet intimate presence to this bookshelf – an appropriate place for sentimental stories and objects.

Collection of Unusual Sailor's Valentines