The May lecturer at the DKC was local Twisted Traditions designer Lorraine Condotta aka blogger The Sherriff of Knittingham.
Lorraine talked about her experience discovering and then designing Fair Isle that had the audience in rapt attention. (Rapt attention changing to gasps when she casually walked over to the dress form adorned with one of her creations and cut unreinforced collar and sleeve steeks to demonstrate her confidence in the stickiness of Shetland Wool!)
In talking about colour she referenced the notion of having a "mid life colour" - one that she previously hadn't considered that suddenly grabbed her attention, demanding use. In Lorraine's case it was yellow.
I've been thinking about that ever since, wondering what mine might be and I think my mid life colour seems to be an absence of colour per se. Natural, undyed, white through vaying shades of grey seem to be my current thing after decades of bold colour choices in everything from home decor to my clothing.
Its certainly coming out in my knitting...
Over the winter the painting I did around the house was all from the "whites" section of the colour deck...
After a decade of driving a cherry red car, the best part of which was the cherry-red dash that matched the exterior, I pushed for the replacement vehicle to be "Pearl White".
The question is when, four years ago this week, I went out in search of a Brown Poodle and instead came home with this...
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...was that an early manifestation of my mid life colour change or the trigger that prompted it? Something to ponder as I head off to Ikea to get a pair of basic white curtain panels and a white picture frame for the cottage...hmmmmm
Not that anyone stopping by here might be old enough for such a question but just in the event someone is... do you have a mid life colour?
Lorraine talked about her experience discovering and then designing Fair Isle that had the audience in rapt attention. (Rapt attention changing to gasps when she casually walked over to the dress form adorned with one of her creations and cut unreinforced collar and sleeve steeks to demonstrate her confidence in the stickiness of Shetland Wool!)
In talking about colour she referenced the notion of having a "mid life colour" - one that she previously hadn't considered that suddenly grabbed her attention, demanding use. In Lorraine's case it was yellow.
I've been thinking about that ever since, wondering what mine might be and I think my mid life colour seems to be an absence of colour per se. Natural, undyed, white through vaying shades of grey seem to be my current thing after decades of bold colour choices in everything from home decor to my clothing.
Its certainly coming out in my knitting...
Over the winter the painting I did around the house was all from the "whites" section of the colour deck...
The question is when, four years ago this week, I went out in search of a Brown Poodle and instead came home with this...
Not that anyone stopping by here might be old enough for such a question but just in the event someone is... do you have a mid life colour?
6 comments:
green. Always has been, always will be it seems. It centres and calms me. Although I do love the neutrals...
Marie- I have talked with many women about this, and it seems to be the case.
I think you're looking for calm and neutrality- which is why your choices are changing.
Do you think men do this?
As my hair has whitened I've settled into grey. If I wear cream or white I disappear. The last year or so I've had a crush on saffron yellow - but in small quantities.
I too have turned a pretty shade of white...I tend to lean towards greens...I also find it calming. Sometimes yellows or any pop of color! I have always stayed away from red, though....
I too have had a startling, strong and sustained shift towards neutrals, though I'm not going grey yet. For ages, I adored red with a passion. I bought red clothes, furniture, utensils -- whenever there was a red one available, that's what I chose. A few months ago something shifted and I just couldn't look at red anymore. I wanted only neutrals (and wood, seagrass and other natural materials). I've been re-homing my red things ever since. Replacing all the wardrobe staples is the hardest, but I've started with that, too. Nice to read your post and know I'm not alone.
Hi great reading yoour blog
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