I've always been fascinated by and drawn to color (and sparkles) and sumptuous textures. When clothes shopping (even out as a young girl with my Mom) I would immediately pick out all the garish, brightly colored, clothes (bonus points if it had sparkly sequins or beads). A shiny satin would never be left alone — I had to touch it, to experience the fabric. Brightly colored satin always seemed like liquid jewels.
Now, my more reserved sense of style tends to prevent the most garish of clothing from being purchased, but I am none-the-less drawn to it. No whimpy pastels for me, either - I like my color fully saturated.
As my tastes have matured, I've been able to balance my love of color and texture with classic lines and styling to prevent it from being overwhelming. As I've learned more about myself (through the inevitable painful times that allow one to grow and develop), I've found my colorful wardrobe expanding. What used to be a closet full of blacks, browns, and blues (albeit, bright blues... the only bright color I really allowed myself), is now one that is becoming a veritable rainbow. I think this says a lot about how comfortable I am with... who I am, now.
In any case, obviously I am a huge fan of color. I recall ever since reading Mask of the Red Death wanting to decorate rooms by specific colors and palettes—
To the right and left, in the middle of each wall, a tall and narrow Gothic window looked out upon a closed corridor which pursued the windings of the suite. These windows were of stained glass whose color varied in accordance with the prevailing hue of the decorations of the chamber into which it opened. That at the eastern extremity was hung, for example, in blue -- and vividly blue were its windows. The second chamber was purple in its ornaments and tapestries, and here the panes were purple. The third was green throughout, and so were the casements. The fourth was furnished and lighted with orange -- the fifth with white -- the sixth with violet. The seventh apartment was closely shrouded in black velvet tapestries that hung all over the ceiling and down the walls, falling in heavy folds upon a carpet of the same material and hue. But in this chamber only, the color of the windows failed to correspond with the decorations. The panes here were scarlet -- a deep blood color.
Of course, nothing quite that garish or extreme, but the idea has stayed with me. It evolved first with my bedroom - I have an assortment of beach- and tropical- themed items, and I wanted to use them in my bedroom to create a space of peace and tranquility (alas, this is often broken by the clutter I'm trying to dispose of). I chose a lovely theme of light aquas and browns to evoke the feeling, and augment it a bit with a lovely old world theme (a bit colonial carribean?).
The next inspiration was my kitchen. It all began with the Carribbean Blue colorway of Le Creuset. It simply enamored me - I loved that color. Knowing that turquoise was popular in the 50s as a kitchen color, I began looking into retro kitchenware and gadgets that would follow this theme... As time has gone by, it's evolved more into a main splash of turquoise accented by citrus, all set against my (white, white, white) kitchen. (I should post a photo of my kitchen just so you can see how... white... it is. This probably sparked the severe need for color.)
And, now, my most recent inspiration - my (future) green art deco living room/cocktail room... My living room in my townhouse is really a combination living/dining room area. However, since I don't have an extra dining table (nor really any need for one), it morphed into a piano/sitting area. Since my old roommates moved out, the amount of furniture in there as decreased, and I've been wondering what to do about it... and also wondering what to do about all the liquor and glassware my current roommates and I have - ergo, the cocktail area (perfectly complemented by the piano, I guess).
In any case, the "living" side of the room will be more organic - greens and whites, accented by naturals and a touch of black. The "cocktail" side will be more blacks and whites, with some naturals (piano, hutch). I need to sketch it out to decide for sure, but I think it will help differentiate the two spaces but still not have them contrast in a large way.
My moment of eureka came while I was watching Mystery! on PBS — specifically an Agatha Christie's Miss Marple show, By the Pricking of My Thumbs. Right at the beginning it shows a theme of white and black lattice against a lovely green wall, and I knew at that point what I wanted my living room to be.
Of course, much has evolved and changed as I've been researching and looking into things. I like to add retro elements (such as the '50s in the kitchen and the '20s-'30s in this case) without overwhelming the room with them - I don't want it to seem to contrived or kitchy. Rather, I go for a look that is more natural and more in line with a modern aesthetic.
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