A color muse

A color muse

This is my bestie, Jaymee. We met in high school and we became very close in our AP art class. She was one of my bridesmaids, and definitely occasionally assists me w/ my little photo shoots for this blog, or whatever other creative endeavor I have going on. I see her at least once a week, usually on “totally” Tuesdays, and we go to Trader Joes and she updates me on our circle of friends. (Being the only one in this circle who is married or has a child, we don’t get out as often as we used to). Anyway, she keeps wearing this darn scarf! And everytime she puts it on I zone out and all I can see is this amazing color pallet, so I must document it! I made her stop before leaving my house so I could quickly snap a few photos. I love the way the scarf picks up all of the colors going on in her face; her burgundy to orange ombre hair color, her turquoise eye liner, her rosey cheeks. It’s just beautiful. Moreover, I remember this is similar to the color pallet I was particularly attracted to in college.

This is my Tibetan Hothouse quilt that I just dragged out of the hall closet. I bought it my for my first real apartment when I was in college from the anthropolgie on 3rd street in 2002 (I think that was when there was only 3 anthroplogies in ALL of LA). It was my first anthropologie quilt (I now have 4), and to this day the only reason it’s not sitting on my bed is because it is literally falling apart. It’s made of a thin voile, so it didn’t really hold up to heavy use. Since I can’t use it as it is, but there is no way I can toss it out. I will repair it, or reuse the fabric somehow one day. There are several details about this quilt I love; I love the meandering wavy lines and the way they ebb and flow together, and the fact that they are set at an angle instead of vertically or horizontally. I love the shape of the blue roses and the way they fill the background. I love that it is double sided, and the back is larger scale and that the blue is reserved only for one side. Also, this thing is SO soft. But mostly I’ve always loved the colors, and so every time Jaymee puts on that darn scarf, I think I’m moved by the same indiscernable part of me that won’t throw away this old deteriorating quilt. Isn’t it interesting when you see color patterns in your life? I talked about this when I wrote about my grandmother’s scarves, and I’m sure it will creep up again. I think it’s painfully obvious that there is another color pallet I can’t get enough of (although, lately maybe I can), because it’s the one that dominates this blog. Can you guess what it is?!

If you love color pallets you should check out Design Seeds. Jessica Colaluca does some amazing work and has inspired me to pull color pallets from single images more and more often. There is something wonderful about colors that already exist together in harmony as opposed to saying “I like these colors” and making them work together. Both approaches are fine, but I think sometimes I have struggled w/ color in the past because I try to force colors I like to work, even if they aren’t working together. A solution to that problem might be to stop forcing things, and open your eyes to color combinations and patterns already going on around you.

One Response to A color muse

  1. […] have been kinda digging the whole ombre hair trend for a couple of years now. And when my friend Jaymee came over with her hair freshly done, I was in LOVE, but I didn’t think about doing anything […]

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Welcome

Welcome to Visual Vocabularie! My name is Jesyka, and I am a designer, artist, mom to Laelia and Luca, wife to software engineer and UX designer Tyler, coffee lover, and all around enthused person. This is my blog; here I share my personal projects, whether it's a furniture makeover, a new painting, a birthday party, an invitation I designed, or a favorite outfit for my little. You’ll also catch a glimpse into our family life in Los Angeles.

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