I have been intrigued once again with the color jade. We have seen it re-surface from time to time in various shades and tones. I find it to be a most serene, yet very energetic color; it promotes peace and introspection. I imagine 4 walls of jade in my living room and I feel like I need to gasp for air. Four walls is too much, but jade as an accent is a delight. I like to see it paired with coral or a light lemon yellow in small amounts.
Jade as a background is ideal because it flatters and perks up other colors. It reminds me of the sea, yet I am not sure of all the myriads of colors I have see in the ocean, that I have seen the color jade. If jade were a base color, I think I see more blue or deep green combined with it in the oceans. It is a color of enchantment, of mystery, of refreshment. It causes my soul to be still and listen. I can almost hear the sound of the waves and feel a soft wind against my face.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Knowing Who You Are Is Important-An Overview
I think it is essential to who you really are. What if you got to the end of your life and found out that you got to the end and had been going in the wrong direction all that time? What if there were things---character traits or accomplishments--you could have or would have done, if only you had known? What joy we would feel if we could look back and then felt the satisfaction of seeing that we had become our true self, our best self! Not to mention the joy of the journey along the way, experiencing that inner peace that comes from knowing that we are on the right path. We all came here with a purpose: things that were important to ourselves and things that would be important to the lives of others that we would contribute to. So what are we going to contribute?
Our contributions come from our gifts, our inner core of gifts. What are our gifts? We each have many gifts, some recognized, some unrecognized, some developed, some not. Our gifts can be used to help us fulfill our missions in life. We are all different and have different gifts and different missions. Generally those differences are good because there are many things that need to be contributed by many people. I believe that those gifts were given by God to be used to develop ourselves and to bless the lives of others. That would be ideal.
The first step should be to identify who you are. After you know who you are, then you can begin to discover what your mission or purpose in life is. Then you can make meaningful choices about what you should do and who you should become. Knowing what you feel passionate about brings joy and lays a foundation for making congruent choices in your life.
After you identify and organize your internal self, then you can begin to create a supportive environment for yourself.
Next time: ways to discover who you are.
Our contributions come from our gifts, our inner core of gifts. What are our gifts? We each have many gifts, some recognized, some unrecognized, some developed, some not. Our gifts can be used to help us fulfill our missions in life. We are all different and have different gifts and different missions. Generally those differences are good because there are many things that need to be contributed by many people. I believe that those gifts were given by God to be used to develop ourselves and to bless the lives of others. That would be ideal.
The first step should be to identify who you are. After you know who you are, then you can begin to discover what your mission or purpose in life is. Then you can make meaningful choices about what you should do and who you should become. Knowing what you feel passionate about brings joy and lays a foundation for making congruent choices in your life.
After you identify and organize your internal self, then you can begin to create a supportive environment for yourself.
Next time: ways to discover who you are.
Interior Design for the Soul
I strive in my residential design work to create spaces that will support identifed areas of activity and the personality and interests of the people who live there. Extreme Makeover does this for families with special needs and especially with children's bedrooms. Those bedrooms are really great, and of course, they have remarkable resources available to them and a crew to make it happen. The quesiion is: What happens next?
There are 4 componets to the idea that I am thinking about. One is to identify the personality of the occupant of a space. The second is to create a supportive space. Then this third idea is about the interaction that happens and changes or validates or fosters growth in an individual or groups. Then the last component is that now that we have this wonderful, supportive environment, how to we identify the growth we want to foster--how to we become the person we are meant to be? Because I think this is the most meaningful goal we could have for ourselves--how do we discover who we are, where we need to be and who we need to become. The environment is the stage that should help us achieve this. What are the tools we need?
There are 4 componets to the idea that I am thinking about. One is to identify the personality of the occupant of a space. The second is to create a supportive space. Then this third idea is about the interaction that happens and changes or validates or fosters growth in an individual or groups. Then the last component is that now that we have this wonderful, supportive environment, how to we identify the growth we want to foster--how to we become the person we are meant to be? Because I think this is the most meaningful goal we could have for ourselves--how do we discover who we are, where we need to be and who we need to become. The environment is the stage that should help us achieve this. What are the tools we need?
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Nature-Color-People
I understand color. I know how to use it. When I am thinking about creating new color schemes for a painting or project, I often look at nature to seek inspiration. I am never disappointed. Nature, in all of its glory and wonder, is always exquisite. Colors in rocks, in flowers, in fish, in the sky playing against the mountains or plains, always provides fresh expressions of color and color combinations.
Color impacts our environment. It can be defining as to establishing a mood. It effects our personalities and level of performance, as well as our appetites and such things as our health and well being. My experience dealing with color and clients is that color affects virtually every aspect of our beings, so it is vital that the colors we select to live with enhance our health and the strength, beauty and goodness of our souls, and support a direction in life that allows us to fulfill our missions in life. I believe profoundly that we lived before we came here and in that pre-mortal world we were given purposes to accomplish here on earth, and then report back to our Heavenly Father about how we did and what we learned and who we became. I think that, viewed from this perspective, the environments we create for ourselves are even more important. Some people think that creating a harmonious environment happens when you bring the colors of the landscape around you inside. That creates a a natural flow between inside and outside and would likely give a feeling of expanse and oneness with nature. But, what if the individuals require different colors to experience a supportive environment? What if those colors of the nature around them actually drain their energy?? Two things need to happen. One is that the designer or whoever is making the decision about color, needs to identify the colors that should be used around each person in a family, and those that should not be used. Secondly, it needs to be established where each color or color combinations should be used and in what quantities. In commercial environments, color, of necessity will be applied more broadly, but still supportive of whatever activity is occurring in a space and hopefully. with an eye toward individual choices where possible, as in offices or cubical. So, while we draw from nature, we need to use and adapt nature's beauty to create environments that will support our personal growth.
I seem to have a sixth sense about people and color. I look at their physical colorings-hair, skin, eyes- but also I look into their souls and somehow, intuitively, come up with a very accurate diagnosis of colors they would thrive in and those they would not. In choosing colors for a person, I create a balance between the environment and the individual, almost the same way I pick fashion colors for someone. People don't need to match their environment. Personalities are important. For instance, I love red. I could easily thrive in a red room as well as in a red dress. But not everyone could do that. Maybe they can live with something softer like pink, or color toned down to burgandy or muted to lavender. Somehow I just look at a person and I know. I want to figure out HOW I know.
Color impacts our environment. It can be defining as to establishing a mood. It effects our personalities and level of performance, as well as our appetites and such things as our health and well being. My experience dealing with color and clients is that color affects virtually every aspect of our beings, so it is vital that the colors we select to live with enhance our health and the strength, beauty and goodness of our souls, and support a direction in life that allows us to fulfill our missions in life. I believe profoundly that we lived before we came here and in that pre-mortal world we were given purposes to accomplish here on earth, and then report back to our Heavenly Father about how we did and what we learned and who we became. I think that, viewed from this perspective, the environments we create for ourselves are even more important. Some people think that creating a harmonious environment happens when you bring the colors of the landscape around you inside. That creates a a natural flow between inside and outside and would likely give a feeling of expanse and oneness with nature. But, what if the individuals require different colors to experience a supportive environment? What if those colors of the nature around them actually drain their energy?? Two things need to happen. One is that the designer or whoever is making the decision about color, needs to identify the colors that should be used around each person in a family, and those that should not be used. Secondly, it needs to be established where each color or color combinations should be used and in what quantities. In commercial environments, color, of necessity will be applied more broadly, but still supportive of whatever activity is occurring in a space and hopefully. with an eye toward individual choices where possible, as in offices or cubical. So, while we draw from nature, we need to use and adapt nature's beauty to create environments that will support our personal growth.
I seem to have a sixth sense about people and color. I look at their physical colorings-hair, skin, eyes- but also I look into their souls and somehow, intuitively, come up with a very accurate diagnosis of colors they would thrive in and those they would not. In choosing colors for a person, I create a balance between the environment and the individual, almost the same way I pick fashion colors for someone. People don't need to match their environment. Personalities are important. For instance, I love red. I could easily thrive in a red room as well as in a red dress. But not everyone could do that. Maybe they can live with something softer like pink, or color toned down to burgandy or muted to lavender. Somehow I just look at a person and I know. I want to figure out HOW I know.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Color and Energy
I love color. I am passionate about color. And today I had an interesting experience about and with color. My all-time favorite color is a light pink warm, soft salmon. I have a bedspread this color. I had a headboard that had always been painted white. It was pretty and fresh, but not spectacular. I saw a picture of a room that Martha Sturart had done all in pink and she showed a soft gray colored headboard. It was lovely, so I though I would try it. Three shades of grey and two shades of taupe later, it wasn't working. Then I tried a grayed out lavender on the headboard. It was a beautiful color. Interesting, but the room was too dark and it ended up looking blah and indistinct. So I looked at the headboard and asked myself, "What does this need"? I went looking through my many cans of paint and I found a small jar in a deeper salmon color that I love. I did not want a juvenille effect. But the richer, more sophisticated colors weren't working. So, I tried the can of salmon paint. Instantly the mood of the area changed. There was energy pouring from the new color. I could feel it. I also realized how draining the gray had been. The new color is pretty and energetic in a way that none of the other colors were. It is bold. It doesn't look juvenille. It is charming and rich, with an edge. I love it. Serendipity in a jar of paint.
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