January 19, 2016

White: A Good Place to Begin

White brings to mind gentleness, softness, purity, cleanliness, innocence, perfection. White feels fresh. White is considered the opposite of black or darkness. It represents light and all that is good and pure in the world. We can always use more good in the world.


White also marks new beginnings and it's where I'm beginning 2016.


I like to think of white as a clean blank canvas . . . a perfect place to start the new year. Here's my design wall, all cleared and ready for new quilty goodness to develop . . .


I especially identify with white in winter, but not for the obvious reasons of it being the color of snow. Although living in Colorado we do get our fair share of white stuff in the winter. Thankfully our house doesn't look like this very often . . .


During the Christmas season, my home is decked out in holiday decorations. It's colorful and full. Very full. But with the start of the new year I enjoy putting all those decorations away and being left with a simplified space. A clean slate.


White frees my mind from the clutter and distraction of all the color I usually surround myself with. White calms, refreshes, and renews my soul.

For years I have replaced all the colorful holiday decor with simple white dishes. They have a calm, quietness about them.


I also have other white-scapes throughout my home, like this collection of white pitchers . . .


And these vintage collections . . .


The glass vases below are filled with mementos of my Mom. Her white lacy blouses. Her white gloves. Strands of her pearls.


My husband used white for his sculptures titled "Together Again" that pays homage to his parents.


This a Chihuly glass piece from the Denver Botanical Gardens show.


White is readily found in nature too. Besides snow, there are fluffy white clouds . . . next time you look at the sky take notice of all the colors in the 'white' clouds. Grays, blues, yellows . . .


White sandy beaches . . . and some pale white skin to match.


We may not have white capped waves here in Colorado but we do have plenty of white water in our rushing mountain streams . . .


There are beautiful white blooming trees and flowers in spring . . .


Spring also brings plenty of fluffy white dandelion seed pods . . .


I realized I have always had gray and white kitties. Both Opal and Leo have white paws, chins and bellies. I almost tripped over this one as I headed down the stairs. It's not his usual spot and he had no intention of moving . . .


White comes in many colors. If you've ever tried to choose white paint you know what I mean. Warm whites. Cool whites. Bright white. Antique white. Whites with a touch of blue, pink, yellow, green.


Whether you think of white as a color or not, no one would deny it certainly is associated with many positive qualities. If you care to learn more about whether white is even considered a color or not this article looks at both sides of the argument and is worth a read.

Here's to my clean slate. It's time to begin . . .


When I started this color series, my intention was to really look for the color in my own personal world. To see the color around me in my house, my environment and my experiences. For that reason I've chosen to use my own photos rather than rely on the abundance of beautiful photos and color schemes available through sites like Pinterest and Design Seeds. These sites are wonderful places for inspiration on color but I want my series to be personal . . . representative of the color I see around me. You can see all my other color stories under the Color Inspiration tab at the top of my blog. If you'd like to see additional beautiful color images, you can follow my Pinterest color boards here. Just look for the specific color boards or my Color Scheme board.

I challenge you to look around your home, your neighborhood, your work and really see the colors in your world. Go look for some White in your life. Thanks for reading.

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9 comments:

  1. I love white too, and find it adds so much light to all areas, it isn't cold or sterile but fresh and gives me a feeling of " Ooh, what can I put with all this beautiful glowing light !

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  2. This idea the first year I Haven't gone all white after Christmas. I agree with you, there is a calm that comes from all the incarnations of white. I enjoy the snow in Sweden right now, and for some reason I'm needing a bit of color (light grey with just a bit of red) to frame the view and banish the plain white paper blues. Although.... I still have white lace and lots of white texture around, so I guess it wasn't a clean break. Loved your pictures for this post!

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  3. I had painted a house in very vivid colors that was beautiful. But when we moved here 7 years ago, I searched for the perfect white and found it, a creamy vanilla. I have a colorful floral sofa and rugs so the white is perfect. My fireplace mantle is covered with vintage swans, clear glass perfume bottles and lead crystal clocks, so beautiful. We are now painting another room this week in some sort of creamy white so your post today was perfect for me.

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  4. What beautiful and calming pictures. I really like clean white too, it is a good contrast to all of the colorful mess of Legos and princesses I have all throughout the house :)

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  5. Another inspiring post Anne! When I see your beautifully styled photos of vases, glassware, buttons and pearls, I wonder whether you trained in such a field? They are ALWAYS (sorry to shout!) inspiring and a pleasure to behold! I agree- white is calming and peaceful- doves and the white flag!

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  6. White has so many values and tints, some of which are picked up by the colors around them. I love how you've found a nice variety of whites to share. The Behr paint color "Candlelight White" is one of my favorites. When we moved into our house, we overheard a woman complaining about her new house being so boring, because every room was white, and how can anyone stand that?! I chuckled inwardly because I love white! It's the perfect canvas for whatever color you want to hang on it. Bet you already know that I have many colorful quilts hanging on my walls!

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  7. Beautiful! Just what I needed after the riot of color that was the quilt show this weekend. Thank you!

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