April hasn’t been terribly warm this far and to make matters worse it snowed for the first half of today all over the beautiful flowering magnolia trees, cherry trees, and tulips that are bursting through the flower beds on every street corner. And yet, in addition to the sunlight coming at the end of this April tunnel, once the rain showers wash away, there is the duet of green-and-blue to signify the season.
As spring dances in, it’s the combination of blue and green that leaves us looking up. Trees bud with piercing chartreuse and nature’s ceiling dazzles in pretty blue. This color duo offers bright colors that contradict the earthy hues that oftentimes fall under the definition of “natural.”
I fell in love with this large-scale print years ago when I used it in my own home and have kept the extra yardage in storage for a small design moment that needed something a little special. Well, as they say, the time has come.
You know that it’s rare to see a project of mine that shows walls without a layer of color, pattern, and texture. Those design frills don’t have to come from wallpaper. This time, I chose to paperback the spirited linen statement fabric so that it could be hung on the wall, where a buffet cabinet sits and welcomes the joyful activity of people and the cheerful colors of spring. Its pattern adds a lively moment to a vignette that is anchored in great texture.
The buffet itself shows why I use opposites as a design tool and how they result in success. The painted white shell of the piece is smooth like satin but stylishly interrupted by doors that are faced in woven raffia. As I’ve written before, I have a deep connection with warm weather interiors, so I use raffia, wicker, and those sorts of materials to weave my favorite destinations into my work no matter where it is. Wicker matches the raffia in color but is used to form the most darling pagoda object that sits atop a couple of colorful books. The glass vase is speckled in blues and whites that nudged me to gather hydrangeas, white roses, and denim-colored tulips from our local flower shop. A gold-lidded box with a dotted surface like a sea urchin makes sure that my styling moment has a little shine. A favorite piece is the green-and-white striped lamp. Its glaze mimics a sweater— a necessary piece that I always have on-hand during this time of year when the climate isn’t sure yet if it wants to stay warm all day every day.
Blue and green are as natural as colors come. They are the colors that we see the most—on grass, on treetops, and on our sky that extends to eternity. The combination of these colors is eternal, too, and I hope you have a spot where these happy hues can live.
