Extended Color Coverage - A Color Junkie Run Amuck

Hello, my name is Lisa and I am a color-aholic. I say screw the 10 steps and embrace your addiction. This is what I do: I make color samples, over and over, until I come up with exactly what I want. I love the process of naming my color themes. What can I say, my gimmick has to be theme centered! So, over the course of the Summer I came up with a number of new color combinations for the Fall/Winter Seasons:

First off, check out "500 Miles". For me it is reminiscent of driving I-5 through southern Oregon into California during the late Summer/early Fall. All the grass has turned blonde, and the fall wild flowers are blooming in muted shades, while the leaves start to change form green to shades of yellow, orange and red. (The colors here from top to bottom: crimson, tangerine, dijon, sangria, sweet pea, bone)

Also, the farthest southern destination you can drive in a day and still make it to a hotel at a descent hour: Ukiah, California (571 miles from Portland, OR). For those of you unfamiliar with this lovely little town - it really is quite centrally located to San Francisco, the Mendocino Coast and California wine country, and not too expensive.

The next combination I created is called "City Centre". I just loved the new colors I bought and had to use them again in another combo... to me it's a reminder of the sidewalks we stroll down (or run down because as city folk we seem to be in a hurry), and the softness of the periphery: the color of the autumn sky with its pinks, caramels and reds. Or, maybe its the leaf letting oxygenators, with the softness of their turning leaves and the hardness of the bark. At any rate, its a reminder that living in the city is beautiful in the fall... (The colors here from top to bottom: nude, pewter, mushroom, cinnamon, poppy, rootbeer)

Additionally, I had to create a combination with blue... I can't make a new combo with out some blue so "Water's Edge" is what a came up with. It includes a new green called "pine" that has a smooth, matte finish... quite lustrous, also included is another new color "bark". I love how the dark, dark brown sets off the rich mulberry. It really is the only purple bead I love, and use regularly. Lately, I have found it difficult to love purple beads. Most of the shades are hard to work with and want to fight with other colors - but not mulberry... sweet mulberry! (The colors here from top to bottom: faded denim, ocean, peacock, pine, bark, mulberry)

This combo so reminds me of when I lived in Seattle and when I would bike around Lake Washington. Such a gorgeous spot. And every now and then I would spot a grey heron taking a break in the grass on the shore. Really, if you haven't been to Seattle - PLEASE... make a stop. You won't be disappointed.

Lastly, I created "Betty's Apron" (colors include from top to bottom: duckling, tangerine, cinnamon mushroom, cilantro, chartreuse). Now, my mother came of age in the 50's & 60's, so Betty Crocker was very much a part of her young life. She still has my grandmother's old Betty Crocker Cookbook from the 40's! If you've never read though one of these old cookbooks, well... it hilarious! It has all kinds of advise on how to "look" for your husband... you get the idea - hilarious! At any rate... my mother loves aprons, and though her name isn't Betty, she was very much like Betty when I was growing up. She was always baking goodies and making home-cooked dishes with love. My absolute favorite were my mother's home made cinnamon rolls. That's the inspiration behind this color combination: I remember the cheerful greens and oranges in my mother's 70's kitchen, along with the warmth of the oven and the gorgeous smell of the cinnamon, butter and frosting filled dough... yummm...

So, I hope that color allows you to relive a beautiful or happy memory - it does for me every day, and please feel free to comment on your favorite color combinations I have created this fall. And, if you have any favorite colors - I'd love to see them..

- Pink