I originally wrote this article in February, in the midst of the advent of St. Valentine’s Day. One could not help but be visually assaulted by pink at every turn, but in a good way!
The color pink has enjoyed a rich history. It has surged in and out of home interiors and apparel for centuries. It has been used liberally in art and was even mentioned in ancient time writing of “The Odyssey” by Homer. It comes in varying degrees of energy (closer to red has more, closer to white has less), pairs nicely with a multitude of other colors and can invoke the gambit of emotions.
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It’s no secret that pink is the baby of red and white, as in, “If red and white had a baby, it would be pink”; literally. As with any color, there are countless combinations of shade (the addition of black) and tint (the addition of white) to make equally countless numbers of values and iterations that, when drilled down to its core, are pink. Throw in a little more red, or a little more blue and you have yet another family of pinks. And if you ask what color a pastel is that is either from the red or orange family, and most boys will tell you it’s pink.
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As a very young girl, my first favorite color (that I can remember) was purple! Shocked? Yeah, you shouldn’t be. I’ve just always been an out-of-the-box kind of girl. Since I was about 8 years old, I’ve had a real love of interior décor and space planning, so the first time that pink got a real foothold on me was in the late 70’s early 80’s. (I wanted my bedroom in pink and yellow, like the Bubblicious gum packaging.) In college, my apartment was totally pretty in pink (You see what I did there? Thank you John Hughes. Unfortunately, no relation. Dang.), complete with a handmade pink and green Lover’s Knot quilt! Sigh. (I made this for myself. Even handcut all of the lace trim.)
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Being up with the trends as I love to be, pink made it’s departure from my home after graduation. (Or did it?) And once married, I said Sayounara to pink forever. (Or did I? Ok, I’ll stop.) I can even remember, when I was pregnant with our third child (our FIRST/ONLY girl), having a conversation at a dinner party, 3 days before she was born, about my color choices for her nursery. I explained to the more seasoned mom of girl babies that I was not a “pink kinda girl”. That other mom knowingly chuckled, rolled her eyes and said, “You will be.”
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Boy (or should I say “girl”?) was she right. The beautiful, subtle room that I had created for my new bundle, in it’s rich brown velvet and buttery yellow walls was getting smacked upside the head with each and every pink gift that I unwrapped. So what does any self -respecting interior fanatic do? I added pink. I HAD TO! It was EVERYWHERE!
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I was extremely fortunate to find a subtle pink, light yellow and cream large-scale plaid fabric that I crafted into removable “skirts” for the brown velvet blackout curtains already hanging in the room. (One of my better engineering projects, if I must say so myself.) Problem solved. And pink had forever returned to my home. Having a girl (other than me of course) in the house now gave me license to use pink at will! It’s awesome.
But what I discovered, since pink was now not banned from the house, I started to notice a common thread in some of the original artwork that we had collected for our home. A common PINK thread! That’s right. It was there all along. The hand painted piece of silk that we bought on our honeymoon contains fuchsia! As did the small art piece that we bought from a street vendor in St. Lucia. I started to notice that a little element of pink was in nearly every one of my favorite pieces.
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How about that? Not a “pink kinda girl”. Boy was I wrong and I’m delighted that I AM a pink kinda girl.
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We are currently in the midst of a kitchen remodel that involves removing a plethora of burnt orange from cabinets, flooring, you name it. (See “Green is Neutral” posted 7/2/17) Stage one was having the cabinets painted a combo of cream and a medium/dark grey. Now that the orange is not the primary color in the room (redo still in progress), I was so excited to break out a pink/red/green/white vintage cotton floral tablecloth just in time for Valentine’s Day this year. THRILLED! I’ve been sitting on this little lovely for YEARS!
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I’m also inoculating my boys to the color, which is a win! Although they would not be caught dead wearing it (the fit that was had when I picked out a creamsicle colored shirt for my middle one for Easter last year – good gracious – SMH – IT WAS ORANGE!!!!), they do not cower in fear when they see it around the house. Yay for my sweet little future husbands.
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Try paying closer attention to the sentimental art pieces and decor that you have. See if you don’t find a common thread of something that you love binding it all into a neat little collection.
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For more pictures that did not make the blog, check out Jenniferthebeholder on Instagram.
1 “Madame de Pompadour” by Mauriece Quentin de la Tour, 1751.
2 Sherwin-Williams paint samples.
3 That’s our kitty, Wonder. Ignore the crooked lampshade in the background. I just really liked the picture of the cat. LOL.
4 Photo by Kama Studio Photography. Notice my pink Ann Taylor Loft trench and my sweet baby’s pink blanket. Sigh.
5 Bear on the left is a Vermont Teddy Bear. Rabbit on the right was made by yours truly.
6 Painting on silk by Jean-Baptiste.
7 “Galvanized Support” by Alicina Nolley.
8 Vintage Wilendur tablecloth. Lenox Butler’s Pantry Dinner plate. Scottish Pewter Quaich Bowl w/Celtic Knot Handles.
9 Vintage ’90’s orange creamsicle linen by DarlingVintage on Etsy.
10 Handpainted pillow cover that I purchased on a trip to Capri, Italy in the late 90s.
