Orange

ORANGE

A prime communication and meditation colour

Joy, enthusiasm, happiness, creativity, attraction, success, stimulation

Orange – a good colour for restaurants where happiness and joy in communication are fundamental to an enjoyable experience of eating out with family, friends and colleagues! Maybe this is why I feel it’s strongly associated with Retro. For communication and stimulation it appears it’s a highly appropriate choice that my colleague made on the flip charts we’ve been working on as we look at the long term future of the business. 

And while Frank Sinatra feels it is the happiest colour, it is a colour (as a Summer) that I struggle with - it’s not in my palette - the closest being Musk Pink, and, as a strong colour, has a strong reaction for me in my environment, to the extent that when I moved to a new house I needed to pull up all the marigolds in the garden and replace them with cyclamen and grape hyacinths!  Not so effective on bug control but easier on my eye!

An earlier blog I wrote connecting the colour of your mug to the flavour of your hot chocolate reported that Orange mugs produce the best tasting hot chocolate.  No mention was made regarding the research sample as to what season each of the tasters was and thus how much unconscious personal preference may have played a part!

And so I sit down with my purple mug (there wasn’t an orange one!) and consider the virtues of Orange every colour has its place and contribution to the rainbow:

‘There is no blue without yellow and without orange’ – Vincent Van Gogh

In its rightful place, it looks stunning and when I passed a colleague last week wearing an orange top, matching lipstick and a Kingfisher Poncho, I was reminded of the joys of wearing colours appropriately (to the wearer) and in complementary harmony with each other.  It was as if the light had been switched on and she was illuminated.  The hair colour, cut, make-up, trousers and boots served to support the strength of the picture frame and she was ‘In Focus’.

‘If the family were a fruit, it would be an orange, a circle of sections, held together but separable – each segment distinct’ – Letty Cottin Pogrebin

The thirst-quenching fresh flavour of a fresh orange presse.

The burst of zest when my finger nail first breaks the skin of an orange or tangerine.

The juicy calmness I experience from the ripest, juiciest mango.

The warming mellow as orange merges towards rust with its comforting homeliness in soft furnishings.

Orange, as a bright, can make a fantastic accent colour – Men, if you’re an Autumn or a Spring, try it in a tie; you might be surprised at how appropriately impactful it can be when balanced with your trousers/suit/shirt combinations.  Particularly stunning against a dark brown, chocolate combination.

Ideas for introducing Orange:

Spring (warm & clear)	Aquas, Turquoises and all the neutrals – navy, browns through tan to cream etc
Summer (cool & soft)	Somewhere you can look at and enjoy it!
Autumn (warm & soft)	With Royal Purple, Apricot, Amber, Rust, and with all your Greens, browns and navy
Winter (cool & clear)	Somewhere you can look at and enjoy it!

And if Orange in its purist form is a bit strong, Autumns can soften it by moving to Amber or Rust while Springs can introduce the lighter Tangerine moving into Salmon or the stronger, deeper Terracotta.

Your Orange lipsticks range from:	Strong to:	Light / Bright
Spring (warm & clear)	Terracotta	Tangerine
Summer (cool & soft)	Musk Pink is the closest but it’s not really there!
Autumn (warm & soft)	Orange, Rust, Amber,
Winter (cool & clear)	Scarlet is the closest, but it’s not really there!

Great Oranges for your Season	Soft	Clear
Warm	Autumn L308, L621, L648, L653	Spring  L308, L410

You can wear any colour – of course you can, but they don’t all suit you or make you look your best.  If you want to embrace the colour of orange in your life, maybe it’s about knowing it’s there rather than showing it to the world; a piece of orange fabric, orange underwear, a picture of wonderful things that are orange.  

I love pictures, photos and imagery – maybe I’ll try that!  Put it where I can look at it, rather than putting it on me and making other people look at it.   Remember, I make the colour look good (or not) as much as the colour makes me look good (or not)!