Sunday 19 February 2012

Yellow is for Golden Sunlight

So it is with a sense of relief  that after all that rain last night , the sun is out and we have some yellow to start the week with . Its no surprise that people feel better about life when the sun is out. Yellow is the primary colour that we associate with optimism, enlightenment and happiness. It can be used as  a gentler version of the positive red to change your mood or your environment for the better.

I have a yellow hallway which is a sunny entrance and supposed to encourage luck and wealth! I used to work for a very supersitious Hungarian Jew who placed gold coins above the studio entrance door mantle to encourage luck. I must admit that when we relaid our deck a couple of years ago I placed gold coins in the cement of our Feng Shui wealth corner ( top left ).

Yellow is globally the colour we associate with positivity and wealth.  In Japan it is associated with courage, in India with peace and in China with royalty and respect. It is the highlight colour of life. The yellow jersey. The high tinkling notes in music, the golden light of a halo, the colour of spiritual awakening.  The yellow spice of saffron ( made from the dried crocus stamens) is actually more valuable in weight than gold.

Interestingly enough it is also the most tiring colour on the eye as it reflects the most light. You won't be finding many screen savers predominately yellow.

 But yellow has a sinister side too. Think of jaundice, yellow bellied, cowadice, yellow card in soccer, yellow warning flag in a car race, yellow armbands worn by the Jews in concentration camps....... its not all happiness and golden light. Its also the colour associated with deceit and bankcruptcy. I always think there is an irony when all the financial experts on the news seem to wear a predominately gold tie. Which side are they on? Wealth or warning?! Have a look next time and see what I mean!

The Australian landscape is full of ochres, reds and rusts , the colours of the aboriginal flag are true of this big dusty island. My kids like making their own pigments at the beach. You can grind sandstone or rock and charcoal mixing it with water to make a palette fit for any artist. They can dot paint on smooth rocks or  even each other and they wash it all off with one last dip before you go home.

http://www.colourmeart.com/enjoy-colour.asp

Sunday 12 February 2012

Red Is For Love.

So Valentines Day has come around again! Why do we associate the colour red with love? Well red, pink and those hot colours make our heart skip a beat. Just like love. Red is the end of the colour spectrum that make us take notice, it stands for danger, hot taps, red traffic lights, fast sports cars, warning signs, fire fire!

Next time you are at the supermarket just take a look at how much packaging is in red. Buy me , buy me now!!

The Chinese culture consider red ( and gold ) very good luck. I have designed many a bedlinen set based on this colour combination , traditionally given to newly weds.
Think of expressions like ' in the pink',  seeing things through 'rose tinted spectacles', it's a very positive colour and if you are feeling physically low, red lifts the soul, cheers you up.  The very basic feng shui rule on red is to put it in your relationship corner ( top right ), so think about growing something red or pink in your top right corner of your garden, put something red or pink on the top right corner of your desk, bedroom........ See if it makes a difference to your lovelife or sense of wellbeing. I know I was amazed to see a deep pink colour painted walls on the delivery floor of Royal Womens Hospital in Randwick but the sense of positivity , love and warmth when you step out of the lift is fantastic. Someone knew what they were doing when they chose that! Must have been a mum that knew a thing about colour theory!
Anyway Happy Valentine's Day  whatever colour you are wearing!

Sunday 5 February 2012

Born to Colour!


So a little about me, what makes me tick and what I love and why I created ColourMeArt last year.......... She Inspires online magazine article if you follow this link ................
 http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sheinspires.com.au%2Fhelen-ashley-colourmeart&h=xAQHprylAAQFTttNoZR9Hmr8-HL6OOi8zFg1J3yEXcVKDgA

Thursday 2 February 2012

Pink Dog Cake

Most People know I refer to my gorgeous dog as my 4th baby without the pelvic floor problems ( !)  so when it was her birthday of course we made her a cake. This pink dog cake was made with kibble, mashed potato with pink food colouring added and then sculpted into a pigs head with real piggy ears, and doggy treats for the details. Kids absolutely loved doing it. We had a proper party and invited all her 4 legged friends. One of my girls made tiny party hats on pin elastic for the dogs and instead of party bags, they all went away with a doggy poo bags filled with doggy treats! If you have a four legged member of your family you might want to try it!