Sensational Color Pro Kate Smith's Online Color Journal » Color Inspiration

Tree at Williamsburg Inn

Kate Smith — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 13:29:32 +0000

I was in Williamsburg over the Thanksgiving holiday and during a stroll in the garden behind the Inn I was taken with the pattern and colors in the bark of this tree.

The gray and orange combination would make a very sophisticated color palette for either an interior and exterior of a home.

Quite a different look than the orange in yesterday’s Etsy Inspired color palette. These tones of orange are much more sedate and complex.

With gray moving to the forefront in 2009 we will see it being used

Colors of Cranberries

Kate Smith — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 20:06:13 +0000

One of my favorite things about Thanksgiving are cranberries. I just love these little red berries and in honor of Thanksgiving I am raising this humble fruit from red berry to a complete palette of inspiring red hues.

To pick just one color would require me to dismiss all of the many gorgeous red hues in a bowl of fresh cranberries, which is how I prefer them until just hours before the meal when I grind fresh berries with fresh oranges and a splash of lemon for a raw cranberry relish that is so good it makes my taste buds tingle just thinking about it.

My love of cranberries extends into the picturesque

Half Inspired

Kate Smith — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:35:32 +0000

Actually completely inspired but loved the play on words because today’s color scheme inspiration comes from my friend and CMG colleague Paul Half and his blog Half2Know.

I took a section of his blog and created the color palette shown below. I think the colors work great for his blog header but couldn’t you just image this color scheme in an interior of an apartment or knitted into a favorite sweater?

These aren’t the exact colors perhaps but when I paint a landscape I work to capture the feeling of the scene in colors that please me rather than worrying about whether or not they are the exact hues.

My thought process is much the same when I develop a color scheme from something that inspires me and I hope it is your approach as well. No need to worry about getting the colors exactly but rather focus on putting together colors that please you.

And just in case you were wondering here is what the full banner looks like.

Swiss Chard Palette

Kate Smith — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 10:50:03 +0000

I am often inspired to prepare a meal by the color of the ingredients and because I eat fresh, natural and mostly organic foods most of my meals are built around fresh fruits and vegetables.

Recently I have gotten hooked on raw swiss chard. All I do is chop up fresh swiss chard, toss with some Sel Gris (French Grey Salt) and high quality olive oil and enjoy a flavorful salad full of color and nutrients.

In looking at how gorgeous my bowl of chopped greens looked I was reminded how people sometimes

Occoquan Sunrise

Kate Smith — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 14:52:21 +0000

One of the advantages of getting up and out early is seeing the sunrise. I caught this little glimpse of pink as I was crossing the river this morning and snapped a photo.

I really like how the greenish gray and rust (which I tweaked to more of a taupe)

Sold on Caribou Coffee Colors

Kate Smith — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:37:43 +0000

I have to admit I was a Tall Bold gal for a long time and would drive across town to my local Starbucks rather than risk a lousy cup of coffee somewhere else. When Caribou Coffee opened a store within walking distance of my house however all of that changed.

Yes the coffee is great but even more important is the fact that I like their colors. The light blue green of their logo and on the signage in the interior of their stores is a color that appeals to me. In fact it is vaguely similar to my signature color H2-Ahh!, which is the color of my office shown below.

Since I usually take along my laptop and work for an hour while enjoying my morning coffee the color connection seems to make it especially comfortable to me. Add to that store manager Kenny’s friendly personality and I’m there most mornings when I’m in town.

Recently I have been traveling and while I was away they set up their holiday displays. I walked in the other morning to find gift packages and items in a color combination I think is a perfect holiday scheme to say Caribou Coffee for the holidays.

The combination is used on the gift cards, holiday packaging, signage and of course the cups and looks great.

Only one small problem. I now have to buy a medium coffee instead of my usual small and can you guess why?

Olive and Sky Blue Morning

Kate Smith — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:15:00 +0000

I took a little detour around 7am to Fountainhead Park for a few moments outside before starting the day. The entire scene was brown and gray when I first arrived but within less than ten minutes the light changed and revealed a palette of complex neutral blues and greens.
The picture and the palette will give you an idea of the colors but can’t even come close to duplicating what your eye sees when you experience the natural environment directly.

The colors were intriguing, restful and so

JCrew Inspired Color Palette

Kate Smith — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:48:31 +0000

A visit to JCrew inspired this color palette.

See how they used the two hues of purple in my post on Live In Full Color…

Sunrise Palette

Kate Smith — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 14:05:29 +0000

I was delighted this morning by a sunrise in deep blues, golden yellow and light coral.

What a colorful way to start my day.

Color Isn’t the Only Brilliant Feature

Kate Smith — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:53:41 +0000

It’s fun to have people tell me that something reminds them of me and especially fun when it is something that is this brilliant both in color and idea.

Thanks for thinking of me Mickal and sending this my way.