Warm up with a pop of yellow

In the gray of winter, we look for rays of sun to warm up our home and our mood — maybe especially our mood. If you look around you, there are likely little pops of yellow. It might be a flowerpot, a pen, a colour in a picture on the wall or the printing on book bindings. Yellow asks for attention in a lovely way.

Colour therapists have all sorts of ideas on what yellow does for you. It is considered an optimistic colour, happy, hopeful and creative. Of course, there are many shades of yellow, from lemony to sunflower. In the depth of winter, it is the sunny middle yellow that warms us up.

If you looked around and didn’t see any yellow, there are lots of simple ways to add that pop.

It could be a decorative element, like a little painted bird for your windowsill, or a circle of wooden beads as part of display on your bookcase or side table. Fresh new yellow towels in the bathroom add such a sunny warmth to your room. Hang a yellow dishtowel off the stove handle. Maybe you have a piece of furniture that could be painted. Annie Sloan Chalk Paint has a gorgeous yellow called Tilton. It’s part of the Charleston Collection; three paint colours that celebrate the creative energy of the Bloomsbury Home. (That’s another article in itself!)

Using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to transform dull into energized is as simple as washing your project fully, letting it dry, painting one or two coats, waxing or lacquering to protect and then popping it into place. The paint comes in two can sizes. The small 120ml will cover 18 sq ft and the larger 1L will do 150 sq ft. So, a small table or shelf with 120ml or a dining room set with the 1L.

My favorite piece in yellow was a rocking chair I painted for my younger daughter when the first grandbaby was on her way. It is a focal point in the room and has stood up very well to rocking the second grandbaby two years later.

This winter take your inspiration from nature and bring some rays of warm sun into your space. Choose warm yellows and avoid the cool tones as those are better in the summer. A touch of sunny yellow will add some energy and balance the gray of winter. Yellow complements many other decorative colours, so it is a good fit in almost every decor scheme. I love it with gray or green and it does wonderful things with blue.

Add yellow and feel the sun.

DID YOU KNOW?

Yellow pigment from clay was one of the first colours used in primitive cave art.