How bright the colours of childhood are. There is nothing equivocal about them, they are reds and yellows and blues and greens. No muted shades or subtle off whites. They either are or they aren't. Children can't be doing with taupe or dove grey. Their favourite colours are definite, bright and clear. Much like their opinions on just about anything.
When I was little my favourite colour was yellow. I was absolutely certain it was, I didn't have to think about it when asked, and I always thought that anything and everything looked better with a splash of yellow in it. It was the colour of sunshine and happiness and for me there were two types of picture, those with yellow and those without. I don't think I ever made a picture without it.
Today I couldn't easily answer a question about my favourite colour. I'd need to know, for what? Decorating the living room? A top to go with jeans? A flower? It's not simple any more. Would the answer ever be yellow? I don't know. Somewhere along the line everything changed and became more complicated.
I like to think back to childhood days, when my favourite colour was always yellow, and my best friend's favourite colour was always blue. Do I overthink things now? Should I just answer without thinking? Being creative sometimes means blindly following your instinct. The things you create then will surely reflect who you are. And by looking back at your choices, you will start to understand yourself and what makes you tick.
If I look back now I find that the answer becomes clear. My favourite colour today? It's blue. It speaks to me now, the way yellow used to. Aqua, cerulean, petrol, Eton, steel. It's the sea and the sky and the storm clouds. I'll always have a soft spot for yellow, but somewhere along the way I grew and changed and now yellow is a little girl with ribbons in her bunches that I remember fondly but don't see any more. Maybe one day it will all change again. And I'll be ready, because change can be good, it can be growth and self knowledge.
Tell me, without thinking too long or too hard, what is your favourite colour? Has anyone stayed faithful to their childhood love?
To visit the other Colour Collaborative blogs for more of this
month's posts, including one from May's guest blogger, just click on the links
below
What is The Colour
Collaborative?
All creative bloggers make stuff,
gather stuff, shape stuff, and share stuff. Mostly they work on their own, but
what happens when a group of them work together? Is a creative collaboration
greater than the sum of its parts? We think so and we hope you will too. We'll
each be offering our own monthly take on a colour related theme, and hoping that
in combination our ideas will encourage us, and perhaps you, to think about
colour in new ways.
Fuchsia. Cerise. Magenta. There is nothing that makes my heart sing more than the pinky red of those colors. But I also like all the rainbow colors and berry colors and gem colors, ruby, emerald, sapphire, topaz. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
ReplyDeleteI was about to say blue because as a child it was my favourite and like you what I always said it without thinking but maybe now I'd choose sharp lime green/chartreuse or maybe fuchsia pink if combined with orange! I wonder if you are right and we over-think things now rather than speak without thinking when asked this question and if perhaps my favourite colour is still blue as I love sky and sea, bluebells and delicate harebells, indigo heans and school gingham blue and .... Lovely post.
ReplyDeletePink. No too ways about it. Any shade of pink is good. (Except peachy pink!)
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do have a thing for aqua green finger nails at the moment. X
blue too. the colour of the sea. for that reason only. which is enough.
ReplyDeleteMy favourite childhood colour was always blue. Now like you I have difficulty choosing and often opt forsomething in the purple family from soft lilacs to deep plum. I often wonder whether we all see colour in the same way, For instance do you see what I would call pink when I see green?
ReplyDeletePurple, without a doubt. Childhood is less complicated than adulthood so I am sure we view the colour do the world differently as a child. Have no idea what my childhood favourite colour was. Lovely post, thank you for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteGrey, also the colour of sea and sky and rainy days, says this pluviophile. Not what I would have answered grey as a child.
ReplyDeleteThought provoking post CJ. My husband is red-green colour blind and sees far fewer colours than you or I, and his childhood favourite colour is still his favourite now. Perhaps we adults are sometimes beguiled by the many colours we come to be able to name.
Such a good question CJ, and one I really don't know if I can answer because I've already started to over think it ! If I had to pick one I think, like Annie. it would be grey - and maybe some would say that grey isn't really even a colour. But I love the huge variations in shades and when I look at most of my clothes they are grey !
ReplyDeleteReally enjoyed reading your post,
Kate x
Blue. Every time. All shades of blue. I find it restful and calming. When I was younger it was red, and my home still carries the remnants of that long time love. I have two red lamps that I am still very fond of, but also hurt my eyes. I can't be parted from them. But I float in the tranquil waters of blue these days.
ReplyDeleteLovely post. As always.
Leanne xx
Interesting post. My favourite colour is blue but in the garden/on the plot it's yellow. Flighty xx
ReplyDeleteIt's so true. Everything seemed so simple as a child. I see my children answer questions and give their opinions freely without any of the overthinking I do myself. I love green, and grey, but as a child it was blue. Mel x
ReplyDeleteI'd say blue, as I did as a child, though as you say, things become more complicated as an adult so really it would depend on what I was choosing a favourite colour for. I actually like red much more than I did as a child too.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post I don't think I had a favourite colour as a child. I must have done but I am unable to recall what it was. My childhood was surrounded by green though & it is a colour I am increasingly drawn to now.
ReplyDeleteAnother blue here and it's always been blue. Blue flowers are my favourite and I feel happiest dressed in blue. I like it best paired with white or black but they are not really colours.. are they?
ReplyDeleteAnd then of course there's blue sky, which always makes me feel happy.
Today my favorite color is: burgundy But, that is subject to change day by day.
ReplyDeleteAs a child I always knew what my favorites were. I had a favorite candy, a favorite TV show and of course, favorite book! Now .....the world is so much bigger. My favorites change based on my moods.
You know, I can't remember what my favourite colour was! I can't choose one now either because it in my head it goes something like "purple". "No, orange". "Actually, sunflower yellow". "Today is a red day". "But what kind of red day?" And so on, all within a flash of a moment. Generally, I prefer warm colours and I dot brightly coloured items around the house. The only colours I don't like are grandfather beige and combat green. Phew. Childhood was definitely a lot simpler. Thanks for that lovely post. I am oh so envious of your water colours box! xx
ReplyDeletefav. as a child was blue,now yellow it makes me happy. So beautiful in the garden.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what my favourite childhood colour was, and not really any idea now, but I can tell you that my favourite living room colour is neutral, flowers should be pink and that with jeans I will wear most any colour, but choose white or blue most often. I have no idea if that means that I like lots of colours or am too scared to make a choice! xx
ReplyDeleteMy favorite color is purple and it always has been. My mother says that I chose purple for everything as soon as I was old enough to do so. Even today, if I'm buying something new like a toothbrush, I'll always take the purple one if they have it. But I like every color. The only one I have any reservations about is yellow and that's only because I prefer muted tones like gold and mustard and those don't seem to be fashionable. Camel works, though. I have camel-upholstered club chairs in the living room and their the perfect shade of yellow to me.
ReplyDeleteGrey. Clouds, sea, stone... I had a fat little grey pony as a child and had a thing for grey horses in general... I love charcoal, pearl, slate and everything in between.
ReplyDeleteIf I didn't stop myself I suspect my entire wardrobe would consist of grey, too.
It reflects my childhood spent near the moors (often under threateningly grey skies).
If you'd asked me as a child what my favourite colour was, the answer would have been red or pink...
Sarah x
My favourite colour is all shades of blue. I can't remember what my favourite colour was when I was a child! Sarah x
ReplyDeleteSuch a powerful piece friend... Yes somewhere along the road things did get more complex and colors shifted. For me it was purple as a child. And now it is blue. Maybe we should all try to take a child's que and make life a bit more simple for ourselves! Have an outstanding weekend pal! Nicole xo
ReplyDeleteLovely post. I always say my favourite colour is red if I am asked but I'm not actually sure if it is anymore! Red was always my favourite colour as a child but now I seem to favour softer colours and a lot of pink...but I still love red really so yeah, it probably is still red!
ReplyDeleteMarianne x
What a super, thought-provoking post. I'm pretty sure I didn't have a favourite colour as a child. I know what I didn't like - the bottle green of my 'special occasions' velvet dress, the royal blue of a much-hated stiff and itchy sweater and the embarrassing orange of my Mum's decrepit mini. Even now I find it quite hard to choose a favourite colour. If pressed I'd go with pink. I still know what I don't like though so perhaps I haven't changed as much as I'd thought!
ReplyDeleteHeather x
Love this post and the answer is red. Well the simple, straightforward one is. I remember when is most certainly used to be and although it's probably not true anymore it's still the first thing that popped into my head when my daughter asked that very question. She of course, wanted the simple answer and has never, ever forgotten my first response to the question and so it is now the law. 'Red is Mummies favourite colour, the end.'
ReplyDeleteBut you're wearing a yellow top in your blog photo and look so pretty! I don't wear a lot of yellow, but I painted my kitchen a bright sunshine yellow when we moved in 9 years ago and I still love it. Yellow in the kitchen just feels right to me. However, for the rest of my house, my style has changed, is becoming more simple. Less stuff, less color. When I look at decorating magazines I am always torn between the calm white Scandinavian palette and the bright English cottage with bunting, collections, etc. And then real life - I don't fit into any one category - life is real, not a picture. As a little girl, I was pink and purple all the way!
ReplyDeletePink, so much pink, I went from a girly girl who loved blue to a not so girly woman who loves pink, maybe i'm trying to compensate?!
ReplyDeleteYellow. Love it. But I agree, knowing your favourite colour as a child was of seemingly HUGE importance, like it defined you in some way. But now, as adults, it's different. I say I like yellow, and I do, but I wouldn't paint my living room that colour, or wear it all over. That's what blues and greys are for. But Iike a little pop of it here and there, on a book, or mug, or handbag. x
ReplyDeleteI remember being asked this in a maths lesson when I was a teenager and most people in my class answered blue, apart from a boy called Robert who said purple. I remember looking at him differently after that, he was made so much more interesting by choosing a different colour and purple...not red or yellow or green. Now my instinct is still to say blue but the blue I think of now is lighter, tealy or maybe a bit duck egg.
ReplyDelete