You know I think that “Color of the Year” proclamations by Marketeers are baloney — they are just trying to sell this year’s color to replace last year’s color. So, instead, I’ll point to a color from our mid century past that was pretty darn good enough all along: Retro Renovation First Annual Color of the Year: Orange. There’s plenty of vintage available in this color — give it a look and if you like it, snatch it up for a fraction of what it would cost to buy new accessories in whatever “today’s must-have color” is. Of course, my fundamental color advice is: Use whatever color you like. Colors are wavelengths of energy and affect people differently. Find the ones that tickle your electrons and don’t look back.
Why orange? Well, it’s just continued to grow on me these past 9 years of living in my mid century house. It is a color that plays very nice with others: Orange looks good with blue in a midcentury interior. Orange looks good with green. Orange looks good with pink — yes, it does! And with banana, of course. Orange you glad I said banana?
Orange is a dynamic color — often called “the color of change”. It can be brought into an interior pretty easily. All the photos above are from my living room — as you can see, I’ve brought in orange with textiles like my beloved vintage bargello needlepoint pillows. Oh – and I guess those 1960s chairs have a bit of orange in the upholstery. When I bought them at an estate sale, the chairs had slip covers on them. I peeked under and – bingo! – it was orange velveteen stripes for me! I also have some orange Stangl. Isn’t my vintage afghan gorgeous? All the handiwork that went into it — my! — and I got it an estate sale for like $10. These things are out there — they are Golden Treasures!
I also have spotted kitchen cabinets available in orange — see my post on these “Mod Squad” (as I call them) cabinet doors. If I had the house for these — I would do it in a heartbeat!
Of course, what’s good on the inside (of your house) is also fab when you’re out on the town. Maybe I need this 1960s vintage orange leather coat from Retro Genie’s after all.