Yellow, yellow, where should you go?

Sorry it’s been a couple weeks since my last blog. I’ve been busy with a ton of color consultations and I met some unique challenges.

I run up against a yellow conversation that seems to keep repeating itself. I wonder if there are any others out there with similar experiences.

People want a bright happy sunshine yellow to boost their mood, everyday. My understanding and my experience show that yellows need to be used the “right” way, for the “right” person, in the “right” space.

warm, inviting yellow

Residentially speaking, yellow can go so clear and so bright once it is up on the wall.  So much of our lighting in residential situations has that amber mid-afternoon light which adds to the issue.  I find that one needs to walk with caution up the scale of intensity rather than from intense down. I started to notice this about 8 years ago while I was working in a Benjamin Moore store.  I had painted strips on the wall to illustrate the sheen level options in the paint lines.  I had a can of HC-26, Monroe Bisque laying around, so I mixed the rest to the same color.  Once I had these stripes on the wall, customers would come in and ask, “What is that beautiful yellow?”  When I would show them the swatch of a very muted, although yellow under-toned beige, my clients would be shocked.  I then started experimenting with yellows and discovered that there is a sensibility that needs to be there when looking for a yellow for the walls in the home.

There is no prescription about a yellow that will work.  It will depend on your personality, your objective, your lighting, your other present colors, the utility of the space, and what time of day you primarily occupy that space.  But my suggestion is this, think about what you are looking to achieve with the color.  If you are looking for a sunny look, remember that you rarely look directly at the sun on a bright sunny day, but I’m sure you are enjoying that bright blue sky!  And I’m sure you admire the green of the grass and trees (if that’s your environment) on a sunny day.

Where's the yellow in this sunny day?

Yellow can be perfect in the right situation, but I usually suggest that you make sure you are a yellow person before you select it for the rooms where you spend all your time.  I wouldn’t worry as much about your selection if we are talking about your hallway that you pass through, or your guest room that you want to look like a magazine.  The rooms I’m concerned about are; your bedroom, your kitchen, your family room, your office, etc.

Lego Store Annapolis Mall

What are your thoughts about yellow?  Has anyone checked out the Lego store at the Annapolis mall?  How is that yellow working for the staff?  The customers?  I’ve noticed that my son has a terrible time making a decision in there.  Some of that is because he wants everything, but is some of his irritability related to the intensity of the yellow?  I know that my eyes can start to hurt in a yellow that is too strong, and that doesn’t help in the Lego store with Everett!  I wish I would have been there to help with the selection from the start.  What would you have picked for the Lego store?