Almost every tuesday evening for about 2 hours, I get some free time. I take a break from toddlers, parents, chores, bills, and deadlines, and spend some quality time with me. Over the years i've become my best-friend. I've learned to ignore social norms and comfortably dine out alone, go to the movies alone, and even "think out loud" in public. It's the conversations that I have with me, be it out loud or in my own little head, that are most inspiring.
So tonight on my tuesday evening date with myself, I decided to hit the local mall. There I took in the usual sites...underdressed teenage girls and oging teenage boys. I tried on clothes cut only to fit a teenage girl, and priced for people too late in life to parent teenage girls. And after attempting to convince myself that i can once again achieve the body that i had as a teenage girl...I skimmed through decorating magazines, while sucking an over-priced Haagan-daaz non-fat mango smoothie (all the while cursing at the the teenage girls with 0% body fat and eating regular, rich, creamy ice cream...)
Now as i sit here and lose the battle with my slowed down metabolism over a Lindt truffle, the artist in me searches my memory of the evening for all the colors, patterns and shapes I promised myself not to forget. Always a lover of fashion, I often find myself inspired by the latest trends. I once painted a whole series using the colors found in my favorite scarf. That series inspired the color palette for my living room, which now feels like I'm living inside one of my paintings. (I'm still undecided about how this makes me feel.)
What I love about summer clothes are the colors and textures. The way that sandy shades of crinkled linens ripple as a warm summer breeze passes through their loose weave. Or the soft sway of patterned silk chiffon. My favorites are the endless shades of blue, like a deep sea navy. Or perhaps the royal blue woven into Iznik tile patterns, and chipping off grecian doors. The cleansing aqua of a Caribbean shoreline, and turquoise's mystical appeal. On the other side of the color wheel we have the spicey oranges and reds. Yellows splattered across tuscan fields, and the purity of white cotton.
I could write about what I found at the mall today for hours, but i"ll end at white...a blank page, a blank canvas, and what's most appealing now, the color of my bed sheets. For now I'll just talk myself to sleep about the colors of summer, and tomorrow i hope to find a rainbow spread across my studio wall.