MotherReader

Blue: 350 Inspiring Ways to Decorate with Blue
by House Beautiful, 2011
review copy from library
This probably doesn't count for Nonfiction Monday - hosted today at Simply Science - but I had to post a little something about this title. I can't say that I generally grab books on decorating, but when I saw this little blue book, I had to take it home. It's unlikely I'll ever reach a fraction of the style exhibited in the featured rooms or arrangements but it's fun to look and possibly come away with an idea or two. One of the best part is the paint swatches. And when did you ever hear that before? But here each color swatch is described by a designer and they capture so much of the feel of the variety of tones and shades with careful, often poetic words. Two of my favorite descriptions:

John Saladino on Benjamin Moore Oriental Iris:
"I'm attracted to periwinkle blue. It's soothing and serene and metamorphic because it goes from gray into blue into lavender, depending on the time to the day, the season, and the person looking at it. No two people see color the same way. Blue combines two things I love, the ocean and the sky, which lifts me out of the quagmire of reality."


Thomas Jayne of Benjamin Moore Heavenly Blue:
"This is the color of the sky in Old Master paintings, when the varnish has yellowed. It has a luminous quality. You could paint the whole room or just the floor - you'd feel as if you were floating."