Sunday, January 18, 2015

We All Live In A Yellow Cottage

Cottage Colour Of The Year - 2011 - Vivid Yellow


When I began reading decoration blogs, for some reason, I got all excited about the "colour of the year" idea. But I also found out it was sometimes disappointing. 

Quand j'ai commencé à lire des blogs de décoration,  l'idée d'avoir une couleur de l'année m'a plu, je ne sais pas pourquoi. [Euh, vous êtes au courant, bien sûr, qu'une grande marque de peinture choisit chaque année une couleur particulière...] Mais, j'ai aussi parfois trouvé ça décevant.


Not because the colour wasn't to my taste - I actually think taste can change and being confronted to something we don't like can help define what we like.

Décevant, mais pas seulement parce que la couleur n'était pas toujours à mon goût : il n'y a que les imbéciles qui ne changent pas d'avis et puis, se confronter à ce que l'on n'aime pas, cela aide à définir ce que l'on aime.

Living-room when I bought Cottage, with its Sponge Bob walls - two toned - because who wants harmony - oh right, me!!!

What I found disappointing was that suddenly, it was the only colour you could see on blogs for a few weeks...

Décevant parce que soudain, cette couleur était sur tous les blogs, certains payés par la dite marque pour peindre tout ce qui leur tombait sous la main dans la fameuse couleur...

Dining-room in 2011.

So I decided to be my usual rebel and to have my own Colour Of The Year for fun. I'm pretty sure you're expecting some soft and subdued colours as the ones I got you used to.

Comme d'habitude, j'ai décidé de faire ma rebelle et de créer mes propres couleurs de l'année! Vous vous attendez sûrement à des teintes douces et discrètes comme je les aime.

Close up of the cat the wonderful dining-room wall paper.

But when I met Cottage, we didn't agree on what colours were lovely.

Mais quand j'ai rencontré Cottage, nous n'avions pas les mêmes goûts en ce qui concerne les couleurs.

Kitchen in bright yellow and orange bird shapes...


See, Cottage was full of vibrant yellow with nice touches of orange. Now, don't get me wrong, I love yellow: I used it in three of my previous places. But there's a thing as too much yellow, according to me...

Cottage était couvert de jaune et d'orange. Le jaune, j'aime beaucoup: je l'ai utilisé dans trois de mes précédents chez-moi. Mais, trop de jaune tue le jaune...

Opposite kitchen wall


Still, I lived in the yellow Cottage for more than a  year and some parts of Cottage are still unchanged. I thought maybe it would make you smile to see these pictures of the 2011 colour of the year at Cottage. And a smile is always good, isn't it?

Landing

J'ai vécu dans un Cottage entièrement jaune pendant plus d'un an et beaucoup, beaucoup de pièces (enfin, là, on dirait que j'habite dans un château, donc rectificatif - trois ou quatre) sont encore dans cet état. Mais j'ai pensé que ces photos de la couleur de l'année 2011 vous ferait sourire. Et c'est toujours bon de sourire.

I hope you had your sun glasses...

I think, at some point, we all live in a yellow cottage, a place, be it physically or spiritually, that we don't like. But, we can change it, even slowly, if we work on it... Cottage is today less yellow that it was, but more than it will be!

My very cold bathroom

Je pense qu'à un moment ou à un autre, on vit tous dans un Cottage jaune - un endroit que l'on n'aime pas, au sens littéral ou métaphorique. Mais on peut essayer de le transformer. Cottage est moins jaune qu'hier et plus que demain!


Bedroom in pale yellow... and grey, chartreuse, turquoise, pink, purple...


I'll share later my colours of the year for 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015!

I kept the yeloow for now, but had to remore the Hawaï painting...

A bientôt, pour mes couleurs des années suivantes!

See you soon,




PS1: If you want to change a few things about something else than decoration, please have a look at the petition for Raif Badawi on my sidebar. Click on the picture to follow the link. Sign only if it makes sense to you.

Si vous voulez changer autre chose que votre décoration, jetez un oeil sur la pétition pour Raif Badawi sur la barre de droite de mon blog. Un click sur la photo vous conduira au lien. Ne signez que si cela a un sens pour vous.

PS2: A huge thank you for all your emails of support in the last few days.

PS3: I'm sharing my colour of the year with some awesome blogs.

http://www.thoughtsfromalice.com/2015/01/sundays-at-home-no-42-weekly-link-party.html           Linky Party                  My Show and Share Party       
A Return to Loveliness button                    31 Days to Slash Your Budget Painlessly                                                    
                                                    

48 comments:

  1. So it's really a little yellow house then? We do need that that extra third syllable in cottage... I think your home looks just lovely. Who determines things like 'colour of the year' anyway, who do they think they are, what's their angle - and does anyone actually care or take any notice?

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  2. I like your quilt. I'm glad Hawaii's gone. Do you have a favourite colour, Magali?

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    1. Actually, I'm not sure I have a favourite colour, but I have "colours of the moment" depending on where I am in my life.

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  3. Too much of any bright colour can make a home feel uncomfortable. That's why I prefer neutrals with pops of bright colours. Easier to live with!!

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  4. quand nous avons acquis notre petite maison de briques du nord, le couloir et l'escalier étaient tapissés en jaune et bleu marine et les chambres recouvertes de faux enduit orange... j'ai opté pour deux murs jaunes dans la cuisine blanche ! à bientôt pour votre couleur de l'année - ce sera sans aucun doute un bon choix - bonne fin de week-end ! monique59

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    1. Je suis de plus en plus curieuse de voir cette petite maison en briques du nord... Ma précédente cuisine était blanche avec des murs jaunes pâles. J'adorais.
      Bonne semaine!

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    2. des photos avant/après ? why not?

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    3. je ne suis pas douée en informatique et je ne connais rien aux réseaux sociaux... mais je peux envoyer des photos par courriel ?

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    4. Oui, bien sûr. Cliquez sur la petite photo de mon profil dans le haut du blog. Cela devrait ouvrir une page de renseignement sur laquelle il doit y avoir une rubrique "contact".

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  5. Indeed, you had a lot of yellow color. I like him, but warms the interior in reasonable quantities.
    Today, at my very spring weather.
    best wishes

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  6. This color seems to have warmed your little house quite a bit.

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    Replies
    1. It was just way too much for me... But it didn't stop me from buying Cottage!

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  7. I grew up in a yellow bedroom. It was too much yellow because as an adult I do not like yellow unless it is as pale as cream.

    Sometimes we do just have to live with what it is. Being thankful just to have a home will always be what matters most to me.

    I do like your cottage in the lighter colors. When changes take time and work and money I think we tend to appreciate them more. I know I do.

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  8. Oui, je me souviens de tout ce jaune... des chevaux aussi... et des paysages marocains sur les portes... et des WC orange... tu as déjà fait de bon boulot !... et quelque chose me dit que tu n'es pas encore au bout ! Courage !

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  9. Cute series, Magali! I can yellow, if it is the right shade and in small doses. For same peculiar reason that other's have mentioned, there was too much of it growing up. However the other day, I saw that someone a few blocks over fixed their home and painted the body a pale yellow with white trim. Now these pastels for some reason look good on these houses. I had to drive by twice to look! The funny thing is I tried a pastel yellow as a test paint with lots of other shades and hated it. I get full morning sun from the south, and it appeared harsh, but they face the east and it looks nice. When I moved to our cottage, it had many horrible colors and since the person painted interiors for a living in the bedrooms he had intense multi-colored walls. I also don't have a favorite color, but a favorite palette. I also like that you are trying to do something for the world. I wrote a book! xoox

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  10. I painted a room pale yellow in the 90's, like your bedroom but those bright egg yolk yellows are a little too much.
    I actually grew up in a white house, perhaps that's why I eventually went back to white !

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  11. My interior has been yellow for 15 years and I am slowly turning it to white. I love yellow, but I like the pop of paintings against the white.

    I have to be patient and get things painted a room at a time.

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  12. I have a wall in my kitchen that I painted yellow and sponged painted with white. That was 17 yrs ago. Still like it. Besides your sense of humor, roads trips, love of your family, kitties, and recipes, thank you for allowing us in your on going renovating cottage. Kathleenu

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    1. Two of my previous kitchens had yellow walls. It's a colour I love, but there's just too much of it in the Cottage and according to me, it only works in room that get a lot of natural light: it's ok in my bedroom, but not in the dining-room that only has a small window! Thanks for following the long renovation!

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  13. Yellow is my grandmother's favorite color, and it always reminds me of her. There can be too much of it, though. In my previous house I painted the same yellow color in the hallway, where it looked great and in the powder room, where it looked horrible.

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  14. I like yellow and the outside of the Charmer is yellow with white and dark grey. I certainly won't put in every room...or any color. The previous owners sure did like it. Maybe they were on a tight budget and just kept painting with the yellow, or maybe they were color blind and just kept picking yellow cause when you can't see color it looked good! Transforming a cottage takes time and your surely are on your way!

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  15. OMG ! It felt like stepping inside the sun !! Much too bright for me :-) But I think it was a universal "thing" : in the first home that we bought, we found a turquoise room (brrr) and in the second house we discovered a bright shocking pink toilet room, awful ! They even painted the ceiling pink, haha! I think some people need bright colours to cheer them up, in our dark and grey wet winters... Marcy

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    1. You're right: the yellow in my bedroom is nice-ish (it has a green undertone I don't really like), but all the others are/were much too bright for an old cottage with small windows. Many people around here like adding bright colours because Brittany is supposed to be quite rainy... It makes me unable to relax!

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  16. Well, I love soft yellow, not gold, but very soft. My cottage is soft yellow with white trim and I have a red door. I decorate a lot with soft yellow as I have toile in my home in various colors. I find it very soothing for me. I feel you should go with what you are comfortable with, not what is in style. We have to feel comfortable in our homes.
    Have a good week.
    Mary

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  17. Yellow is one of my all time favorites for the exterior of houses, but for interiors, not so much. Your cottage certainly had a LOT of it, but you've done a fabulous job of toning it down a tad!

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  18. Bonjour Magali!

    Moi, je préfère le blanc pour les murs pour que je puisse utiliser n'importe quelle couleur dans mon décor. Comme ça, je ne m'ennuie jamais! Oh comme j'adore votre maison...

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  19. Coucou Magali
    Je crois que c'est comme tout, dans une maison il vaut mieux à mon sens choisir des couleurs neutres qui évitent que l'on est à tout refaire.
    Ma couleur favorite pour cette année 2015 sera faite de différent gris, le perle et le brume avec un soupçon de gris souris, mes pigments sont en attente de mes pinceaux et de la peinture d'accroche...
    Bonne journée, ici neige et grisaille

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    1. Christine,
      C'est très difficile de choisir les bonnes couleurs pour une maison: le goût du propriétaire, mais aussi la luminosité des pièces sont à prendre en considération. En tout cas, les noms "perle" et "brume" me font rêver... J'espère que ce sera sur le blog!
      Bonne soirée,
      Magali

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  20. Je comprends le jaune des précédents propriétaires de Cottage. Par contre je serais plus nuancée quant au support. Je préfèrent les murs blancs & ajouter de la couleur.
    J'ai eu moi-même ma période blanc sur blanc (murs blanc &tous les accessoires blancs), puis j'ai eu ma période jaune ( pour les accessoires), il y a eu aussi la période orange (j'avais mis du orange partout avec des bouquets artificiels qui m'avaient coûtés une fortune). Puis j'ai mis du taupe pour faire comme tout le monde.. mais je crois que mes couleurs seront toujours du blanc pour les murs, du blanc patiné- du gris patiné & du bois ciré pour les meubles.
    Mon principe actuellement, suivre mon coeur pour ce qui est de chez moi & suivre la tendance pour mes clients.
    Caresses aux minous. Bises. Babette

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  21. Your yelllow photos remind me of my first apartment in 1969. My new husband and I painted the kitchen yellow and my mother was very upset with me because she hated the color yellow. I never quite understood why it should matter to her since she didn't have to live there. I've had a number of yellow rooms since then. I think it's my rebellious spirit. :) ~ Nancy P.S. We also cut out hippie flowers from Contac paper and stuck them on the old Norge refrigerator, much to our landlord's chagrin. Those were the days!

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  22. Before we even moved into this new-old cottage we painted the outside yellow. It is a great colour for a place that experiences a lot of winter rain and grey skies!

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  23. I think pale yellow is much 'safer' than the bright one. I like your cool bathroom... really cool...

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  24. I am lover of color and I have painted our guest room yellow......
    Thanks so much for your visit!!

    Hugs,
    Debbie

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  25. Bonsoir Magali,
    j'ai trouve ton blog par hasard.
    Et maintenant je lire, lire sans cesse.
    Pardonez moi, des fautes de francais.
    Pozdrawiam:)

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  26. I like yellow when it's a pretty pastel. Other than that, it can be too bright and too much on the eyes. I can't wait to see all your colors of the year. :)

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  27. I agree that yellow can be an overwhelming color...but when it's a pale yellow, it's so pretty. My office (formerly my oldest son's room) is now painted pale yellow and it's my favorite room in the house.

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  28. Bonjour ! Je crois que ce n'est pas tant le jaune qui me gêne ici, que la déco des anciens propriétaires ! Bravo pour les aménagements déjà faits ! À bientôt, Flopsy

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  29. I loved seeing all the changes you've made to your home, Magali! Our house had a split rail fence painted on the walls of a "cowboy" bedroom when we moved in. There's no accounting for taste, right? :o)

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  30. The walls of our home are a pale, buttery yellow, with the exception of our sun room and bedrooms, (one even being a brighter yellow), and I have to say that it calms me, makes me feel warm and cozy in the winter, and light and airy in the summer. This duality is delightful, and I'd probably have them painted the same shade, if I had to do it all again!

    Wonder what colours you have chosen!

    Poppy

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  31. The cottage is looking lovely, love your dining room. Who ever lived there before, was certainly not afraid to express themselves, gotta love the fish theme in the bathroom. They must have had alot of yellow paint on hand. I'll be checking back, have a great weekend. Jeannie

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  32. Wow the previous owners sure weren't afraid of color! How fun to look back at pictures and see all of the changes you have made. I bet you think you are peeing outside while sitting on the toilet!! lol.... I love yellow so here's to peeing outside!

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  33. I like yellow too, I use it a lot during the summer, but your right,anything too much is just that, TOO MUCH!

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  34. Somebody sure did like the color yellow! When I was a young teen, my parents built a house with a bedroom for each of us three children. We go to pick our own colors for our rooms including the carpet. I chose a bright orange shag carpet and a big flowered bedspread in yellow orange and green. I loved it at the time. Now I look back and wonder why on earth my mother agreed to such a garishly decorated room! Ha! To this day I have never wanted to decorate in those colors again. I love what you are doing with the cottage Magali! Thank you for sharing it at What We Accomplished Wednesdays. Have a great week!
    Blessings, Deborah

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  35. Wow that was a lot of yellow! Birds, fish, horses, oh my! Cottage has got to feel better now that it is more subdued.

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  36. Ha! Have the yellow underneath our gorgeous staircase and in our upstairs hallway. Some day I'll get up the nerve to spend hours upon hours scraping it off.

    PS Been giving the wrong Pinterest address in my profile.

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  37. It seems yellow was big in Brittany a few years ago!

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