The Color Purple

The Color Purple

by Nancy                     

If you didn't vote, you're stuck with the choice everybody else made.

In my case, it's the color purple.

Look around. Everybody's wearing purple this fall. Did you see Nicole Kidman on Oprah? (Yes, I'm still in procrastination mode. Let's not discuss it.) Have you skimmed the Dior ads in all the magazines? Watched Larry King? Noticed the flowers on the coffee table on the Today show? And have you seen that every local newscaster is looking like an eggplant these days?

Well, I didn't get the memo.  And if I had, I'd still be out of luck because I'm trying--call me unpatriotic, if you like--not to buy ANYTHING right now (the economy will have to recover without my help) so I don't have a purple sweater, purple shoes, purple handbag or even a purple scarf. I'm clearly Out Of Fashion this year.

Can you hear Tim Gunn hyperventilating? I don't have my One Trendy Item in the closet.

Turns out, there's somebody who decides what colors we're supposed to like.  And everybody from car makers and furniture designers to celebrity stylists and all consumer goods creative types in between--including my favorite designer for obvious reasons, Isaac Mizrahi--pays attention and reacts accordingly. The Pantone Color Institute raises the signal flag from their home base in New Jersey, and the design world responds in unison---"Hey, let's all wear purple this year!"

I find this annoying on a couple of levels. One is that I look infectious in purple. And secondly, how come we can't have the same trendy color a few years running? The answer to #2 is obvious--designers and stores and car dealers want us to update ourselves as often as possible while spending as much as our no-longer-discretionary dollars as possible. Which, considering today's economy, is totally ratfinky. 

                                

I tried to 'splain to my editor a while back that colors are definitely rotated in and out of popularity by Professional Color Experts. She didn't believe me. Consequently, I had a book cover that was lavender during a year when lime green was the "It" color. The previous year I had somehow managed to score a cover that was coral the year coral was very big. I will have to wait through another royalty cycle to discover if the "in" color sold more copies than the book that was woefully out of fashion, colorwise. At the time, I thought it was important to have a color that somebody, somewhere, approved. (Hey, in this era of bookselling, who isn't trying to find the science behind the art?) Do you choose books by the background color of the cover? Ever? Okay, name me one book that the color grabbed you.  Anyone?

Next year, by the way, yellow is supposed to be very big. I'm warning you now. Actually, the specific color is called "mimosa," which is a little orange-y and yellow. 

  Here in Pittsburgh, we call it Steeler Gold, but it's actually a particularly unhealthy shade that's too tacky to remind anyone of gold. Name me one person who looks great in that color. Besides Heinz Ward. Who looks good in anything, if you ask me, but that's another blog.

Meanwhile, during my procrastination marathon, I've been thinking about the color purple. Do you think the Pantone people knew enough to choose purple--which is technically a combo of red and blue according to the color wheel---for us to wear during the weeks following an election that divided us into red and blue states? And is the wearing of purple a way of demonstrating our patriotism this year? Our decision to unite ourselves as a nation?

Let me tell you, if I looked as great as this lady, I'd happily go shopping for purple. Ain't she something?  I love her.  I mean it--I have a serious girl crush on Mrs. O. I can't wait to see what she does in the next eight years--and not just in the fashion department!

Comments

[ArkansasCyndi]

I didn't get the memo either, but I LOVE purple. Funny, but now that I think about it, I can't think of one thing I have in purple!

I with you on the girl-crush on Michelle. I really like that gal.

As far as the procrastination goes, please note that I am writing this at 1:12 am (CST). I SUPPOSED to be working but brain refuses, so I'm going to bed!

[kris]

My writing buds and I adopted purple as our group color a few years ago, when we read that it was a Feng Shui color of prosperity (I htink). Plus we decided that purple comments on a manuscript look so much gentler and more polite than bleeding red slashes. Thus, for once I will be semi-in-fashion, as I have a boatload of purple pens, earrings, notebooks, and sweaters. Did I know I was fhasionable before I read this post? Not in the least. But now I can walk around doing a little superior dance all day :-)

And Nancy, you nailed it with mimosa. That color makes everyone look like they're about to throw up. I'll bask in my styleishness this time around, because next year, I will be out of it once again.

[smr33]

Purple is one of those colors I love, but don't own more than a couple pieces of purple clothing (most of which I wear during Advent for liturgical purposes). Otherwise, I stick to my basics of black, brown and white, with a little red thrown in when I need to feel powerful (!) But i have noticed the profusion of purple in the retail realm this year. Beats orange and pink which looks good on practically nobody.

Michelle Obama is so tall and so beautiful that she can wear practically anything, I think. I admire her taste, although the dress she wore on election night looks better in the photographs than it did on television. Given the pitiful state of the economy, I hope she sticks to her preference for main street designers rather than the haute stuff Sarah wore. It is entirely possible to look wonderful shopping at J Crew and Black/White and even Target. And in doing so, she'll express solidarity with all the women in this country who will be living with severely restricted clothing budgets for some time to come.

[Nancy Martin]

Purple--the color of prosperity! That settles it.--I definitely need one purple item. This one, for instance, which comes in purple in the stores, if not the catalog: http://www.coldwatercreek.com/Products/Product.aspx?productid=42059&ensembleid=47994

And I like your theory about purple pens, Kris. I maybe have to invest now that my red pens are running out of ink!

Yes, I hope Michelle sticks to Main Street! My sister and I had a big discussion bout the black & red number for election night. She says the dress looked better on the runway. A Narciso Roderigez, she says, and it should never have included a cardigan sweater. Hmm. Here's an article on the subject: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/obama/chi-michelle-obama-dress-story,0,1949360.story

[Joyce Tremel]

I love purple! It's one of the colors I don't look too bad in.

I have two sweaters and a long sleeve t-shirt in purple. I even have a purple sweatshirt that says "The Queen is Not Amused" on the front.

As much as I like to drink mimosas, I don't think I want to wear that color.

[storyteller Mary]

Mary, Elaine is going to be on JC's show tomorrow, right?
www.k-hits.com click on "Click here for streaming audio" to listen.
I have the radio on (got up early) and no Elaine -- is it maybe Friday instead??
BTW, couldn't make the streaming audio work; I hope others had better luck.

[storyteller Mary]

My friend Mel loves purple, and when it comes in style she buys new clothing while she has the chance. At any gathering, we can find Mel by looking for her color, and she does look good in purple, too. Hmm, I just realized I'm wearing purple right now . . .and I'm never in style, so I'm marking this on the calendar.

[storyteller Mary]

Just noticed the "blog time" is an hour later than my time -- was Elaine on at 5:55 a.m. St. Louis time and I missed it?

[Janis]

I liked Michelle Obama's dress. I liked that she styled/accessorized it to suit herself. I particularly liked that the family was color coordinated on election night. The harmonious visual effect was stunning. I think it sent a reassuring subliminal message about unity not only as a family but also as a party and a country.

My great hope is that Barack Obama will ditch the blue ties. That is the single item of clothing I identify most with Bush, who seemed to wear them at every public appearance. Why do I notice stuff like that?

The thing I like most about Michelle Obama's style is that she appears to dress to please herself. It's not too studied. She wears the clothes; the clothes don't wear her. I can picture myself wearing the same sort of clothing as I go about my daily life.

Purple makes me think of the smell of lavender and lilacs, and of lace, and of little old ladies (one of whom I'm quickly becoming). I do love the color periwinkle, though. I find it very soothing. Every single time I wear it, someone tells me it matches my eyes. (I always thought my eyes were gray.)

I like the yellowy-orange color coming up next year. Maybe because it's November and we haven't had more than 3 consecutive hours of sunshine in this area all month.

[Karen in Ohio]

Anyone can look good in any color, if you are careful about the shade and tint (the amount of black). I'm fortunate to have coloring that's flattered by jewel tones, and always have some purple in my wardrobe, but not lavender or lilac, which wash me out. As a blonde, Nancy, you could probably wear those shades well. Yellow is peculiar, and has to be just the right yellow, although my oldest daughter, a tawny-skinned redhead with gold/green eyes, looks wonderful in any shade of yellow or orange. Those are difficult colors for most of us to wear successfully.

Purple is the color or royalty, and of creativity. A touch of purple can make other colors, like red, pop and take on more importance. When I repainted our powder room a few years ago I chose a pale, pale violet, which looked insipid. I hated it. Then I found some very pretty paisley print fabric that had a small amount of a gorgeous shade of plum and decided it would make a great window treatment, so I repainted the powder room that plum. What a difference that made! This little room went from blah to fantastic with one coat. The window is tiny, and the treatment is just a header, but there's so much impact; I was really pleased with it.

And don't you love the ode to old age, Warning - When I am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple?

http://labyrinth_3.tripod.com/page59.html

[Judy Larsen]

I hadn't even noticed the purple Today Show flowers, but, yup, there they are.

And I too LOVE Michelle. I want to drink coffee with her and dish. Complete girl crush.

[Nancy Martin]

Judy, we should start a fan club. Mimosas with Michelle? A few years back when Kelly Ripa had her "book club" on TV, a couple of writers started a website called STalking Kelly Ripa to get their books chosen. I wonder if the URL for Stalking Michelle is available? And whether the Secret Service might react badly if we took it?

[caryn]

Well, once again I seem to be woefully out of step with this group. I liked Michelle Obama's election night dress-in fact I loved it! I, like Janis, liked that she and the girls were all color coordinated-it made them all seem so first family-ish.

I think Michelle's height has alot to do with how nice she looks in just about anything she has on. And she smiles! Nancy Reagan wore gorgeous clothes and wore them well, but she looked so stressed all of the time. Jackie Kennedy was stunning in everything, but she always had that sort of aloof distant look about her. Michelle just looks so friendly and open.

As for purple, when it was "the" color the last time around I decided that there was no shade of purple that did not make me look like a giant grape or plum. Nope, no purple for me.

As for Nancy's question about the color of a book jacket, I can't think of a single book where the color has influenced me. Sometimes the graphics do though. HOWEVER, in reverse of that, I had the hardest time convincing my husband to read Chris Grabenstein's books because he did not want to carry around a book with a hot pink or lime green cover. Not until Mad Mouse came out with a purple cover would he give Ceepek and Boyle a try.
Caryn in St. Louis

[Karen in Ohio]

"React badly". Omigosh, I'm gasping for breath, I'm laughing so hard!

Add me to the girl crush club. Michele O rocks!

[Nancy Martin]

Forget the fan club. Look what happened to Sandra Bullock's stalker: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081113/ap_en_mo/people_bullock_fan

I don't want to end up at Gitmo.

[Harley]

Unless there's purple in the Gitmo uniform!

Speaking of which, my upcoming book cover (A Date You Can't Refuse) is bright orange, the exact color of a prison jumpsuit. What does it all mean?

[Judy Larsen]

Well, Nancy, I'm all for a Michelle fanclub/website, but I really think it's bad karma to include "stalking" anywhere on it. Maybe "Michelle BFF Wannabees" (hey, that connects to the post from earlier this week about life being all about 5th grade!).

And the background will be purple, natch.

[ramona]

Look at that left photo of Michele. See the guy behind her? The one with the hat? You don't want him knocking on your door one day, waving a printout of this blog and saying "Miss Martin, we need to have a discussion."

Don't use stalking. Use First Ladies Admiration Society or something.

[storyteller Mary]

Judy, I'm in! BFF!

[storyteller Mary]

Giving up on K-HITS now and heading to the dentist.
No free books for me . . . sigh!

[Nancy Martin]

Now that you point him out, Ramona, negotiating with that guy in the background might be worth an hour in handcuffs.

Prison Jumpsuit Orange. I wonder if the Pantone people know about that color?

[Kathy Sweeney]

I love purple - one of my favorite suits is an eggplant color (Talbots Outlet). Blends well with blacks and other dark shades.

So even if you can't wear Barney purple, there are lots of shades to choose from.

Also - the Red Hat Society's official colors are red and purple, so the color will never really go out of style.

Michelle Obama fashion trend alert - flat shoes! Check the windows of your favorite shoe store. One more reason to love her. She may wear them because she's tall, but I like to think she also wears them because she's busy and multi-tasking and older than 30. We need to get Michele Martinez back for more on this topic.

[ramona]

Ummm, Nancy, I pointed out that heavily armed individual as a warning, not a suggestion.

[jodiL]

Yippee! I'm in style for once. Bought a purple sweater on sale and the cat has a new purple collar. Finally, I can hold my head up on the fashion circuit.

[Debby]

Me lurvs me purple.

Okay, so I am actually 'in' fashion this year. Woo hoo? LOL!!! I do love purple, and find it to be a happy color without being too loud.

I don't know about next years color, though. Any shade of yellow or orange just isn't my thing.

As for book cover colors? They never are the interest point for me. Who is the author? What is the title? Teaser on the back? Mine!

[William Simon]

Nancy said: "And whether the Secret Service might react badly if we took it?"

Ummmmm....maybe it's just me, but I'm betting the Service has absolutely NO sense of humor at the moment...and probably won't for the next four years....

[JanetLynn13]

Love Mrs. Obama and her clothes!

Purple's okay if you find the right shade.....

[storyteller Mary]

I'm with Nancy here (back from the dentist, root canal, so maybe it's the after-effect of the Novocain) he's very . . . intriguing . . .
There was the time I gave the baby (hotel security) cop a Hershey's kiss from our pinata when he came on a noise complaint -- my friends reported it on our international e-mail list, leaving out the Hershey's part . . .I'm thinking for this guy, I'd leave out the Hershey's preface as well . . .just sayiin'

[Rita Scott]

"Fashion" colors suck! The news anchor today has on the pukiest color of baby shit green!
>>>gag<<<< Some colors don't look good on anybody!
I'll wear Cardinal red on game days, green on St Pat's day, but blues & grays are what I look best in.
My sometimers is acting up, but wasn't there a make up company (many eons ago) that 'did' your colors by season or warm & cool?

[Nancy Martin]

Here's the deal: I'm going to Chicago this weekend with my book club. (Tells you a lot about our club that only about half the members read the book. But half the members wanted to go to make a girls weekend in Chicago.) And since the weather is drastically different there than here in Pittsburgh (ahem) I definitely needed that purple wrap thingie from Coldwater Creek. So I went to the mall. I resisted tons of other stuff, but I bought the wrap. I figure it's very useful, not to mention in style at the moment. Does it make me look as if I'm wearing a horse blanket? I can't decide. I'll ask my fashion maven neighbor for her opinion. Stay tuned.

[Nancy Martin]

I can't wear gray or black, Rita, but I'm jealous that you can. As soon as I put on gray, I suddenly look as if I'm too old for AARP.

I had "my colors done" maybe ten years ago. The expert decided I was neither a spring or a summer. But sorta both. Not helpful. All I remember is wishing I were a winter.

[Nancy Martin]

I didn't see the Palin press conference! What did I miss? This report sounds weird: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/11/13/awkward-press-conference-for-palin/#more-30303

Or are we sick of discussing her?

Maybe Michelle Obama isn't saying much to the press because of the Palin overkill. But I'd really like to hear what she has to say now that Barack has been elected.

[Rita Scott]

Nancy, gray shows cat hair the least! LOL

[storyteller Mary]

Nancy, interesting article -- I also liked this comment below it:
"DJHill1947@ca.rr.com November 13th, 2008 12:05 pm ET
We are no longer distracted by this circus. She is no longer a candidate. Tell us who's making the $$ off the war and who's stealing it from the treasury."
I really think it's time to account for so much money siphoned away for private gain. . . .

[Becky Hutchison]

William, I wondered if any of "youse guys" would weigh in on this discussion...where's your purple? I totally agree with you too about the Secret Service. They'll probably be on high alert for the next four or more years.

Being a redhead, I can't wear pink, red, mimosa (except when I spill the drink on my clothes), brown or other similar colors, but I can wear purple, especially lavender. The lovely lavender shirts I bought at Chico's three or four years ago are completely worn out at the elbows, but I still have a few matching accessories I can wear. So maybe I won't be too out of style.

However, I did buy a purse with fringe on it in Jackson Hole this summer. I was surprised to see in a recent PEOPLE mag that pocketbooks with fringe are now "in," so for once I'm ahead of a trend. Usually I'm woefully behind!

Now regarding colors on book covers: I guess I'm an isolated case since I am attracted by a book's color...that and the cover art. In fact, Nancy, it was the color of your book spines that caught my attention first, and then I was intriqued with the spine art. So I opened the first book of the series and discovered the Blackbird sisters!

And add me to the Ms. O admirer list.
Go, Ms O, go!

[caryn]

St. Louis people who were talking about Elaine on K-HITS, I called the station. It's tomorrow that she is on-but no one there this afternoon seemed to be able to figure out when.
Are any of you going to Barnes and Noble tomorrow night to see her? Is there a way to identify each other to say hi?
Caryn in U.City

[Marcia in OK]

Oh goodie, I can be "in" this year. I have lots of purple in my closet. I even have two pairs of purple shoes.

And, now that I think about it, I have purple jewelry - REAL jewelry. An entire set of Amethyst set in gold, and another set in sterling silver.

I'm going to make the most of this year, becuase I haven't been in style in some years now.

[Karen in Ohio]

On the cover issue: There is a certain "look" to different kinds of literature, don't you think? You know a book is a romance before you even read the title, for instance, and you can tell a business book from a history one, with barely a glance. In fact, you can tell the difference between different kinds of romance novels, just as you can tell the difference between a cozy and a suspense mystery just by looking. So in a sense I am attracted by the color(s) of a book cover, but in a subliminal way. Does that make sense?

[Josh]

Orange Jumpsuit book cover is warning to ex-husband.

[Pam aka SisterZip]

Caryn, I wish I could go, but I have to work AGAIN. So I won't be there, but I will email storyteller Mary and tell her to wear her ICHOFTS shirt...you can look for her! lol!

Mary...are you going?

[Tom]

Mary Lynn has done a lot of design work and study. She makes a strong case that everyone can wear some shade of turquoise.

Becky, a redhaired acquaintance of mine wore a whole lot of purple; it looked wonderful.

For myself, it's blue, green, grey, burgandy or black, and sometimes orange; it's the North Sea heritage, I guess.

Harley, the orange jacket could mean "Don't Shoot, I'm Not Game" or (with the right . . . uhhh . . . bracelets) "Prisoner Of Love." Those are big audiences, you'll sell a zillion.

[Nancy Martin]

Hijack! Tonight on PBS is a documentary film about women soldiers in Iraq. It's called LIONESS, and I heard bit and pieces today on NPR. It's a little late for Veteran's Day, but this film sounded really great. 9pm, I think. Here's a link:
http://www.lionessthefilm.com/

[storyteller Mary]

Caryn, and all, this from Elaine on the radio show --
It's Friday at 6:55 AM
elaine
--
I will wear the IOCHFTS shirt, thanks to a small gift of grace: I needed parchment paper in order to iron the IOCHFTS back on tightly, but I hadn’t found any. The other day in Midtown IGA (the only grocery store to promise me a no-latex-balloon environment), I offered assistance to a man who was obviously searching for something . . .yup, parchment paper, so in helping him, I helped myself. I just found the shirt where I’d hidden it away so I wouldn’t wear it until I fixed it. I’ll look for you Caryn. . . . and I’ll be with my friend Lucy probably, and she is (with her big motorized chair) hard to miss.

[Pam aka SisterZip]

Glad you found that out Mary. I'll probably still miss it!

[storyteller Mary]

I'm sorry you won't be there. I'll wear the IOCHFTS shirt and probably a purple long-sleeved shirt for warmth and in honor of today's topics. . .well, and tan pants, or people might take the slogan too literally . . . ;-)

[Becky Hutchison]

HIJACK....
For all you Blond Bond fans...this article's for you:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Movies/11/13/daniel.craig/index.html

CNN online's article lead-in:
"Daniel Craig Says Being James Bond a Real Pain"

[judiebootie]

i dont like the color purple

[Procrastination Free Living]

I like color white for cleanliness.. But purple?? sigh!! Its look simple but hot?? hahaha... But 1st women !! good luck to her and GOD BLESS !!

by the way good blog !!!! I like it to..