Top Five/Bottom Five: The Colour Edition

Apologies to all my American readers. There will be plenty of superfluous vowels in today’s post because it’s time to talk colour.

In my version of the question, black and white will be considered colours even though, technically, they are not.

I also realize colour preferences can be heavily dependent on context. For example, the colour I would look for in a sweater may not overlap with the colours I’d want to paint the exterior of my house or fingernails. These Top/Bottom discussions are never an exact science, so I went with my gut.

The stakes are low – let’s have fun with it!

TOP FIVE

In no particular order.

1. Plum. I love a deep, rich purple. I like this colour for clothes. I’d wear it on my fingernails, but it’s unlikely I’d ever paint my bedroom wall this colour. It feels very cozy and warm.
2. Grey(ish). I like dark metallics that have a hint of texture to them. I also like warm greys that border on greige. My favourite neutral paint colour is Pale Oak by Benjamin Moore which is a mix of grey and cream. We’re slowly painting the interior of our house this colour.
3. Forest green. I like this colour for sweaters (slightly darker than the Pantone swatch above). I can’t think of another context where I’d opt for forest green (maybe camping or other outdoor equipment)? But it serves its fashion purpose well enough that I’m putting it in my Top 5. Remember, I’m going with my gut here…
4. Teal. I enjoy this colour but wouldn’t use it for many things. My Yeti is teal, and our daughter painted one wall in her room Tropical Pool which is bright, but very fun!
5. Black. For clothes; it’s classic for a reason.

Bonus: This isn’t a specific colour, but I also tend to gravitate toward natural wood tones. And, more generally, rich, dark tones or light, airy pastels. I love the aesthetic of white but I’m too messy to own white clothes or have white furniture. Bright colours are a hard pass…

BOTTOM FIVE

Anything that is neon-adjacent or resembles the colour of any bodily secretion is a firm No.

1. Yellow. Yellow is okay in small doses. For example, as part of an accent pillow, or for the petals of a sunflower painting on the wall. It has the potential to look cheery on a front door (though I’d likely never paint my own door that colour), but for a car or fingernail? Nope. And forget about clothes. I look like a walking corpse in yellow.
2. Hot pink. Really the only pink I tolerate well is a pale pink that could basically double as cream.
3. Lime green. Just…no.
4. Orange. I feel like orange is a popular colour and I’m utterly perplexed. It makes me think of Halloween and it always comes across as garish to me. But a dear friend loves orange, so I don’t discriminate based on colour preferences. Though it does make me wonder about her…
5. Brown. Outside of footwear (and only specific tones), I’m not a fan. It’s boring and, let’s be honest, many shades look like the contents of a diaper…

Bonus: Bright blue. A very pale blue is fine; navy clothes can be lovely. But bright blue? Yikes! I’m also not a huge fan of bright red, though I think it can look fabulous on other people.

Your turn. Top/bottom colours. How often do you making purchasing decisions based on colour? Do you spell it gray or grey? If you could only wear one colour for the rest of your life – EXCLUDING black, navy, white or grey – what colour would you choose?

Header photo by Thomas Despeyroux on Unsplash