Yellow Color Study

Hi, I’m Rachel, and I’m a color-holic. I just can’t get enough color, especially bright and bold ones. I love how colors have impact and power, and how you can see the same color in so many different ways. If you follow me on Instagram, this is no surprise. Recently I’ve been hinting that I’d be sharing some more color study goodness, and I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be contributing color study posts over at one of my very favorite blogs, I SPY DIY. Stop by and say hi, and check out the large yellow color study I put together.

Life is so busy, and sometimes you have to work really hard just to find a little time to be creative. For me, especially as a creative blogger, I won’t spend time on things that I’m interested in (like learning watercolors) because I think that it’s not the most productive use of my time. However, a few months ago, I took a step back from blogging, and started spending time doing creative things just because I felt like it. I started painting with watercolors, taking random pictures of things like coffee beans shaped like a panda, and arranging things by color. I wasn’t quite sure what the point of all of it was, but I knew I was having a blast being aimlessly creative.

This quote by Maya Angelou sums it up perfectly, “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” Sometimes, creativity is its own reward. Just because you don’t think that learning to crochet is going to turn into a thriving business and make you money, doesn’t mean that it won’t make you richer. Just because you don’t think you’ll ever be an especially talented artist, doesn’t mean that you can’t make something beautiful with watercolors. So pick up your yarn, your paintbrush, your camera, or whatever it is that you dream about someday having the time for, and just do it. You’ll certainly make a lot of mistakes along the way, after all the mess is half the fun.

I started sharing a lot of these crazy endeavors on Instagram, where I found both inspiration, and a community of other color-loving people. And some of my very favorite pictures I started sharing, were originally inspired by @houselarsbuilt and her fun #crafttherainbow. I was also fueled on by @violettinder each week as we both were sharing color study pictures… a collection of different things in the same color. I have to warn you, it’s addicting. You start sorting everything you own by color, and gathering and collecting things over a few days while you plan the next color study. It’s even possible my neighbors think I’m a strange hoarder of only yellow.

Yellow is such an interesting color. It is so bright, bold, and invigorating, but if you lighten it ever so slightly it can be such a soft and delicate color.

Watercolors have become my greatest obsession. If you’re interested in learning, this post on watercolors for beginners is a great place to start. As someone who loves bright colors and bold shapes, one of the greatest challenges for me has been to use less paint, and let the water create a softer look.

I also gathered together some yellow things by theme, like this collection of paper crafting supplies. And in case you were wondering, you can find those beautiful crayon gems at Target, and the jumbo paper clips at IKEA.

I also love how gold interacts with yellow, since they are already such similar colors. I included these gold embroidery scissors and thimble in this sewing themed color study.