A rainy afternoon in a Kyoto fabric shop changed how I think about color

I was stuck in this tiny shop for about two hours because of a downpour, so I just started looking at all the fabric rolls. The owner, an older woman, saw me and without a word, she pulled out three bolts of indigo cloth, each a slightly different shade. She laid them next to a bolt of faded orange silk, and the way those blues popped against the warm tone just clicked for me. I used to pick one main color and match others to it, but now I look for that one contrasting piece first to build the whole palette around. It's made my last three designs way more interesting. Has anyone else had a moment like that, where seeing colors in a new place totally shifted your process?

2 comments

2 Comments

lindagreen8d ago

Honestly feels like people make these moments into way bigger deals than they are. You saw some pretty fabric in the rain and now you pick colors in a different order, lol. It's not like you discovered a new color wheel. My process changed because I ran out of my usual paint and had to use what was left, it was fine. These stories always sound so deep but it's just looking at stuff.

lily_ramirez48d ago

Right? I read one where someone said their whole art style changed after watching a sunset through a foggy bus window. Like, okay, you liked the soft edges. I started using more blue because the store was out of black that one time and I had to make it work. It's just stuff that happens.