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The quote by John Ruskin is the inspiration to this week’s blog while it also coincides with the celebrations of the Indian festival of colors – Holi.
Our vibrant world is filled with colors, and they may affect you more than you realize. They can change your mood and your behavior, maybe even your diet and who you find attractive. Before you redecorate, get dressed, or serve your next meal, it might be good to keep that in mind.
Of all God’s gifts to the sighted man, color is holiest, the most divine, the most solemn.
John Ruskin
Modern science claims that Color is a powerful communication tool and can be used to signal action, influence mood, and even influence physiological reactions. Artists use hues to express ideas, themes, subjects and moods instead of words to articulate them.
Colors mean different things in different cultures
Affinity for a color is very individual. We like some colors more than others. Our feeling for a color is extremely personal and is often influenced and rooted by an experience and culture.
Red is the color of passion and aggression in the Western culture and in the Eastern world, it is the symbol of prosperity. Blue is a masculine color in the West, in Chinese culture it is considered feminine while in Indian culture it is the color of Lord Krishna and symbolizes strength, often being used by sports teams. Green is the color of nature for Western culture and brings calming, renewing feelings and in the Eastern world, it is believed to bring health and eternity (religious undertone). An interesting fact is that hats colored green for men in China mean the man’s wife is unfaithful. In diverse and culturally vibrant geographies such as India, China, South East Asia or South American countries, simple expressions of color hold together the multitudes of outlooks, lifestyles and traditions.
Colors influence your daily lifestyle
As much as we are conditioned culturally and socially, we are also influenced by how color is presented in our lives. We are habituated to respond to Green – Go, Orange – Slow and Red – Stop.
Healthy products on the shelf of a supermarket are often seen to be in green or subtle packaging. The indulgent, impulse products are designed in colorful, bold packaging designs. Chocolate is a food product where the name and color of the product are the same and likewise, Orange fruit! By default we get trained to perceive or react to a color based on its representation as a part of our lives.
Colors affect your appetite
The color of your plate can affect how much you eat. The key is contrast: The more different the color of the plate from the color of the food that’s on it, the less you’ll serve yourself. In one study, people served themselves about 30% more fettuccini alfredo if they were given white plates instead of red.
Children seem to eat more if there are different colors on their plates. One way to try to get your kid to eat more fruits and vegetables might be to come up with some vivid color combos. As a bonus, different colors often mean a larger variety of nutrients, and that’s good for growing bodies.
Colors affect how you feel
Colors are also classified into two clusters: warm and cool colors. Warm colors create an illusion of heat and warmth and appear advancing towards us. Red, orange, yellow connect us to sunlight and health and are considered warm colors.
Cool colors remind us of natural elements like water, grass & sky & produce a sense of calm and relaxation. Cool colors like blue, purple, and green appear to be receding further away from us.
We are born with an extensive palette of Nature’s colors splashed around us. However hard we attempt to capture, it’s next to impossible to frame nature’s true colors. We can only experience it. Nature communicates with us through its colorful shades and affects our moods and emotions instinctively.
Colors change your mood
Imagine!
Grazing out of your window at a lush green patch or spending a quiet moment by the lakeside watching blue still water or walking through an orchard of luscious red apple trees on yellow sunshine day or getting drenched on first rainy day smelling pleasant earthy brown aroma.
You may be happier and less tired after you exercise around the color green. It makes sense then that people who exercise outside, where there’s more green, feel better. And having more “green space” where you live tends to boost your mental health.
Why color should not define you?
In earlier days, pink was considered a masculine color. Later that thing has been changed into pink for feminism, girly color and so on. The people have followed a certain gender-based tradition over the decades. And the tradition is based on pink color. Pink is the chosen color for girls and blue for boys is the principle of the tradition. Why is it like that? Why girls should wear pink and boys can’t?
Colors are not discovered based on gender. Every color is likable and appreciable for its kind and nature. Currently, most of the people show uniqueness in fashion. Fashion relies on color entirely. Boys can be stylish in pink shirts and pajamas. Girls can be beautiful in blue tops, churidars and sarees. Men are not restricted to wear pink, but they are influenced by external factors.
The best color in the whole world is the one that looks good on you.
Coco Chanel
In this trendy and modern world, individuals are focused in their own fashion and trends. The pink tradition is changeable and most of the people set an example for the trendsetting. The trendsetters are able to express themselves without any influences. Pink is a good and positive color. It can be either masculine or feminine. It is totally depending on one’s opinion and his/her own perception. Choose the color for yourself, whatever the color is, the color that boosts your confidence.
Each of these instantaneously depicts a varied sketch in your mind and touches your emotions differently. There are in-numerous such colorful moments taking place in your life every day. One helps you be confident, de-stress, one acts as an energy booster, one calms you down while the other helps you revive and refocus. Surrounding ourselves with the right colors and hues can have a profound impact on our mood and subsequent actions we undertake.
Let the upcoming years change the myth and the tradition of pink color. Be the definition of confidence in every color you wear! Do take a moment to experience these vibrant colors and vivid happenings in your life every day!
What do you think?