By RICHIE EDWARDS
For Brentwood Home Page
Man has been trying to bring the outdoors inside since the earliest cave paintings brought animals and trees to the walls of the worlds first “homes.”  Don’t limit the use of nature’s palette to just your sunroom or outdoor spaces- bring them inside for the perfect accent. Almost all flower colors can be found among the paint chips. Plumbago blue (Benjamin Moore Brazilian Blue 817), Gerbera daisy hot pink (B.M. Peony 2079-30) and tiger lily orange (B.M. Rumba Orange 2014-20), can all be used to brighten a kitchen, dining room or entry. Yes, the colors are bold, but with the right trim, furnishings and lighting, these intense colors can create the same effect in  your home as they do in the garden.

Silver sage green (B.M. Cedar Grove 444), delphinium blue (B.M. Jet Stream 814), and wisteria purple (B.M. French Lilac 1403), are all delightful, softer tones that also reflect nature’s bounty inside the home. Try the wisteria purple in an entry with a dark wood entry table with a white marble top. Or pair the delphinium blue in a sitting room with crisp white trim and gilt framed, white matted art.

With the intense heat of summer, come the cooling colors we associate with the beach and the islands. Pair a rich beach-house blue on the walls (B.M. Santa Monica Blue 776) with a cool minty green ceiling or floor (B.M. Potpourri Green 2029-50). Bright white trim will finish the job. Warm cheerful pinks (B.M. Florida Pink 1320 or Sherwin Williams In the Pink SW6583) will absorb light in a bright sunroom or bedroom and can be accented with painted accents in pea green (Rollinson Hues Celery 31) or violet (B.M. Persian Violet 1419).

Other favorite nature inspired colors include:

Air-       Jaded Clouds (Dunnedwards.com DE5702),

Open Air (Sherwin Williams SW6491),

Hazy Stratus (Valspar 4004-1C),

Billow (Valspar 4008-9C)

Earth- Turned Earth (Fine Paints of Europe 4203D),

Spanish Moss (Restoration Hardware),

Peat (Marston & Langinger 25),

Raked Leaves (Behr 360F-6)

Water-   Inky Sea (Kelly Moore ACC233-B),

Hidden Lagoon (Valspar SR914),                      

Crippled Creek (Martin Senour 1114-B),

Geyser (Home Depot MSL127)

Fire-By Candle Light (Valspar EE2073A),

Sizzle (Glidden 60YR 23/650),

Ablaze (Sherwin Williams SW6870),

BonFire (Behr 270B-7)

Coming next month: The Bold & The Beautiful- Pairing the Boldest colors with the Perfect Accents

Richie Edwards is co-owner of Gabriels Garden with Linda Evers, a home décor and gift store in Brentwood’s Maryland Farms area.  You may reach Richie at gabrielsgardentn@aol.com