Colours
I've lived with neutral colours (grey, beige, off-white) for many years. Living this way feels calming to me and helps me cope with sensory processing sensitivity. I feel safe and comfortable in a space, with objects, and in clothes that are neutral. I don't follow fashion and interior design trends trends and don't experiment with colours just to push myself out of my comfort zone. There are so many things that are vibrant. Ideas, interactions, dreams, hopes, relationships, pieces of writing, stories.
To interact with colours, I usually go for a walk around Copenhagen. In summer, I see so many beautiful flowers in various gardens, parks, and cemeteries in the city. In winter, I pay more attention to colourful buildings. I invite into my home fruits, vegetables and flowers that are colourful.
Yet, recently I felt that I wanted more. It was interesting to observe this very human desire to experiment with colours. I began to wonder whether it meant that I wanted to invite more objects into my life (e.g., second-hand items). I decided to approach this situation slowly and avoid acting upon anything too quickly. In our society, new things are so easy to invite into our lives. When a want arises, there is never a shortage of offers and options.
When I was younger, I used to borrow clothes from my brother and stepfather. They would always wear colours very different from what I would wear. This time, I borrowed two sweatshirts from my partner. One is navy and the other one is medium dusty blue. Blue is such a wonderful and calming colour. It makes me think about the sea, the sky, and magical flowers such as forget-me-nots and blue hydrangeas. Borrowing felt like a safe and sustainable option to experiment with colours. It's an ephemeral option too: there is no long-term commitment. I wore those sweatshirts for a couple of days, and then I returned them to my partner. It felt good to return to my everyday uniform of off-white sweatpants and an off-white linen shirt. I'm not planning to buy anything new or even second-hand. This tiny unfolding made me think about slowness again. Slowness is such a powerful tool that breaks the cycle of having a want and consuming.