Color

Photo courtesy of wallpaperpassion.com

Feeling blue?  Perhaps you're In the Pink or maybe just green with envy.  These are popular idioms we hear quite frequently.  Do you even know what it all means?  Well, it alludes to the fact that there is more to color than meets the eye.

Indeed there is.  There is an entire science dedicated to color.  Color is both symbolic and emotional.  It affects every part of our body!  Did you know that?

Think about it for a minute.  Open your closet, what do you see?  Do you see a lot of one particular color or do you see a rainbow of colors.  Think of the last item you bought or the last several items you bought...did you tend to stick to the same color with each item you bought?

Color corresponds to different parts of our body and emotion so, as our bodies change or our circumstances in life change, we begin to 'crave' certain colors.  More than that, people in the business of selling their wares will use this science to get us to spend more, eat more and even act in a certain way and they do it all with the use of color.  

Next time you go out for dinner, if you happen to find yourself in a big restaurant chain like for example Texas Roadhouse, look up the light fixtures...do you see a haze of pink spread sporadically throughout the dining area?  Ever wonder why?  I bet you are wondering now...Pink lights make food, even cheap, unhealthy, even half spoiled food look better!  Most restaurant owners if they know anything about the power of color will take advantage of it's advantages! 

All you can eat buffets...they use color too!  The most popular color for table accessories at an all you can eat buffet is blue!  Remember when K Mart stores use to have a cafeteria in the back of their stores, they would offer a blue plate special...an all you can eat deal yet it was served on blue plates.  The color blue makes food look unappetizing so we will naturally eat less.  That means, they make more money because we are eating less.

How about your fast food chains.  Have you ever seen so much yellow, oranage and red?  Those colors all speed up your heart rate, respiration rates and can make you feel like you are in a hurry.  They want you in to scarf down their food then leave as soon as possible to free up space for the next unsuspecting, over eating patron!

I think it would be great to spend the next few weeks talking more about color and how it influences us...for good or for bad.  Each week I will spotlight a different color.  It's very interesting.  In fact, I often get phone calls from people asking me what means if they like the color red so I will give them a color 'reading' if you will.  Don't worry, It's not like I can read minds or stare into your soul but it's really interesting.  Drop me a comment if you wonder about a specific color.  Join me again next Wednesday for more color tips and tricks.