I’ve always been utterly immune to blue’s charms. As I’ve said before, the shade simply left me cold, and I failed to see why anyone liked it. At best, I was neutral on some of the prettier French and robin’s egg blues. Even turquoise didn’t do it for me.
But suddenly, I can’t seem to get enough of the happy hue -- whether it’s called turquoise or some variation like “pool,” “azure,” “aqua,” or "Caribbean blue." I’m even trying to figure out which room in our house I can paint the exact color of a Tiffany’s box (and to prove it, I have an actual Tiffany’s box filled with paint chips that are a pretty close match).
For this, I blame my 9-year-old daughter. She has an abiding obsession with anything -- and just about everything -- sporting the beloved color she calls “aquamarine.” Half of her wardrobe falls under this category, as does a good amount of the items in her room. Even the rubber bands on her braces are turquoise.
So at our house, it’s all aqua, all the time. I guess I couldn’t help but be won over.
(And happily, I’ve discovered that turquoise mixes really well with a whole host of other colors, from light neutrals like white, beige, and gray to deep neutrals such as brown, taupe, and charcoal to other poppy brights like yellow, green, and orange, and even deep, dramatic colors like red. Which means that it’s super-easy to migrate in and out of your décor as the mood strikes you.)
Apparently, I’m not alone in my growing appreciation for this summery shade. Textiles, accessories, and even furniture featuring the hue abound these days. Here, a collection of my favorites:
Left to right: West Elm Baton Vases, $4 to $6 each; Jonathan Adler Chroma Small Bottle, $95; Lotus Bleu Lacquer Bamboo Vase, $62
Top left: Urban Outfitters Spindle Lamp Base, $36, and Flocked Mum Lampshade, $28; top center: Pier 1 Teal Drum Table Lamp, $50; top right: Oscar de la Renta Turquoise Lamp, $300, from Horchow; bottom: 1940s French Turquoise Ceramic Lamps, $1,250, from 1stDibs
Left: Shine Citrine Pendant, $490, and Palisades Pendant, $640, from Cottage & Bungalow
Top left to right: Flocked Flower Pillow, $15, from Pier 1; Jonathan Adler Big Sur Pillow, $68; Avis Pillow, $98, from Anthropologie; bottom left to right: Flocked Floor Cushion, $100, from Urban Outfitters; Designers Guild Tatami Turquoise Pillow, $145; Judy Ross Trellis Pillow, $190, from WeegoHome
Left to right: Urban Outfitters Danish Dot Bedspread, $32; Designers Guild Esperanza Bedding, $45 to $280; Mod Coverlet Set, $100, from Pier 1
Left to right: Hollywood Turquoise Fabric, $8.50 per yard, from Contemporary Cloth; Dandy Damask Turquoise Fabric, $9 per yard, from Tonic Living; Denyse Schmidt Katie Jump Robe “Allure Bows” Fabric, $9 per yard, from Purl Soho
Left to right: Florence Broadhurst Dusty Turquoise Shadow Wallpaper and Turquoise Yvans Geometric Reversed Wallpaper, both $448 per roll, from Wandrlust
Left to right: Urban Outfitters Paisley Flower Rug, $28; Jonathan Adler Lacquer Wastebasket, $45; Rainbow Wall Shelves, $49 for three, from the Company Store
Top left: Urban Outfitters Brocade Slipper Chair, $100; top right: ModernDose Trellis Table, $175; bottom left: ModernDose Pop Pedestal Table, $399; bottom right: Eames Molded Plastic Armchair, $329, from Room & Board
Top left to right: Cayman Dinnerware, $1.50 to $7, and Comma Plate, $1, from CB2; Pier 1 Hibiscus Dinnerware, $5 to $6; bottom left to right: Acrylic Diamond Goblet, $6, and Ethereal Decorative Plate, $8, from Urban Outfitters; Le Creuset Caribbean Cookware, $60 to $160, from Sur La Table
Photo by Jeremy Samuelson for Cottage Living
The paint is Benjamin Moore's Surf City, which in person is almost the exact color of a Tiffany's box.
The four Beatles portraits, taken in 1967 by famed photographer Richard Avedon, are $650 for the set from Poster Classics or $1,250 through GO Antiques. (You can also find reproductions -- licenced or otherwise -- going for as little as $5 each on eBay.)
The table in the Cottage Living spread is an antique -- as are the painted chairs -- while ours is the Basque, $799, from Crate & Barrel.
We'd go white and modern for the chairs. (I bought a set of vintage Saarinen tulip chair knockoffs super-cheap on eBay awhile back. Unfortunately, they're too short for the table, so I'm still on the hunt for something that will provide similar contrast.)
