Ellsworth Kelly, Dark Blue Curve; Louise Bourgeois, Untitled from Ode à la Bièvre. 2007 a fabric illustrated book; Collection Whitney Museum of American Art, New York
There is a certain kind of blue that feels like the deepest part of a shadow on a bright summer day. It is a color that is simultaneously cool and refreshing while also dreamlike and mysterious. It’s like blue velvet but smooth and silky. This blue will sometimes make you think of Klein Blue, but not really. Ellsworth Kelly once said, “I’m not interested in the texture of a rock, but in its shadow.” We should have named this color “Shadow Blue”, but we call it “Peacock” instead. It’s not flashy like the bird; but, like one of the blues that are shadowed in the tail of the beast. Louise Bourgeois said in Drawings and Observations, “The colour blue – that is my colour – and the colour blue means you have left the drabness of day-to-day reality to be transported into – not a world of fantasy, it’s not a world of fantasy – but a world of freedom where you can say what you like and what you don’t like.” Don’t we all need a bit more freedom these days to say what we like and don’t like?
Louise Bourgeois also famously said, “Clothing is…an exercise of memory… It makes me explore the past…how did I feel when I wore that…” The name Peacock comes from that memory. It is a memory of a dress, long outgrown and discarded, that an unknown friend of the family once called “that dress of Peacock Blue.”
Our world has greatly shifted since we began 2020 and named it “The Year of Color.” As each of us, and the world, contends with meaningful struggles on multiple fronts, a simple act of choosing a color that might inspire freedom or joy can also feel like an act of resistance. Our friend Judith Winfrey texted to me the other night, as I felt guilty for dance/cooking alone in my kitchen when so many are on the streets, “Natalie, joy is an act of resistance.”
Explore our Peacock Blue swatches below. Available now in many of our DIY Kit styles.
xoNatalie
OUR DESIGN CHOICES
Outer Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Backing Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Stencil – Abstract
Paint – Charcoal
Technique – Shown in Reverse Appliqué
Thread – Navy
Knots – Inside
Available as a colorway in the following kits: The Cropped Car Jacket, The Embroidered Swing Skirt, The Classic Jacket, The A-Line Top + Tunic, The Embroidery Skirt
Outer Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Backing Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Stencil – Abstract
Paint – Charcoal
Technique – Shown in Backstitch Reverse Appliqué
Embroidery Floss – Storm Blue
Knots – Inside
Available as a colorway in the following kits: The Long Skirt, The Ezra Kit, The Corset, The A-Line Dress, The T-Shirt Top, The Maggie Tunic, The Swing Skirt, The Fitted Babydoll Top, The Factory Dress, The Asymmetrical Trench, The Slim Scarf, The Starter Poncho, The Jumpsuit
Outer Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Backing Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Stencil – Abstract
Paint – Charcoal
Technique – Shown in Backstitch Negative Reverse Appliqué
Embroidery Floss – Storm Blue
Knots – Inside
Available as a colorway in the following kits: in The Cropped Car Jacket, The Embroidered Swing Skirt, The Classic Jacket, The A-Line Top + Tunic, The Embroidery Skirt
Outer Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Backing Layer Fabric Color – Peacock
Stencil – Variegated Stripe
Paint – Charcoal
Thread – Navy/Storm Blue
Knots – Inside
Available as a colorway in the following kits: The Stripe Series Kits (Scarf, Poncho, T-Shirt Top, Swing Skirt