Climbing Out of the Black Hole of Computer Madness!

Don’t get me wrong, I love all this new technology, but I feel like I have been dropped down the rabbit hole this past few weeks, working on one computer problem, that’s lead to another, to another. Where did it all start?

I always start my new year off trying to be organized, so I spent the days at the end of last year cleaning out the accumulated clutter in my office and then continued on trying to organize myself so that when I enter a date or a contact into my iPhone, it will automatically appear on my office computer and my iPad (which I use often to hook up to my office computer remotely when I’m away from the office). Although Apple’s new iCloud is a great idea in theory, it still has quite a few kinks and come to find out, doesn’t work with Outlook 2010 or an older version of Windows, so the software upgrades began!

One of the upgrades I’m happy to report on is my new online samples shopping catalog (shown below). It was out of commission from last Thursday until Monday morning, but it all seems to be working fine and is much easier to use than the one before. You will also be able to order our larger 11″ x 17″ hand-painted samples, pint jars and free cuttings, in addition to the 8″ x 11″ hand-painted samples and 2 oz. sample jars. Here’s a link to it:  http://store.ellenkennon.com  which you can also get to from our “Full Spectrum Paints” page by clicking on “Order Samples“.

Our new shopping cart page!

On another note, I also wanted to report that Akzo Nobel has had yet another price increase. However, I do want to point out that this is the norm for all of the paint companies out there because of the scarcity of Titanium Dioxide which is a major ingredient in quality paint. Although we in turn had to  increase our prices by $4 per gallon on our eggshell and semi-gloss Lifemaster VOC-free products (i.e. from $59 to $63 per gallon), we have been able to keep the same price ($56 per gallon) on our most popular Lifemaster Flat product. When I started this paint line ten years ago, it was with the intention that everyone should be able to afford full spectrum color, so I have always tried to keep my prices competitive with the main stream top of the line products and although our prices increased, they are still better than Sherwin Williams’ Duration which is retailing for $68 a gallon and it’s not even full spectrum color!

Speaking of wanting more people to be able to experience the beauty and healing benefits of our full spectrum colors, I look forward to working with Color Cares, the organization I mentioned in my previous newsletter, so that full spectrum color will be available for their Color Cares makeovers! I’ll be talking more about that in my upcoming Living Well Newsletter (Winter 2012) that will be posted in the very near future.

The Best of Intentions for 2012

Every New Year, instead of making “resolutions”, I sit with a pen and blank journal and focus on what “intentions” I have for the upcoming year. I keep them in a journal so that I can go back at the end of each year to see what I have accomplished and sometimes I discover that what I thought was so important the year before, no longer is. 2012 in numerology is a “five”, which means it is a year of change and considering it is the last year on the Mayan Calendar, I’m sure it will be filled with lots of excitement and changes. The musical group ”The Fifth Dimension” was certainly ahead of their time with their “Age of Aquarius” song, so let’s open our hearts and let the sunshine in!

I am a big fan of scientist-spiritual philosopher Gregg Braden and especially love his videos on YouTube. According to Gregg (and the numerous other authors I have read on my 20+ year spiritual path), we have already transcended many of the darkest prophesies predicted and 2012 is a doorway of opportunity to embrace these changes by living life fully and consciously with intent and integrity, in kindness to one another, asking ourselves on a daily basis “what can I do to make this a better world”? Gregg’s very interesting YouTube video gives more detail of what he predicts for 2012:  2012 Gregg Braden on Mayan Calendar

One of the things I am looking forward to participating in this year are Color Cares™ paint makeovers. Color Cares™ is a new non-profit organization dedicated to changing lives with color. Founded by Dan Wittenkeller (RoomVues.com and TruHue.com), Color Cares’ mission is to uplift and heal the suffering through a Color Cares makeover. Everyone has the right to a positive outlook on life but sometimes unforeseen circumstances such as terminal illness, loss of a loved one or other tragedy, make this especially difficult. Research has proven that using color in our surroundings can uplift the spirit, so if you are interested, you can help, too! If you are a color consultant, interior designer, redesigner, decorator, home stager or paint contractor, you can join the volunteer network.  And/or, you can nominate a deserving person or family for a color makeover. If you are an individual, corporation or organization, you can make a tax-deductible contribution. In lieu of a monetary contribution, Color Cares also graciously accepts new paint supplies (Zero VOC or Low VOC Paint, Paint Sundries (Brushes, Rollers, Tarps, Tape, etc. and Color Fan Decks). If you are interested in helping, please visit their website by clicking the image below:

 Wishing you many blessings in 2012!

Recap of 2012 Color(s) of the Year

In my September 20, 2011 post “2012 Color of the Year and Color Trend Report” I was one of the first to report on the Color Marketing Group and Akzo Nobel’s international Colour Futures Team picks for the 2012 color of the year. CMG chose a deep purple (Boysenberry) and the Colour Futures Team selected a red with orange undertones (Tea Dance) which we made a full spectrum version of back in 2008 and renamed “Mykonos Red”.

Finally, Pantone has come out with their 2012 Color of the Year and it’s making quite the splash! “Tangerine Tango” is popping up everywear on the internet in accessories and clothing. It’s not surprising since orange is such a happy, social color that balances both the mental and physical. It’s a “take each day as it comes” kind of color. Our “Barry’s Babylon”, created for Bay area designer/architect Barry Johnson is the perfect example. As you can see in the photos below, because it’s “full spectrum”, it looks different in every setting:

Barry Johnson's office in his Redwood City showroom, The Brick Monkey

After living with a neutral palette for many years, Yoga Instructor Owen Kemp  liked it so much, she painted her living room with it:

Barry's Babylon in Owen's pre-Civil War cottage in St. Francisville

Artist Hunt Slonem, who is known for his love of colorful walls, used it in one of his parlors at Lakeside Plantation:

Barry's Babylon in the parlor at Lakeside Plantation

Hunt’s new book, The Worlds of Hunt Slonem, is getting rave reviews and was recently voted by Vogue Magazine as one of their top ten books for Christmas. It’s already been featured in numerous publications including Elle Decor  and The Wall Street Journal. This is one of those coffee table books you’ll never tire of. Although it retails for $90, Amazon has it for $56.70. If you happen to be in New York, the Marlborough Gallery at 40 West 57th Street is exhibiting his newest paintings, Louisiana landscapes “Acadian Dreams”, from December 14th through January 7th. The reception on the 14th is from 6-8 pm. For more information: Press Release from the Marlborough Gallery

"Bayou Teche", Albania Plantation, 2011, oil on canvas, 48 x 72 in.

If you would like samples of our Barry’s Babylon, email me at ellen@ellenkennon.com and I’ll be happy to send you a hand-painted sample!

Guest Post on Faber Birren by Allison Brooks

Faber Birren:

The pioneer of Color Therapy

Colors and furniture placement are easy things to overlook. Not many people understand that the color of room or object can be more than just appealing to the eye. But when one really thinks about the use of color, it becomes apparent that certain colors are picked to stimulate certain senses. This is known as color therapy, and is being utilized in healing facilities and homes all around the world.

This in not a new concept; color is everywhere and subconsciously affects a person’s emotions, health, and energy. For example, the dark, muddy colors of a landfill or dirty swamp makes one feel uncomfortable and maybe a little depressed, while a bright, vibrant field of flowers will make one feel easygoing and relaxed. A man by the name of Faber Birren noticed this natural gift and soon became the pioneer in color prescription.

Faber Birren, was a very practical man and noticed how the use of color could inhibit certain actions, healing practices, or emotions. He enjoyed picking out colors to effect change in military bases, mental hospitals, office buildings, and homes. Birren changed how many companies and human lives operated.

It was not until he solved a big problem for Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, when Faber got recognized. The company noticed that the general public was not buying pool tables, and wanted a change. Mr. Birren saw that the women of the household were turned off to the green-topped billiard tables because they reminded them of cheap pool-halls. He recommended that they change to a soft-purplish covering, which resulted in an increase of home-sales.

Faber later went on to work with military bases and set up color systems and different uniforms for personnel. He helped reduce the accident rate in industrial plants for World War II by the use of color and set up a safety color code for the U.S. Armed Forces which reduced the accident rate from 46.14 to 5.58 per thousand. The Navy adopted the practices of Faber Birren and colored-coded everything on the ship and even changed helmet colors. This simple, but impacting change resulted in the drop of accidents by 28%.

Though these are just a few accomplishments of Birren, many of these ideas are being used today. From the terror-alert color scheme to pollen amounts, color codes are used everywhere. Many doctors are also using this natural, non-invasive therapy. Doctors and patients are seeing a difference in attitude and recovery time with the use of certain colors. The colors of waiting rooms, treatment facilities, and the offering of color therapies are being adopted in clinics all around. Many patients have noticed a change in themselves to heal faster and stay more positive during treatments by the colors of their surroundings. Doctors know that an unfavorable cancer prognosis is a stressful situation, and even the smallest of things can help ease the mind.

Allison Brooks

Allison is a self-proclaimed “holistic health nut” who is very passionate about enlightening people about the benefits natural and integrative therapies can have on multiple diseases and illnesses. She went to the University of Mississippi and earned her degree in biomedical anthropology. She’s currently studying in the field to finish an ethnography on the effects of biomedicalization on Bolivian cultures.

She can be reached via email: naturallie23@gmail.com

References:

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=utSjRYHEJ90C&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=Color+Therapy+and+cancer&ots=xo4aDD_gZq&sig=CM7tPUSZkMMHf35UoysUP5VGk6I#v=onepage&q=Color%20Therapy%20and%20cancer&f=false

11:11 and 11-11-11

For as long as I can remember, when I look at a digital clock, it often says “11:11″. It wasn’t until I started reading the Kryon books back in 1990 recommended by my friend Sidney Coffee (more about her later), that I discovered this is supposed to be a “cosmic wink”–a reminder by the angelic beings that surround us, that we are divinely connected and to shift our thoughts from negativity to something positive we’d like to manifest.

Since then, I have been on a spiritual quest, drawn to channelers of angelic beings like Kryon, shamans and sound healers like Tom Kenyon and Robert Coxon, Doreen Virtue, whose numerous books on angels and nature spirits have thoroughly intrigued me, and especially to metaphysical books on color (like Meredith Young-Sowers’ Agartha).  It seems I have read very little “fiction” over the past 20+ years.  Of course, some might call what I do read “fiction”, since these books are about the “unseen”. Not surprising that I have been so drawn to color, since the color we see when we look at something is in fact not its real color. Every object absorbs all the colors that it really is, and reflects the color it is not, and that’s the color you see!

Back to 11:11. Seeing 11:11 on clocks has been happening more frequently (almost daily!) and just the other night, I was awakened by my iPhone which was charging across the room. I jumped up thinking it might be my daughter texting me and when I looked at the phone, there were no texts, no alerts, nada–just the time: 11:11!

With the approaching date this Friday of 11-11-11, I’ve been getting all kinds of newsletters about what a powerful day of manifestation this will be. According to Gillian MacBeth-Louthan of  TheQuantumAwakening.com, “11:11:11 is a number activation sequence. Each time that you see this number on a digital clock it represents that you are being given an opportunity to walk into a Gateway of Instantaneous Manifestation. The universe has just taken a snapshot of your thoughts, which then are manifesting into the physical in record speed. The time period from November 11 to January 11 is considered to be the HOLY TRINITY months. All in All it is a divine decree and opportunity issued to all of earth. Wake-up, and become your true light.”

There are many celebrations and meditations taking place all over the world this day. I know I plan to light candles and focus on all things positive. My friend Sidney Coffee, who I mentioned previously, has invited me to her Zen House (see previous blog post and newsletter) this Friday which will be open to the public Sunday evening, in conjunction with LSU’s Hilltop Arboretum Fall Garden Tour in Baton Rouge. An article, “Zen Retreat” came out today with more information and photos.  If you are in the area, I hope you’ll come by on Sunday. I’ll certainly be there!

Sidney & Al Coffee's Zen House is the highlight of "Moon Shine: A Walk on the Night Side"

Surprisingly, for the first time, I Googled “11:11″ and found a wealth of information. Here are some I found interesting:

http://1111spiritguardians.com

http://www.v-j-enterprises.com/gate1111.html

http://www.greatdreams.com/11coin.htm