Color Study: Shades of Sage
Note to self: Use this color in my next painting project. It feels so calm and peaceful.
I always find myself gravitating toward greens and teals, but this pastel sage tone really caught my attention a few seasons ago while watching one of those Architectural Digest celebrity home tours, the one with Emma Chamberlain. You’ve probably seen it. But that kitchen? STUNNING.
It sent me straight into a rabbit hole of calming green tones that feel like a cross between a muted sage and a pastel neon — soft but energized. Today I wanted to share a little visual diary of the things that feel drenched in this exact shade.
Styling Notes:
Mentally I’d like to be on a lounge chair, poolside, with a good book and an iced matcha. I love that jelly sandals have been coming back over the past few seasons, and this soft green version is so good I might actually need to order a pair.
I have a blouse similar to this one, and the double tie closures always make me feel like I put effort in (even if I didn’t). The long trouser shorts? So classic. No wonder they’re everywhere right now. I don’t know if I’d actually pair them with the blouse… but separately, I’m sold.
Foodie Notes:
There’s something so satisfying about a space that fully commits to a color palette. Lina Stores in the UK does it perfectly…their green-on-green interiors are so chic and so specific. Chef’s kiss.
Beauty Shelf:
Things I’ve used: Blue Lagoon Face Mask, Chanel Eyeshadow (but I want to try this shade) Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm
Wanting to try: Caudalie Pore Minimizing Toner, Terra Nail Polish in Light Mint, Prada Hydrating Lip Balm this is so expensive for what it is…I feel like I would only be buying it because the color it fun which I hate to admit.
Speaking of beauty, these bathrooms are gorgeous, no notes
The exact mood I want to be in forever. Light but not too bright. Moody but still airy. I can fully picture myself taking a bath, slipping into these PJs, and crawling into those Quince sheets with a book and a candle flickering somewhere nearby.
In the Garden:
This color lives in the real world too, in actual sage, in garden shears, in flower petals, in metal conservatories I dream of building off the side of our living room one day.
Also is it just me or are these puffy sunnies and garden shears the exact same thing?
Sage Green in my Life:
This sequin top was a secondhand find though I think it was originally from Urban Outfitters. I rarely wear it, but I pulled it out for the Suki Waterhouse show at the Showbox last fall and it felt perfect for the night. A little sparkle, a little edge but still soft.
On the right, there’s a painting that’s been hanging in my office for a while now. It started as a way to cover up an old piece I didn’t like, so I painted the entire canvas in this sage green. It was inspired by this giant terracotta pot of begonias outside my studio window years ago. I planned to layer more color over it, but once I outlined a few shapes in black, I kind of loved it as-is. Quiet, a little unfinished and somehow complete anyway sort of how I approach a lot of my side projects (though not sure if that’s something to be proud of).
That’s all I’ve got this week. One image really can send me spiraling into full color-research mode. And yet for all my searching I still haven’t found the exact shade of Emma Chamberlain’s kitchen cabinets.
Homework:
Notice one color that keeps showing up in your life this week, on your desk, in your closet, out the window. What feeling does it carry? Where do you think it’s trying to take you? Let it inspire you to start pulling together a Pinterest board to collect images in the same shades.