The Colour Purple

Today, I was fortunate enough to be the Guest Blogger on Purple Twirl ‘s Twirly Tuesdays Blog.  Purple Twirl is an Event Planning Company based in Ghana, run by the planner herself, Creative Director Miss. Abokuma Ellis.

I met Abokuma in 2009 when I moved back to Ghana after 11 years in the UK at Medlab Ghana Ltd where we were both working.  I was PA to the Managing Director and she was a Lab Technician.  She looked pretty cute in her glasses, white lab coat and rubber gloves carrying out all sorts of clinical tests.  6 months down the line I left Medlab to pursue other challenges and Abokuma wasn’t one of the people I stayed in touch with.

However, I get a phone call in January 2012 from this sweet sounding lady who needed my services for a wedding she was planning.  We set an appointment, she comes over and guess who it was!!!  My first reaction was, “I know you” and she laughed.  We both had no idea that the women talking weddings on the phone were former colleagues.  How did we both end up in weddings from Medical Laboratories?

We have since worked together on various weddings.  She uses Mahogany Events as one of her vendors for Decor.  Thank you Purple Twirl!!!

So below is what I had to say on her blog.

With more than two weeks notice and me promising without hesitation to contribute to the famous “Twirly Tuesday”, here I am with my piece….The Colour Purple.

I asked Abokuma “what  am I supposed to write about?  And she replied “anything you like”.  First thing that crossed my mind was “Desserts! Serving desserts at Ghanaian weddings”.  I started going through my folders of all the nice desserts I have taken photos off.  Just as I began to write my blog post, I thought to myself, “hang on! Why not Purple for Purple Twirl’s Twirly Tuesday?”  By the way, Tuesday is my favorite day of the week!

So talking about Purple, I asked her why she named her company “The Purple Twirl” and she said “It is because purple is a colour that represents royalty and she wants her clients to feel like royalty”. As one of her vendors, I sure do feel like royalty too 🙂

So I went to do a little research on the colour purple and found out that it has been associated with royalty, mystery, wisdom and magic for centuries.  Purple is made up of equal amounts of red and blue, my favorite colours, imagining my royal blue BMW 5 Series and my Red Jaguar XJ and remembering my red bedroom and blue bathroom.  Keyword “imagining” but I hope I can one day say it was all a dream until….

Red is considered the warmest color while blue is the coolest and together they create a perfect color.  Light purple and dark purple have different meanings. While light purple gives off romantic feelings, a deep dark purple can create sadness. Purple robes are associated with royalty while the darkest purples are associated with funerals and death. Still a bright purple can reflect fun, playfulness and excitement to a child, while lavender can give a feeling of calmness and peacefulness. Purple in its many tones can set the stage for many moods.

In fact, Queen Elizabeth I forbad anyone except close members of the royal family to wear Purple because of its association with Royalty, Power and Wealth. Purple’s elite status stems from the rarity and cost of the dye originally used to produce it. Purple fabric used to be so outrageously expensive that only rulers could afford it. The dye initially used to make purple came from the Phoenician trading city of Tyre, which is now in modern-day Lebanon. Fabric traders obtained the dye from a small mollusk that was only found in the Tyre region of the Mediterranean Sea.

Most of the Ghanaian Traditional Engagements and Weddings I have styled which have had a combination of purple have been Purple and Lilac with Silver, Purple and White with Gold and Purple and Fuchsia with either Gold or Silver.  I have always wondered why Gold or Silver always has a role to play in colour combinations.  Maybe my next blog for Twirly Tuesday should be “Why Gold or Silver”.

I asked Miss Purple Twirl herself if she considered any other name and she said “Purple Ribbon because ribbons feature in every wedding”.   Only a wedding planner exceptional will note that 🙂 I tried to play smart and asked what her wedding colours would be but of course, she is too smart to not figure that out so she said “I have no idea” which is in other words, “I don’t wish to disclose that information” but I can assure you that if she goes for Purple, it will be Purple with Orange, Purple with Emerald Green or Purple with Mustard Gold which goes very well with white she adds.

By the way, did you know that British Prime Minister David Cameron is popular for his purple tie?  Purple has become a well-liked color for the neckties of world leaders; it is less aggressive than red, but more active than blue.  The Purple Heart is awarded to U.S. soldiers who are wounded or killed in action.  Purple eye shadow is intended to create the illusion of depth and to attract attention to the eyes.

Purple is certainly an appealing colour and if you consider using it for your wedding, remember to pick the right shades and blends.  The shades that will interpret peaceful romance and fun!  But beyond its worth as a colour, Purple has meaning.

Telling you all that I know now about that colour purple which turns events into lifetime memories reminds me of a film that I once loved and haven’t watched in at least 8 years.  Perhaps tonight, I will spoil myself to some movie time but without the popcorn and coke.  Critics have said the movie was called The Colour Purple, which came from a discussion between the characters Celie and Shug about faith, describing what God does to please people.  Shug says, “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.” After Celie asks what God does in response to this obliviousness. Shug replies that He creates something else people will see, because God just wants to be loved. The discussion leads to the rekindling of Celie’s faith, despite years of abuse and neglect.

That is me for The Colour Purple…Purple Twirl has really interesting write ups so I encourage you to check her out  at Twirly Tuesday .