It's Official! Colour of the Year 2014 is Radiant Orchid

When I was a little girl, I would spend every school holiday at our village in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan with my grandparents. The one thing that I was always at awe with and still find it awe inspiring until today is the fact that both my grandparents were green thumbs. Being a green thumb means that you have an innate ability to make absolutely anything grow. My grandparents’ passion then was orchids. They would scour the country for prize winning orchids, jungle orchids, normal orchids that you found growing at every single household. Each orchid plant would be planted in a pot with some coconut husk and medium pieces of charcoal. The pots were majestically suspended from wire pot holders and every morning, my grandparents would carefully make their rounds trimming and pruning their beloved plants. Every so often, my grandfather would go around spraying them with fertilizer containing goat droppings collected from a nearby farm. Almost every pot would bring forth flowers so glamorous that it took my breath away. When Pantone announced that the Color of the Year for 2014 was Radiant Orchid, I for one was immensely pleased. For starters, with its fuchsia, pink and purple undertones it suits me perfectly as I am a Deep Winter. So it is little wonder that this shade of purple right up to the jewel toned deep purple is one of my favourite colours and one of my wardrobe staples. I am also rubbing my hands gleefully as it also means that next year, I can wear and recycle one of my Baju Kurung moderns hence, saving me a LOT of time, money and hassle of looking for material to purchase and having my dress for the Eid festival tailor-made. The main reason for the smile on my face is the memory of my grandparents and their beloved orchids. They are now peacefully resting side by side having passed away in 2007 but I still bring purple Moth Orchids to their burial site every year.