I'm a huge fan of the color yellow. Energetic, creative, good health, eternally optimistic, it's a color associated with communication and vitality. It can also be quite mellow. Use it in the entryway for a warm welcome or in the living room to stimulate conversation. Yellow ranges from pale to bright, goldenrod to amber, citron, honey, deep gold, cream, but this post focuses mostly on yellows that are sunny and bright - canary yellow.

In Greek mythology the sun god Apollo is yellow which is appropriate as he was noted for nobility and wisdom. Several emperors in ancient China chose yellow as their royal color. I'm sure you can think of many more examples in ancient and modern history, including flags that use gold or yellow (such as Germany's red, black, and gold horizontal bands on their flag.) Gold was also very popular in the Byzantine Empire.

Yellow is generally associated with many positive attributes so why not use it in your home? Whether you include it as an accent (a vase or rug) or you drench your space with this happy hue, you're certain to love the results. If you're a little shy, experiment with a bunch of yellow flowers on your sofa table and see what you think. I've pulled together a little inspiration for you in case you're not convinced.

Recently on my blog decor8, I hosted a mood board contest sponsored by Amy Butler Design and the winner was Sandra Earl, a technical writer from Canada. I, along with thousands of readers who voted, selected Sandra as the winner for her talent and her palette. Her mood board is shown above. Notice the key color? It seems a lot of us are loving yellow lately, especially combined with gray.

I like yellow so much that I have an entire folder filled with it over on Flickr. All 130+ images are ones that I've blogged about on decor8 in the past. Even if you do not naturally gravitate towards it, my folder just may lure you over to the bright side. If not, perhaps these accessories will convince you to give it a second glance...

Tibi Silk jersey dress and the sundrop lamp from Anthropologie, DwellStudios Jack Lemon embroidered pillow and the OFFI Dachshund My Pet lamp from Design Public, the Huomenta two-toned table which makes a darling craft desk from Anthropologie, and the always wonderful gold Tory Burch flats, perfect with jeans, a white tunic, and a printed bag in blues and yellows.

Or perhaps this affordable Geo Diamond Hooked Wool Rug from Urban Outfitters may interest you? It will give your living room a lift, especially if you are currently living in a neutrals-only zone. Yellow can kick it up a notch. Add in green, gray, blue, or red while you're at in.

Tulips, Daffodils, Forsythia... Everyone loves flowers (and pillows) right? The mums and daisies are from Real Simple, the Hable Construction beads pillow in lemon and the Florence Broadhurst bamboo pillow can be ordered online at Weego Home in California.

Still not convinced? How about these rooms? A lovely work area sprinkled with just a dash of yellow (floral arrangement) as seen in a past issue of Domino magazine, A small, bright kitchen (yellow is expansive) as seen in Living Etc (UK) magazine, Cole & Son's cow parsley wallpaper as featured in Real Simple magazine (used here on an accent wall with coordinating cushions), and white bookcases painted yellow inside from Domino, again as an accent only.

Is yellow for you?

(images linked to sources above)