Taking in Life Around Me.....#Sundaystills : Color Challenge: Cobalt Blue

This #sundaystills challenge is hosted by Terri from Second Wind Leisure. It's a great themed photography challenge that you'll enjoy. I love seeing the other participants interpretation of the theme each week...it causes me to think outside the box. I joined in hopes of it pushing me to get out and take more photos...I have to some degree, but I also like that Terri is okay with us finding photos in our archives, which is also a lot of fun. So check out my photos and then head over to Terri's page to participate or visit other's posts. There are some awesome contributors who always inspire me.

This week is our monthly color challenge, and the color is Cobalt blue. Terri is also changing the way she does her set up for Sunday Stills. She has a busy summer coming up and she will no longer be posting our individual links in her post (which I know is super handy for commenting, but also very time consuming for her). I did manage to make my way through the comments from last week and visited those who left a link. I'm hoping people will do the same for me. I don't get too much traction already. I also visited again today, just to see if there were any stragglers that I missed, (there was one). 

Anyways, back to our regularly scheduled posting. Cobalt. There are a lot of interesting facts about this color. Apparently it gets it's color from combining cobalt oxide with aluminum oxide. The first recorded use of cobalt blue as a color name in English was in 1777. Boy you can sure go down rabbit trails reading about some of this stuff can't you. 

I'm also going to combine #WQ in with this post, since Marsha at Always Write is re-doing her format too, and not having set topics each week. I actually found quotes with "Cobalt" in them, so I'll add them here. I may do this from time to time or just add quotes like I normally do to my Weekend Coffee Shares. We'll see. 

"Cobalt is a divine color and there is nothing as fine for putting an atmosphere round things"

Vincent Van Gogh

Last year we went to a few concerts, and as I looked back through pictures, I thought, "I think these have cobalt blue in them". Derek Hough above, and the next few from the Trans Siberian Orchestra. 

Peppers bubbles in the sun took on some blue tones. 

Blue is the color of many thing in the nature; sometimes it's seen as a feather of a bird's wing, sometimes it's the blue of a flower, water, sky, moon and uncountable things.

It has many shades; Water blue, Azure, Cobalt blue, Aesthetic blue, Turquoise and many more. Blue is the color of healing power of God according to the Bible. Maybe Blue is God's secret spell put by him on the chosen things.

~Nessryn

I spotted this door in town and thought it would be perfect. 

Lake Crescent on the Olympic Peninsula was so calm on this day..Perfect reflection. 

I just love murals, and I spotted this one in Port Angeles and loved all the colors of blue and depiction of sea life. 

The colors of the ocean off of Oahu were stunning, so many variations. 

The blue sky against the white of Mt. Rainier was striking. 

Blue water wings, blue pool in Mexico!!! The place everyone wanted to live while we were there. 

A popular drink in Maine is Blueberry soda. It was actually really good and made with pretty good ingredients. 

Blue in Italy. Above and below. So pretty. 

Cobalt blue

unique, stunning, expensive

splashed across nature

but then through fashion and home

There is nothing that compares

to your hue.

Your color calms, brings joy, brings peace.

Perhaps it even evokes a memory,

or is cause of argument

"this is cobalt.", "No it's not", "yes it is". 

You are a statement color,

provoking conversation. 

Cobalt Blue

You are your own color, 

standing alone, standing out,

creating awe and wonder

at your beauty

where we come to rest and be revived

washed in your calming hue!

Kirstin Troyer

 

With Joy Unquenchable,

Kirstin