Oooh, don’t you love the simple beauty of white-washed walls against an inky blue sky, with white linen curtains fluttering against salty blue shutters? Blue and white interiors make you feel like you’re on holiday all year round. Hold on a minute, you live in the Algarve … you are on holiday all year round!
A timeless combination synonymous with coastal style, blue and white is a great colour scheme for a calm and restful home. It’s so fresh, so clean, so serene. It’s the perfect way to welcome in the hotter months and ensure you stay cool, calm and collected.
The colour blue holds deep spiritual meaning in faiths and cultures all over the world. Blue has always been associated with the sky and, therefore, heaven and the gods. Of course, blue is also the colour of the oceans, which many people feel spiritually connected to. From ancient times to the present day, blue has been used in religious rituals and sacred spaces to evoke a sense of awe and connection to the divine.
Mediterranean blue paired with crisp white is one of my favourite colour combinations. Together they make a space feel really cool and calm. It’s cool you’re looking for, not cold, so add some wood and natural textures to give it some warmth. A touch of terracotta and honey will soften a sleek blue and white interior and create a welcoming vibe. All you need is a few soft furnishings in sun-bleached earthy colours and you’ve got the perfect beach house.
Portugal is full of white-washed buildings and blue skies. I’m an artist and I’m constantly inspired by the beauty of the natural landscape in the Algarve. But the old buildings get me reaching for a paintbrush too. When I’m driving around, I always find myself stopping and getting out of the car to take pictures of houses. My girls roll their eyes and say, “It’s only a white house, Mum.” That is very true, but I love a curving wall, a decorative chimney, a sloping terracotta roof, and the way the sun creates its own art with patterns and shadows. I want to capture it all. I have a friend in London who makes quite a bit of money selling prints of brutal architecture in the City. They don’t really appeal to me – too many hard lines. Give me a roughly rendered white farmhouse, a blue door and a sprig of bougainvillea and I’d buy it poster-size.
I’ve got a photo of a white chapel against a blue sky taken by Anastasia Lozinskaya in Sines (pictured), and every time I come home, it gives me a lift. I’d like to have a set of three, so I better get out there and find two more buildings to complement it.
Blue is the number one ‘favourite colour’ worldwide. We associate it with tranquility and emotional stability. When it comes to interiors, blue has always been a popular choice. Interior designers often pick blue and white for bedrooms and bathrooms, as it has been shown to improve the quality of sleep and reduce stress. Blue is also the colour most used to decorate offices because research has shown that people are more productive and creative when working in blue rooms.
How many blue foods can you name? Okay, blueberries, but they’re not really blue. Naturally blue food is very rare, but we love serving food on blue and white crockery. Oranges, lemons and figs look great in bright blue and white bowls. The Portuguese are experts in hand-painted pottery and blue and white designs are among their top sellers.
The hand-painted dinner set pictured is from Porches Pottery, located in a traditional farmhouse just outside the tiny village of Porches. A team of artisans work full-time making, glazing and painting pottery. Using the ancient majolica technique, they paint everything by hand without stencils, sponges or transfers. Handmade red clay pots are hand-dipped in a white glaze, then decorated by hand. Each painter’s brushwork is like a signature: you can recognise a painter by their brushwork just as easily as you could recognise them by their voice.
Another artisan specialising in blue and white homeware is Tania Cerqueira in Almancil. Her ocean-inspired serving trays and charcuterie boards are made using hand-poured resin. Like the sea itself, the resin continues to move and marble and bubble for hours after pouring, so each piece is completely unique.
There are lots of blue and white gems in the big shops, too—www.casadart.pt in Almada has some Ikat print wallpaper (pictured), which would be great for a feature wall. I love these spotty cushions from H&M Home at MAR Shopping Algarve.
From the buildings to the potteries to the ocean surf, Portugal is full of blue and white beauty. Get out there and bring a little bit of it into your home!
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