If you haven’t read Part 1, I recommend starting there – this second part grows out of the experiences of August and looks at what white carried underneath it all.
White as a Holding Color
During that first week of illness on holiday, I received the news of my grandmother’s death. August held many celebrations – and one farewell. Arrivals and departures, all wrapped in white.
Later, I noticed something else. It has happened to us before: the hotel colors matching my color month. In yellow, we once had yellow bedding. In grey, everything around us was grey. This time again – white sheets, white towels.
Coincidence, maybe.
What White Is to Me
White, for me, is an unburdening color. Clean. Light. There were periods in my life when I wanted everything to be white – my clothes, my surroundings, my furniture. Probably because white was the only thing that didn’t add more weight. It didn’t ask for anything.
That’s why I very intuitively understood why Pantone chose white — Cloud Dancer — as the Color of the Year 2026. I saw the criticism and the noise around it, especially on social media, and I understood the resistance, too. But beneath all of that, I could feel the reason for this choice.
White offers release. It creates pause. It opens space in a world full of too much – too much information, too much stimulation, too much pressure. In that sense, white doesn’t add anything new. It takes something away. And right now, that feels essential.
Letting White Go
August began with a wedding and ended with a big 50th birthday celebration of a friend. In between, there were many joyful moments – and serious illness, and loss. Everything was there.
White held it all.
Because white is not empty.
White is the sum of all colors.
The sum of all feelings.
When I compare August to other months that felt much heavier inside, white was – despite everything – a good month for me. Gentle. Carrying. Not light in events, but light in how it lived in me.
I could have continued wearing white. It wouldn’t have bothered me. But September was coming. Brown was next. A color I hardly ever wore.
I was curious.
So I let white go – quietly, gratefully – and stepped into something new.
This month is part of my ongoing project 12 Colors in 12 Months.
You can find all other color recaps here:
Black, Red, Violet, Blue, Gray, Green, Pink, Yellow, Turquoise,
White was a pause.
Now the next color begins.
