THE COLLECTION IS COMPLETE
Let me not bury the lede on this one: THERE ARE THIRTY (30) COLORS AND YOU CAN GET THEM HERE, INDIVIDUALLY OR AS A SET, AS FULL SIZES OR $1 SAMPLES.
We started in March when I started talking about Aromaleigh eyeshadows with Freddie at Tattle-Crime.com, who (being far more intrepid than I am) bounced up to Kristen on Twitter and asked if she could make Ravenstag and Tattler eyeshadows. So, on March 14, IIRC, Ravenstag went up--I'm talking less than 24 hours later here, that's how creative Kristen is--which was the day "Hassun" aired, I think? And Tattler followed the next Friday. One she started watching the show and got interested in doing more, I suggested that the new one(s) go up each Friday to coincide with the season two episode broadcasts, since fandom basically considers that a weekly Hannibal Day and gets festive all day long. And so then we just... started making it up as we went along. We started with twenty as our projected number, because that's generally the size of a full Aromaleigh collection. And then... we kept going. So we ended up finishing with thirty. Freddie and I were basically sounding boards and creative consultants, and I did Tumblr posts each week explaining where each color came from and what it was inspired by; it was important to us that you could point to a specific image and say, "You can put this on your face," and that the color would have some kind of thematic resonance. We wanted to be able to put them together and have the palette of the show:
Then, after a second year of no Emmy nominations and the fandom's grieving indignation thereunto, Kristen suggested we go ahead and put up the final color on Thursday (and also put the whole collection up for the weekly Thursday-Wednesday sale, until July 16th. SAAAAAAALE), so the Grand Reckoning happened a day early. Which is, of course, the name of the final color:
RECKONING: My inspiration post description--which ended up being used as the official one--was, "The base is a dark matte grey with a hint of deep metallic red that looks purplish in some lights. Foiled/applied wet, a metallic red duochrome surfaces. It’s a moody, vampirish color, like a dream you can’t get out of your head. Also, it would make a really interesting eyeliner or smoky eye! (she said cheerfully)."
AND NOW, A MASTER LIST OF ALL THE COLORS, WITH PICTURES AND TRIVIA, FROM ABATTOIR TO WOOF
Click through each color's link to get to the inspiration pictures and/or meta post. Also, I like to refer people to this How Do I Eyeshadow post to explain how to apply multiple colors to different kinds of eyelids (I realized along the way that I have hooded eyes). A number of the This Is My Design colors have duochrome or sparkle colors in common: copper, gold, blue/teal/aqua, rose, even a couple of chartreuses. Some have olive undertones; others like Antler Velvet and Cygnus, have surprisingly smoky bases, while Woof and Unorthodox have similar tones and can be worn together. I'm still experimenting, but a bold red like Tattler can be softened up with Phoenix or Veneer for more of a sunset effect, for example.
Generally I get samples, test them on the back of my hand (where you can also see which colors might look good together), do a test run on my actual face to see how it looks with my complexion and eye color, and then get a few full sizes accordingly. Sometimes I just buy something sight unseen because I know it'll be one of My Colors; other times, the samples surprise me. There are a number of You Gotta See This In Person colors, but in terms of what will look good on just about anyone, I'm going to guess Chrysalis (seriously, it blends with tons of stuff), Gotcha, Feast, and Bellissima (purples tend to work on various complexions), Cygnus, and Lure. Bone Arena, applied with a light hand, is also a good brow or inner corner highlight, rather than a lid color itself (not that I would stop you). Also, my cheerfully doofy amateur swatches at each individual post show the colors applied dry and then with a damp brush ("foiled"), which sometimes reveals a completely different color (Ravenstag, Starling, and Entrapment are examples of this).
Almost all the colors are vegan (with, as far as I can tell, the exception of Bellissima and Ikebana, which have carmine), and most of the thirty are lip safe (the exceptions being Craquelure, Entrapment, Feast, Gotcha, Lucid, Lure, Murder Tie, Perception, and Sublime), meaning you could mix something like Folie à Deux, Bellissima, Ikebana, Tattler, Persuasion, or Phoenix with lip balm or gloss. (Or Ravenstag, for that matter.) Persuasion and Phoenix are actually all-in-one colors that you can also use as blush as well.
So here's a master list of the colors and their conceptual backgrounds--characters, quotes, episodes, imagery, what-have-you. As a bonus, where applicable, I have added the unofficial name I tended to use conversationally for each color. It's a lot easier to say "Cherry Tree Is People" than "Ikebana" ("Ikewhat?" "Ikebana." "What's an ike--" "Flower arranging." "OH THAT ONE") to, let's say, my mother, who enjoyed watching the posts go up each week even though she has no idea what's happening on the show. ONWARD:
ABATTOIR: "A muted copper frost with a strong blue duochrome shift." Colors: The basement in "Takiawase"--copper, chains, and searching blue lights. Name: French for "slaughterhouse," because: Fancy Cannibal. What are you working on today? "Murder Basement." Which genuinely would have been the name, except that we already had Murder Tie.
ANTLER VELVET: "A lush, satiny soft buff brown, with metallic copper highlights, green/red mid tones and a smoked khaki undertone." Colors: Abigail and her father hunting deer in "Potage." Name: Dialogue in "Apéritif": "Antler velvet is rich in nutrients-it actually promotes healing. [The Minnesota Shrike] may have put it [into the victim's wounds] on purpose… he was trying to undo as much as he could. This is an apology." Early concepts: Kristen called this Antler Velvet from the start, but briefly considered calling it Shrike's Nest somewhere along the way.
APIARY: "A gorgeous deepened yellow/gold with cocoa tones leaning towards brown, and a smattering of violet sparks." Colors: People honey, and the sun room in "Takiawase." The olive/brown tones are to make it more wearable than a pure yellow; I've heard from people that it looks great with olive-toned complexions and brown/amber eyes. Name: As an aviary is for birds, so an apiary is for bees. What are you working on today? "Honey Is People." Also referred to as Head Full of Bees.
BELLISSIMA: "A gorgeously rich fig-purple with a gold duochrome and gold shimmer." Character: Bella Crawford. Colors: Dinner in "Coquilles"; gold coin in "Takiawase." Name: "Very beautiful" in Italian, a play on Bella's name, as explained in "Coquilles" ("We were both stationed in Italy. I was Army, she was NATO staff. All of the Italian men kept calling her bella, bella, bella. Well, I wanted her to be my Bella") and "Takiawase." Early concepts: We ended up pulling three different ideas together (see the inspiration post); various names included Bellezza, Belladonna, Ferryman, and Ethical, because CAN'T STOP WON'T STOP until I got this one. What are you working on today? "My Fig Color For Bella!"
BONE ARENA: "The silvery moonlight and the ivory tone of old bones, with bright gold shimmers." Colors: Moonlight on bone and snow from "Shiizakana." A little bit of a werewolf theme, because it made me think of the A Matter of Taste guys. Name: Dialogue from "Apéritif" ("No forts in the bone arena of your skull for things you love"), which I connected to the Randall Tier subplot. See thematic discussion at the inspiration post, because this concept was also my baby. What are you working on today? "Bone Monster."
CHRYSALIS: "A soft greige with iridescent sparkle and shimmer. We like to think of this shade as a 'veil' to wear over other colors, or on its own as a delicate highlight." Colors: Lighting/cinematography in "Su-zakana," which Kristen seemed to subconsciously pull from the barn scene; I had no idea how I was going to match pictures to a line of dialogue until I sat down with them and saw it. But then--see thematic discussion, because I feel like several shots of Will were unfocused on purpose for a chrysalis/veil (refer back to Bedelia's line about veils and person suits) effect. Name: Dialogue from "Su-zakana" ("I can whisper through the chrysalis, but what hatches, follows its own nature and is beyond me"), adapted in turn from the book Hannibal. What are you working on today? "Tender Murder Caress."
CRAQUELURE: "This shade is a warm green with metallic olive undertone, gold/chartreuse highlight and a lot of aqua/blue bright sparkle. In person, the blue sparks and the gold shift are very apparent." Colors: The cornfield in "Sakizuke," plus a bit of blue sky. Not the glazed brown you might have expected from the corpse with the actual "craquelure" effect, which is PROBABLY FOR THE BEST, all things considered. Name: Dialogue in "Sakizuke" ("corn dust on craquelure"). What are you working on today? "Craquelure: The Cornfield One." Inevitably, for some reason, I said that entire phrase every single time.
CYGNUS: "This color is unique- it appears to be a brown-based neutral but it goes on as a rich pewter, with cocoa undertones. It has a rich rose/violet duochrome." Colors: The infamous painting in Hannibal's dining room; seen most clearly in "Fromage," "Fromage," "Rôti," and "Kaiseki" (see linked post for pictures). Name: The Leda and the Swan myth. A collection of Leda-themed artwork is also mentioned in the book Hannibal. But the name is "Cygnus" to focus more on the psychosexual undercurrents of the swan half. Massive discussion, with pictures, in the inspiration post. What are you working on today? "Swan Vagina Painting."
ENTRAPMENT: "A rich navy blue with strong copper tones, that color shifts depending on what type of lighting you're viewing it in." Character: Jack Crawford. Colors: The deep blue of his wardrobe and the dining room wall, since much of his friendship with Hannibal (such as it is) plays out over dinner. The copper duochrome positions it as the opposite (opponent?) of Ripper and Abattoir. Name: Kade Prurnell upending Crawford's plan to force Hannibal to reveal his murderous tendencies with "THIS IS ENTRAPMENT, JACK" in "Mizumono." Early concepts: We went through a dizzying number of names and concepts for this one--as I recall, Believe, Hook, and Trap were discussed, and possibly others. But once we decided to do the deep blue of the dining room wall (I had also thought about suggesting that one particular blue-on-blue tie as a color), we connected that visual to Jack pretty quickly.
FEAST: "This shade is a smoky violet with a coppery highlight and sparkles of red, russet and indigo." Colors: The Hallucidinner in "Kaiseki." There's not a whole lot to say about Feast because it's all there in color itself. Name: Dialogue from "Sorbet": "I cannot force a feast. A feast must present itself.... The feast is life. You put the life in your belly and you live."
FOLIE À DEUX: "A dark blood red with blue undertones and a soft bordeaux metallic highlight, with shards of ice blue sparks throughout." Colors: The red and blue of The Best Office Ever (first seen in "Amuse-Bouche"). I suggested Murder Tie as the inverse--blue with red--but it's Lapse that actually picks up the ice blue better. Name: Alana's line in "Potage" referring to Abigail and her father: "Madness shared by two." The concept being, this then foreshadows what happens with Will and Hannibal's relationship, in great part taking place in the office.
GOTCHA: "A satiny muted oxblood with a metallic copper highlight lurking in the background... Gotcha also has a teal duochrome effect and bright teal shimmer." Character: Beverly Katz. Colors: Her signature red jacket; teal from the hotel wall from "Sorbet"; "lurking copper" from "Takiawase." Specifically, the picture in the graphic right there. "Put this on my face," I said. Name: Dialogue from "Apéritif" ("I got you") and "Takiawase" ("Gotcha," right before... she gets got).
IKEBANA: "An exquisite rose frost, with a vibrant chartreuse/green duochrome." Colors: The cherry tree tableau in "Futamono" and "Yakimono," picking up some of the time-lapse flower colors as well. Name: The Japanese art of flower arranging. Early concept: Bloom, based on the floral tableau's implied play on Alana's last name, but Aromaleigh already has a "Bloom" collection (which I am very fond of). What are you working on today? "Cherry Tree Is People."
LAPSE: "A sheer, pale aqua with a strong iridescent aqua duochrome." Colors: The blue filter and/or flashlight used in various time-loss scenes ("Trou Normand," "Buffet Froid," "Relevés"); the sheerness is to suggest the blue-toned cinematography filter in general. I had specifically wanted something with a play of light for this gif. Name: A combination of "time-lapse photography" and "memory lapse."
LUCID: "An evergreen tone with olive metallic lowlight and sapphire sparkle." Character: Alana Bloom. Colors: The blue of the dining room wall as seen just past the green kitchen wall behind Alana in the picture, above; (FINALE SPOILER) the green of the yard as she falls out of the window and the rain and sparkling glass as she lies on the doorstep, because we're terrible people. Also meant to suggest a "poisoned" Sublime green. Name: "The most terrifying thing in the world can be a lucid moment" in "Kō No Mono." Early concepts: Early on, we discussed calling it Insidious and making it more of the darker, blue-black colors from Alana's "I feel poisoned" dream. What are you working on today? "Alana Falling Out The Window." "She falls out the window?" "Yeah, it's... it's a long story."
LURE: "This shade is highly chromatic and mutable, so appears very different depending on where you view it. In daylight conditions, it is a rich mauve/violet/brown which shifts to a brilliant chartreuse/gold highlight, and with prominent vivid copper and burgundy sparks." Character: Abigail Hobbs. Colors: Sweater worn at the end of "Potage" and much of "Oeuf." One of my earliest Put It On My Face requests ("SWEATERRRRR"). Name: Dialogue from "Trou Normand" ("I was the lure"). Early concepts: Before I realized Kristen was going for much shorter names, I suggested "Nature vs. Nurture" for this one.
MURDER TIE: "This shade has shadowy blue frost base, but this is contrasted with a shimmering cascade of bordeaux and deep russet sparks, which creates an interesting chromatic plum effect in which this shade can appear to shift purplish. This color is best worn with an eyeshadow primer, to hold the bloody shimmer in place!" Colors: MURDER TIE! Seen in "Entrée," "Sorbet," "Trou Normand," "Buffet Froid," "Savoureux," and "Hassun." The reverse of Folie à Deux: blue with red. Name: From the recaps. Murder does not always occur when the tie shows up, but generally it does not bode well. What are you working on today? "MURDER TIE!"
PERCEPTION: "This shade is a strong duochrome effect, which ranges from a deep purplish taupe, to copper/bronze and then vivid yellow/gold shimmer with some deep fuchsia and cobalt sparks for good measure." Character: Will Graham. Colors: Will's empathing "metronome" scenes throughout the series, but the purple-taupe tone comes from the Cello Is People scene in "Fromage," which I might have pleaded for in particular. The sparkle and color shift is meant to suggest movement. Name: Dialogue in "Apéritif" ("Perception is a tool pointed on both ends"). Early concepts: "Mind Metronome," "Metronome."
PERSUASION: "A lustrous pink champagne with a vibrant antique rose iridescence." Character: Bedelia Du Maurier. Colors: Champagne for the tone of her hair and from the end of "Mizumono"; Bedelia's soft pink cheek and lip color (Persuasion can be used as an eye/cheek/lip color.) Name: "What he does is not coercion. It is persuasion" from "Tome-wan." Early concepts: I desperately wanted a color based on the picture in the graphic, the fuchsia blouse and the silver-pastel background, and as far as I'm concerned, this counts. Half-Truths was a name I threw out there, based on that scene, although I think there were some others as well. We also went through every single outfit she wore looking for common colors; plum, muted teal, and taupe were suggested at various points.
PHOENIX: "A beautiful coral shade with a vibrant red/pink duochrome and warm violet sparks." Colors: Freddie's coral-pink cheek and lip color; the flaming ortolans in "Kō no mono." (Phoenix is also a combination eye/cheek/lip color.) Name: Birds on fire and resurrection. Early concepts: One of the colors (real-life) Freddie really, really wanted was something based on the line "Not to snap bubblegum and crack wise, but what's my angle?" Phoenix isn't a bubblegum pink per se, but that's the picture I've used in the graphic, and the lip color matches exactly. What are you working on today? "Sexy Birds on Fire."
RAVENSTAG: "A very rich and chromatic black, with vivid duochrome effects that range from chartreuse to green to teal to blue, with brilliant violet sparks. It is exceptionally pigmented, and the duochrome effect is extremely strong if you foil this color/apply it wet." Character: The Dire Ravenstag. Colors: The iridescence of raven feathers; blue-toned Ravenstag scenes (first seen in "Apéritif"). Name: From the recaps; I think the exact wording first showed up in the second one, " Amuse-Bouche."
RECKONING: "The base is a dark matte grey with a hint of deep metallic red that looks purplish in some lights. Foiled/applied wet, a metallic red duochrome surfaces. It’s a moody, vampirish color, like a dream you can’t get out of your head," as previously mentioned. Colors: The dream sequence at the beginning of "Shiizakana." Name: From "Kaiseki": "I'm going to remember, Dr. Lecter, and when I do, there will be a reckoning"; "I promised you a reckoning. Here it is," from "Shiizakana"; the dramatic irony of that reckoning going really, really badly in "Mizumono." What are you working on today? "Wendigo Bondage Dream."
RIPPER: "A rich mahogany brown with a cool blue duochromatic shift and vivid indigo/blue highlight sparks." Character: Hannibal Lecter. Colors: Wardrobe in "Apéritif" and "Savoureux," particularly in the very last scene of season one; brown and blue seen throughout the house. The inspiration post discusses why it's a very pretty brown instead of a more obvious red; "Abattoir" is the "secret double life" variation. Name: The Chesapeake Ripper, first mentioned in "Coquilles"; "caught" in "Yakimono" (see Unorthodox below).
STARLING: "This shade is a warm black frost with a strong orange/copper duochrome. Appears as a chocolate brown in photographs, must see in person!" (Which is true.) Colors: The starling that emerges from the "turducken" victim in "Su-zakana." Also picks up colors associated with movie Clarices (see linked post). Name: Yes, it really was a starling. Oh, show.
SUBLIME: "A beautiful duochrome with tones of peacock blue, jade green, chartreuse, aqua and gold." Character: Alana Bloom. Colors: The jade green Flannery O'Connor book in "Amuse-Bouche," when Alana mentions that she tried to raise peacocks as a child to be like O'Connor; wardrobe in "Rôti" and "Kō no mono." Name: Dialogue in "Entrée," Gideon to Alana: "How wonderful to see you again. I’ve met a lot of psychiatrists in the last two years. It’s hard to forget one so… sublime."
SURVIVE: "A lush orange with a metallic olivine gold undertone and teal/aqua sparkles." Character: Margot Verger. Colors: The orange and gold of Margot's final outfit, plus the aqua of the background and this picture of Margot at Hannibal's office window. Name: "Survive him" from "Tome-wan," although I have thoughts on that.
TATTLER: "A very rich mahogany red with soft cinnamon metallic tones and a coppery duochrome, with bronze and fuchsia sparks." Character: Freddie Lounds. Colors: The color of Freddie's hair and the red and raspberry pink outfit in "Amuse-Bouche," pictured. Name: The National Tattler was the original book/movie incarnation of her site, Tattle-Crime.com.
UNORTHODOX: "A soft warm beige with a vibrant turquoise duochrome." Character: Frederick Chilton, against all expectations. Colors: Wardrobe (in particular, a tan and turquoise jacket, pictured), lighting, and scenery in "Yakimono." Name: The word "unorthodox" comes up more than once when Chilton's around, but, as I explain in the inspiration post, this is finally flipped when Chilton realizes what Hannibal's been doing to Will: "That would suggest a RADICALLY unorthodox form of therapy." What are you working on today? "Chilton, For Some Reason."
VENEER: "A sheer, pale copper with a strong copper duochrome." Colors: The frequently firelit cinematography. Particularly notable in "Entrée" and "Tome-wan." Name: "Your veneer of self-composure gives a strong sense of the surreal. So much about this feels like a dream," from "Tome-wan"; the painterly connotation of the word veneer.
WOOF: "A satin finish tan with metallic copper tones." Character: Specifically Winston, but you can see it in this picture of All the Dogs as well. Colors: A picture of Winston I put into the original Inspiration Folder. Name: Something fun and light-hearted to go up the same week as the RIDICULOUSLY TRAGIC Lucid. What are you working on today? "WOOF!!"
And there you have it. Also, I just got some interesting news about my Labor Day plans (maybe I will take eyeshadow with me). But more on that once I find out more.
We started in March when I started talking about Aromaleigh eyeshadows with Freddie at Tattle-Crime.com, who (being far more intrepid than I am) bounced up to Kristen on Twitter and asked if she could make Ravenstag and Tattler eyeshadows. So, on March 14, IIRC, Ravenstag went up--I'm talking less than 24 hours later here, that's how creative Kristen is--which was the day "Hassun" aired, I think? And Tattler followed the next Friday. One she started watching the show and got interested in doing more, I suggested that the new one(s) go up each Friday to coincide with the season two episode broadcasts, since fandom basically considers that a weekly Hannibal Day and gets festive all day long. And so then we just... started making it up as we went along. We started with twenty as our projected number, because that's generally the size of a full Aromaleigh collection. And then... we kept going. So we ended up finishing with thirty. Freddie and I were basically sounding boards and creative consultants, and I did Tumblr posts each week explaining where each color came from and what it was inspired by; it was important to us that you could point to a specific image and say, "You can put this on your face," and that the color would have some kind of thematic resonance. We wanted to be able to put them together and have the palette of the show:
Then, after a second year of no Emmy nominations and the fandom's grieving indignation thereunto, Kristen suggested we go ahead and put up the final color on Thursday (and also put the whole collection up for the weekly Thursday-Wednesday sale, until July 16th. SAAAAAAALE), so the Grand Reckoning happened a day early. Which is, of course, the name of the final color:
RECKONING: My inspiration post description--which ended up being used as the official one--was, "The base is a dark matte grey with a hint of deep metallic red that looks purplish in some lights. Foiled/applied wet, a metallic red duochrome surfaces. It’s a moody, vampirish color, like a dream you can’t get out of your head. Also, it would make a really interesting eyeliner or smoky eye! (she said cheerfully)."
AND NOW, A MASTER LIST OF ALL THE COLORS, WITH PICTURES AND TRIVIA, FROM ABATTOIR TO WOOF
Click through each color's link to get to the inspiration pictures and/or meta post. Also, I like to refer people to this How Do I Eyeshadow post to explain how to apply multiple colors to different kinds of eyelids (I realized along the way that I have hooded eyes). A number of the This Is My Design colors have duochrome or sparkle colors in common: copper, gold, blue/teal/aqua, rose, even a couple of chartreuses. Some have olive undertones; others like Antler Velvet and Cygnus, have surprisingly smoky bases, while Woof and Unorthodox have similar tones and can be worn together. I'm still experimenting, but a bold red like Tattler can be softened up with Phoenix or Veneer for more of a sunset effect, for example.
Generally I get samples, test them on the back of my hand (where you can also see which colors might look good together), do a test run on my actual face to see how it looks with my complexion and eye color, and then get a few full sizes accordingly. Sometimes I just buy something sight unseen because I know it'll be one of My Colors; other times, the samples surprise me. There are a number of You Gotta See This In Person colors, but in terms of what will look good on just about anyone, I'm going to guess Chrysalis (seriously, it blends with tons of stuff), Gotcha, Feast, and Bellissima (purples tend to work on various complexions), Cygnus, and Lure. Bone Arena, applied with a light hand, is also a good brow or inner corner highlight, rather than a lid color itself (not that I would stop you). Also, my cheerfully doofy amateur swatches at each individual post show the colors applied dry and then with a damp brush ("foiled"), which sometimes reveals a completely different color (Ravenstag, Starling, and Entrapment are examples of this).
Almost all the colors are vegan (with, as far as I can tell, the exception of Bellissima and Ikebana, which have carmine), and most of the thirty are lip safe (the exceptions being Craquelure, Entrapment, Feast, Gotcha, Lucid, Lure, Murder Tie, Perception, and Sublime), meaning you could mix something like Folie à Deux, Bellissima, Ikebana, Tattler, Persuasion, or Phoenix with lip balm or gloss. (Or Ravenstag, for that matter.) Persuasion and Phoenix are actually all-in-one colors that you can also use as blush as well.
So here's a master list of the colors and their conceptual backgrounds--characters, quotes, episodes, imagery, what-have-you. As a bonus, where applicable, I have added the unofficial name I tended to use conversationally for each color. It's a lot easier to say "Cherry Tree Is People" than "Ikebana" ("Ikewhat?" "Ikebana." "What's an ike--" "Flower arranging." "OH THAT ONE") to, let's say, my mother, who enjoyed watching the posts go up each week even though she has no idea what's happening on the show. ONWARD:
ABATTOIR: "A muted copper frost with a strong blue duochrome shift." Colors: The basement in "Takiawase"--copper, chains, and searching blue lights. Name: French for "slaughterhouse," because: Fancy Cannibal. What are you working on today? "Murder Basement." Which genuinely would have been the name, except that we already had Murder Tie.
ANTLER VELVET: "A lush, satiny soft buff brown, with metallic copper highlights, green/red mid tones and a smoked khaki undertone." Colors: Abigail and her father hunting deer in "Potage." Name: Dialogue in "Apéritif": "Antler velvet is rich in nutrients-it actually promotes healing. [The Minnesota Shrike] may have put it [into the victim's wounds] on purpose… he was trying to undo as much as he could. This is an apology." Early concepts: Kristen called this Antler Velvet from the start, but briefly considered calling it Shrike's Nest somewhere along the way.
APIARY: "A gorgeous deepened yellow/gold with cocoa tones leaning towards brown, and a smattering of violet sparks." Colors: People honey, and the sun room in "Takiawase." The olive/brown tones are to make it more wearable than a pure yellow; I've heard from people that it looks great with olive-toned complexions and brown/amber eyes. Name: As an aviary is for birds, so an apiary is for bees. What are you working on today? "Honey Is People." Also referred to as Head Full of Bees.
BELLISSIMA: "A gorgeously rich fig-purple with a gold duochrome and gold shimmer." Character: Bella Crawford. Colors: Dinner in "Coquilles"; gold coin in "Takiawase." Name: "Very beautiful" in Italian, a play on Bella's name, as explained in "Coquilles" ("We were both stationed in Italy. I was Army, she was NATO staff. All of the Italian men kept calling her bella, bella, bella. Well, I wanted her to be my Bella") and "Takiawase." Early concepts: We ended up pulling three different ideas together (see the inspiration post); various names included Bellezza, Belladonna, Ferryman, and Ethical, because CAN'T STOP WON'T STOP until I got this one. What are you working on today? "My Fig Color For Bella!"
BONE ARENA: "The silvery moonlight and the ivory tone of old bones, with bright gold shimmers." Colors: Moonlight on bone and snow from "Shiizakana." A little bit of a werewolf theme, because it made me think of the A Matter of Taste guys. Name: Dialogue from "Apéritif" ("No forts in the bone arena of your skull for things you love"), which I connected to the Randall Tier subplot. See thematic discussion at the inspiration post, because this concept was also my baby. What are you working on today? "Bone Monster."
CHRYSALIS: "A soft greige with iridescent sparkle and shimmer. We like to think of this shade as a 'veil' to wear over other colors, or on its own as a delicate highlight." Colors: Lighting/cinematography in "Su-zakana," which Kristen seemed to subconsciously pull from the barn scene; I had no idea how I was going to match pictures to a line of dialogue until I sat down with them and saw it. But then--see thematic discussion, because I feel like several shots of Will were unfocused on purpose for a chrysalis/veil (refer back to Bedelia's line about veils and person suits) effect. Name: Dialogue from "Su-zakana" ("I can whisper through the chrysalis, but what hatches, follows its own nature and is beyond me"), adapted in turn from the book Hannibal. What are you working on today? "Tender Murder Caress."
CRAQUELURE: "This shade is a warm green with metallic olive undertone, gold/chartreuse highlight and a lot of aqua/blue bright sparkle. In person, the blue sparks and the gold shift are very apparent." Colors: The cornfield in "Sakizuke," plus a bit of blue sky. Not the glazed brown you might have expected from the corpse with the actual "craquelure" effect, which is PROBABLY FOR THE BEST, all things considered. Name: Dialogue in "Sakizuke" ("corn dust on craquelure"). What are you working on today? "Craquelure: The Cornfield One." Inevitably, for some reason, I said that entire phrase every single time.
CYGNUS: "This color is unique- it appears to be a brown-based neutral but it goes on as a rich pewter, with cocoa undertones. It has a rich rose/violet duochrome." Colors: The infamous painting in Hannibal's dining room; seen most clearly in "Fromage," "Fromage," "Rôti," and "Kaiseki" (see linked post for pictures). Name: The Leda and the Swan myth. A collection of Leda-themed artwork is also mentioned in the book Hannibal. But the name is "Cygnus" to focus more on the psychosexual undercurrents of the swan half. Massive discussion, with pictures, in the inspiration post. What are you working on today? "Swan Vagina Painting."
ENTRAPMENT: "A rich navy blue with strong copper tones, that color shifts depending on what type of lighting you're viewing it in." Character: Jack Crawford. Colors: The deep blue of his wardrobe and the dining room wall, since much of his friendship with Hannibal (such as it is) plays out over dinner. The copper duochrome positions it as the opposite (opponent?) of Ripper and Abattoir. Name: Kade Prurnell upending Crawford's plan to force Hannibal to reveal his murderous tendencies with "THIS IS ENTRAPMENT, JACK" in "Mizumono." Early concepts: We went through a dizzying number of names and concepts for this one--as I recall, Believe, Hook, and Trap were discussed, and possibly others. But once we decided to do the deep blue of the dining room wall (I had also thought about suggesting that one particular blue-on-blue tie as a color), we connected that visual to Jack pretty quickly.
FEAST: "This shade is a smoky violet with a coppery highlight and sparkles of red, russet and indigo." Colors: The Hallucidinner in "Kaiseki." There's not a whole lot to say about Feast because it's all there in color itself. Name: Dialogue from "Sorbet": "I cannot force a feast. A feast must present itself.... The feast is life. You put the life in your belly and you live."
FOLIE À DEUX: "A dark blood red with blue undertones and a soft bordeaux metallic highlight, with shards of ice blue sparks throughout." Colors: The red and blue of The Best Office Ever (first seen in "Amuse-Bouche"). I suggested Murder Tie as the inverse--blue with red--but it's Lapse that actually picks up the ice blue better. Name: Alana's line in "Potage" referring to Abigail and her father: "Madness shared by two." The concept being, this then foreshadows what happens with Will and Hannibal's relationship, in great part taking place in the office.
GOTCHA: "A satiny muted oxblood with a metallic copper highlight lurking in the background... Gotcha also has a teal duochrome effect and bright teal shimmer." Character: Beverly Katz. Colors: Her signature red jacket; teal from the hotel wall from "Sorbet"; "lurking copper" from "Takiawase." Specifically, the picture in the graphic right there. "Put this on my face," I said. Name: Dialogue from "Apéritif" ("I got you") and "Takiawase" ("Gotcha," right before... she gets got).
IKEBANA: "An exquisite rose frost, with a vibrant chartreuse/green duochrome." Colors: The cherry tree tableau in "Futamono" and "Yakimono," picking up some of the time-lapse flower colors as well. Name: The Japanese art of flower arranging. Early concept: Bloom, based on the floral tableau's implied play on Alana's last name, but Aromaleigh already has a "Bloom" collection (which I am very fond of). What are you working on today? "Cherry Tree Is People."
LAPSE: "A sheer, pale aqua with a strong iridescent aqua duochrome." Colors: The blue filter and/or flashlight used in various time-loss scenes ("Trou Normand," "Buffet Froid," "Relevés"); the sheerness is to suggest the blue-toned cinematography filter in general. I had specifically wanted something with a play of light for this gif. Name: A combination of "time-lapse photography" and "memory lapse."
LUCID: "An evergreen tone with olive metallic lowlight and sapphire sparkle." Character: Alana Bloom. Colors: The blue of the dining room wall as seen just past the green kitchen wall behind Alana in the picture, above; (FINALE SPOILER) the green of the yard as she falls out of the window and the rain and sparkling glass as she lies on the doorstep, because we're terrible people. Also meant to suggest a "poisoned" Sublime green. Name: "The most terrifying thing in the world can be a lucid moment" in "Kō No Mono." Early concepts: Early on, we discussed calling it Insidious and making it more of the darker, blue-black colors from Alana's "I feel poisoned" dream. What are you working on today? "Alana Falling Out The Window." "She falls out the window?" "Yeah, it's... it's a long story."
LURE: "This shade is highly chromatic and mutable, so appears very different depending on where you view it. In daylight conditions, it is a rich mauve/violet/brown which shifts to a brilliant chartreuse/gold highlight, and with prominent vivid copper and burgundy sparks." Character: Abigail Hobbs. Colors: Sweater worn at the end of "Potage" and much of "Oeuf." One of my earliest Put It On My Face requests ("SWEATERRRRR"). Name: Dialogue from "Trou Normand" ("I was the lure"). Early concepts: Before I realized Kristen was going for much shorter names, I suggested "Nature vs. Nurture" for this one.
MURDER TIE: "This shade has shadowy blue frost base, but this is contrasted with a shimmering cascade of bordeaux and deep russet sparks, which creates an interesting chromatic plum effect in which this shade can appear to shift purplish. This color is best worn with an eyeshadow primer, to hold the bloody shimmer in place!" Colors: MURDER TIE! Seen in "Entrée," "Sorbet," "Trou Normand," "Buffet Froid," "Savoureux," and "Hassun." The reverse of Folie à Deux: blue with red. Name: From the recaps. Murder does not always occur when the tie shows up, but generally it does not bode well. What are you working on today? "MURDER TIE!"
PERCEPTION: "This shade is a strong duochrome effect, which ranges from a deep purplish taupe, to copper/bronze and then vivid yellow/gold shimmer with some deep fuchsia and cobalt sparks for good measure." Character: Will Graham. Colors: Will's empathing "metronome" scenes throughout the series, but the purple-taupe tone comes from the Cello Is People scene in "Fromage," which I might have pleaded for in particular. The sparkle and color shift is meant to suggest movement. Name: Dialogue in "Apéritif" ("Perception is a tool pointed on both ends"). Early concepts: "Mind Metronome," "Metronome."
PERSUASION: "A lustrous pink champagne with a vibrant antique rose iridescence." Character: Bedelia Du Maurier. Colors: Champagne for the tone of her hair and from the end of "Mizumono"; Bedelia's soft pink cheek and lip color (Persuasion can be used as an eye/cheek/lip color.) Name: "What he does is not coercion. It is persuasion" from "Tome-wan." Early concepts: I desperately wanted a color based on the picture in the graphic, the fuchsia blouse and the silver-pastel background, and as far as I'm concerned, this counts. Half-Truths was a name I threw out there, based on that scene, although I think there were some others as well. We also went through every single outfit she wore looking for common colors; plum, muted teal, and taupe were suggested at various points.
PHOENIX: "A beautiful coral shade with a vibrant red/pink duochrome and warm violet sparks." Colors: Freddie's coral-pink cheek and lip color; the flaming ortolans in "Kō no mono." (Phoenix is also a combination eye/cheek/lip color.) Name: Birds on fire and resurrection. Early concepts: One of the colors (real-life) Freddie really, really wanted was something based on the line "Not to snap bubblegum and crack wise, but what's my angle?" Phoenix isn't a bubblegum pink per se, but that's the picture I've used in the graphic, and the lip color matches exactly. What are you working on today? "Sexy Birds on Fire."
RAVENSTAG: "A very rich and chromatic black, with vivid duochrome effects that range from chartreuse to green to teal to blue, with brilliant violet sparks. It is exceptionally pigmented, and the duochrome effect is extremely strong if you foil this color/apply it wet." Character: The Dire Ravenstag. Colors: The iridescence of raven feathers; blue-toned Ravenstag scenes (first seen in "Apéritif"). Name: From the recaps; I think the exact wording first showed up in the second one, " Amuse-Bouche."
RECKONING: "The base is a dark matte grey with a hint of deep metallic red that looks purplish in some lights. Foiled/applied wet, a metallic red duochrome surfaces. It’s a moody, vampirish color, like a dream you can’t get out of your head," as previously mentioned. Colors: The dream sequence at the beginning of "Shiizakana." Name: From "Kaiseki": "I'm going to remember, Dr. Lecter, and when I do, there will be a reckoning"; "I promised you a reckoning. Here it is," from "Shiizakana"; the dramatic irony of that reckoning going really, really badly in "Mizumono." What are you working on today? "Wendigo Bondage Dream."
RIPPER: "A rich mahogany brown with a cool blue duochromatic shift and vivid indigo/blue highlight sparks." Character: Hannibal Lecter. Colors: Wardrobe in "Apéritif" and "Savoureux," particularly in the very last scene of season one; brown and blue seen throughout the house. The inspiration post discusses why it's a very pretty brown instead of a more obvious red; "Abattoir" is the "secret double life" variation. Name: The Chesapeake Ripper, first mentioned in "Coquilles"; "caught" in "Yakimono" (see Unorthodox below).
STARLING: "This shade is a warm black frost with a strong orange/copper duochrome. Appears as a chocolate brown in photographs, must see in person!" (Which is true.) Colors: The starling that emerges from the "turducken" victim in "Su-zakana." Also picks up colors associated with movie Clarices (see linked post). Name: Yes, it really was a starling. Oh, show.
SUBLIME: "A beautiful duochrome with tones of peacock blue, jade green, chartreuse, aqua and gold." Character: Alana Bloom. Colors: The jade green Flannery O'Connor book in "Amuse-Bouche," when Alana mentions that she tried to raise peacocks as a child to be like O'Connor; wardrobe in "Rôti" and "Kō no mono." Name: Dialogue in "Entrée," Gideon to Alana: "How wonderful to see you again. I’ve met a lot of psychiatrists in the last two years. It’s hard to forget one so… sublime."
SURVIVE: "A lush orange with a metallic olivine gold undertone and teal/aqua sparkles." Character: Margot Verger. Colors: The orange and gold of Margot's final outfit, plus the aqua of the background and this picture of Margot at Hannibal's office window. Name: "Survive him" from "Tome-wan," although I have thoughts on that.
TATTLER: "A very rich mahogany red with soft cinnamon metallic tones and a coppery duochrome, with bronze and fuchsia sparks." Character: Freddie Lounds. Colors: The color of Freddie's hair and the red and raspberry pink outfit in "Amuse-Bouche," pictured. Name: The National Tattler was the original book/movie incarnation of her site, Tattle-Crime.com.
UNORTHODOX: "A soft warm beige with a vibrant turquoise duochrome." Character: Frederick Chilton, against all expectations. Colors: Wardrobe (in particular, a tan and turquoise jacket, pictured), lighting, and scenery in "Yakimono." Name: The word "unorthodox" comes up more than once when Chilton's around, but, as I explain in the inspiration post, this is finally flipped when Chilton realizes what Hannibal's been doing to Will: "That would suggest a RADICALLY unorthodox form of therapy." What are you working on today? "Chilton, For Some Reason."
VENEER: "A sheer, pale copper with a strong copper duochrome." Colors: The frequently firelit cinematography. Particularly notable in "Entrée" and "Tome-wan." Name: "Your veneer of self-composure gives a strong sense of the surreal. So much about this feels like a dream," from "Tome-wan"; the painterly connotation of the word veneer.
WOOF: "A satin finish tan with metallic copper tones." Character: Specifically Winston, but you can see it in this picture of All the Dogs as well. Colors: A picture of Winston I put into the original Inspiration Folder. Name: Something fun and light-hearted to go up the same week as the RIDICULOUSLY TRAGIC Lucid. What are you working on today? "WOOF!!"
And there you have it. Also, I just got some interesting news about my Labor Day plans (maybe I will take eyeshadow with me). But more on that once I find out more.