October 2026 – News
Back at work
September has been a busy month.
We reopened after two blissful months in India. It has been wonderful to see how many of our clients had been waiting for us. When the doors finally opened again on the 7th, they were ready to receive their paint. It has been busy ever since.
I honestly don’t know how to express my gratitude. I have been very touched.
There is so much competition out there, and to see that our customers have remained incredibly loyal means everything to me.
So many of you simply waited for us to come back.
Thank you.
Back in London
Being back in London has been wonderful. There have been so many exhibitions, openings and things to go and see, and I have enjoyed simply walking around the city again and seeing what is happening.
London Design Week was on, and it was lovely to be surrounded by so many talented people and so much creativity. I was especially happy to catch up with my friend Adam Jones from Quercus & Co in Australia. Adam is the King of Wallpaper!
He was taking part in the London Design Social at Chelsea Old Town Hall. It was a really fun day, small and buzzing, with lots of nice, authentic businesses. It ended with a conversation between Hatta Byng and Adam Bray. They were both very entertaining.
It felt good to be back amongst people who are so passionate about design, interiors and making beautiful things. After two months away, I think I had missed that more than I realised.
The weather has been fantastic and the temperature perfect too. The days are getting shorter, but the light is magical. There is something about the light in London at this time of year that makes everything feel a little softer.
And then there have been the exhibitions. Frida Kahlo and Anish Kapoor have been particularly special.
Autumn and colour
Autumn is such a special season in so many ways. It is the time when we start looking towards the end of the year and thinking about making changes, especially at home. Time to put the duvet back on the bed, bring the autumn clothes out again and look around at the walls, which can seem a little tired after the long summer.
We crave that feeling of cosiness again — creating the perfect atmosphere for evenings at home, good food and good company.
We perceive colour differently as the seasons pass. When summer ends, we start looking for warmth and depth, and we become more interested in deeper, richer colours.
Colours that were so popular 30 years ago, and then seemed to disappear for a while, are making a huge return. Yellow ochres, deep yellow-greens and terracottas are everywhere again, and I love seeing them come back.
The book
The book is going well too. There is still a little more to write and plenty to tidy up.
Writing has been such an introspective journey. I started writing as if it were a diary, with so many words, sometimes completely going off track. I needed it, though, and now it needs editing.
I am also having some more lessons with a client, friend, writer and now my teacher, Raffaella Barker, who is helping me make it better.
Thinking I could finish a book in two months was a great ambition, and I definitely have not quite managed to fulfil it yet. I will get there, though. It is a project with myself that I have been wanting to do for years.
I have been thinking about it for so long. I love writing. I write all the time. A book about colours with no images, just words.
Colour of the month
The colour of October is definitely yellow.
Our most popular has been Fede’s Ochre from the Donne D’Arte Collection, although so many of the others have been incredibly popular too: Paolo’s Yellow and Petre’s Ochre from the Original Collection, Plantain Yellow from the Cuban Collection, and the wonderful Saracen Gold from the Houghton Hall Collection.
Check our colours online and feel inspired. https://francescaspaint.com/our-shop/
I hope you are enjoying this beautiful season as much as I am.
Best,
Francesca
