Choice of Colors

Following the purchase of “Faneromeni” in March 1987 and while the caïque was still at the Halkitis shipyard, I began to consider what color combinations I should choose to paint the boat.

There were many discussions among friends and “boat experts” but no conclusion was reached. Then my friend Themos Apostolopoulos suggested that we color copies of a drawing of the boat to help us decide.

The drawing we used was made by Bill Nady, a naval architect and a captain with a lot of experience with many types of craft but especially wooden and traditional boats. Bill gave me many ideas and suggestions on the restoration project.

So I took Bill’s drawing and made several copies. Each of these copies we colored with various color combinations.

After many versions we chose the drawing below: 
 

An old, worn-out drawing of “Faneromeni” by Bill Nady.

April 1987.

(Archive of Nikos E. Riginos)

 

For the sake of accuracy, I must say that my personal first choice was to paint the boat in a shade of minium-orange, the paint with which most perama-type cargo and commercial caïques were painted.

However, there was an obstacle to this option. The Selini, a lovely tsernikoperama (a perama variation) owned by Christos Lamprakis, had (and to this day still has) this color.

I did not want to copy the color of the Selini, and for this reason the choice of minium-orange was eliminated. Finally the boat was painted dark blue, a color that I liked and so did many of my friends.

I kept his color for many years, but in the back of my mind was the intention to change her color to minium-orange. I had two reasons for this.

While dark blue is a nice color, it is a color more suitable for a yacht and is not a traditional caïque color.

In addition, dark blue absorbs the strong Greek sunlight, and the hull gets very hot, especially in the summer, and causes the paint to blister.

Eventually in April of 2006, despite the objection of many friends and acquaintances, I decided to dare to paint the caïque the orange color of minium. Only two of my friends were very supportive of this decision: Alexandra Tsoukala and Dionysis Koukos.

Since then, and up to this day, the color of “Faneromeni” is minium orange.

For all these many years (and after many trials) I find the Stoppani brand paints and varnishes to be the most satisfactory. 
 

“Faneromeni” as she was finally painted at the Halkitis shipyard.

Spring 1987.

(Archive of Nikos E. Riginos)

 

“Faneromeni” with her present color, minium-orange, anchored in the cove of Aetos at the island of Ithaca.

August 2007.

(Archive of Nikos E. Riginos)