diff --git a/alot/utils/configobj.py b/alot/utils/configobj.py
index <HASH>..<HASH> 100644
--- a/alot/utils/configobj.py
+++ b/alot/utils/configobj.py
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ def attr_triple(value):
     acc = {}
     if not isinstance(value, (list, tuple)):
         value = value,
+    value = list(value)  # sometimes we end up with tuples here
     if len(value) > 6:
         raise VdtValueTooLongError(value)
     # ensure we have exactly 6 attribute strings
fix config issue with trivial attribute lists

If colour attribute specs in the config are empty, we should revert
to the defalut values (as mentioned in the docs) instead of
dying!

fixes #<I>