Color of the Year 2012 – Tangerine Tango

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Pantone released the 2012 Color of the Year in December but I just couldn’t concentrate on it with the holidays looming.  

Now that the new year has stated it makes me happy just thinking about it.  Of course this is the point, the color was chosen to be a continuation of last years color (honeysuckle) as a pick me up for our sluggish world economy and dour mood.

Each year Pantone choses a color that they feel reflects the times and the current feeling of the world.

Tangerine Tango  was chosen based on research they did all year long and glimpses of trends they were seeing across such divers markets as auto, home, electronics, fashion, jewelry, and music/Hollywood.

I love it, I think it’s a great compliment to most interiors and injects a conscious bit of color and energy into a room.

“Sophisticated but at the same time dramatic and seductive, Tangerine Tango is an orange with a lot of depth to it.  Reminiscent of the radiant shadings of a sunset, Tangerine Tango marries the vivaciousness and adrenaline rush of red with the friendliness and warmth of yellow, to form a high-visibility, magnetic hue that emanates heat and energy.”
- Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute®

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A tale of Turquoise

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As I have mentioned before, each year the Pantone Color Institute names a color of the year.  Their goal is to tap into the psychology of the world and describe our goals and desires.  For 2010 that color was turquoise.  I alway love to see how their forecast plays out here in the US and more locally in my neck of the woods.  With 2010 over I thought I would reflect a little…..

While none of my clients this year wanted to paint their offices or dining rooms turquoise, every girl’s room that I did- had to have it.  It’s not hard to imagine why: just open any kids catalog and you will see that they have fully embraced the trend.  The color itself is fun and lighthearted.  It has a lot of energy so it translates well to kid spaces.  While many of us might have set ideas about the color, I had a great time tailoring it to each girl’s personality and needs.  For me, the interesting part of working with trends or interpreting trends is figuring out how they work for you (if at all) and then putting your own unique spin on them so they feel relevant and natural to your life.

In the first room I did this year, the young girl was 9.  She didn’t want a pink room anymore and declared herself “not a girly girl.”  On a shopping trip they found a great bedspread which led the way for the other dramatic elements.  This definitely isn’t a girly room, and it has has lighthearted and whimsical elements just like her.  The big “out-of-the-box idea” was to open up her closet a little and make it a part of the room by painting it to match her room and adding built-ins.  Her hamster now has a new home which she loves and we added functional, stylish storage space.

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2010 Color Trends

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Do you remember the scene from The Devil Wear’s Prada when Glenn Close is lecturing Anne Hathaway about how her blue sweater was carefully chosen for her by the powers that be?

Well, there’s a lot of truth to that scene.  There exists a Color Institute whose job it is to travel the world each year and distill what is being introduced in the world of design (from home, fashion, art, jewelry, auto design, etc.) into a cohesive theme.

Perhaps an important member of the Color Institute is Leatrice Eisman, she consults for Pantone- the universal color system used by experts across industries all over the world.  She attends various shows in diverse markets and locations around the world to see what is new.  She then travels the country sharing her predictions and wisdom with various industries.  This helps them stay ahead of the trends and use them wisely.  Whenever she visits Denver, I make it a point to go see her and listen to what she has to say.

This last September she was in town talking about trends in color and some of the psychology behind them.   I thought you might enjoy a brief summary of what she thinks the world has been feeling and where the trends are heading.  You might have seen signs of these trends already.  They will be in vogue for the next year or so until we start feeling a little more confident about our futures.

Color Trends for 2010

At the heart of all of our recent trends are two factors (any guesses?)- The economy and global awareness.

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