Every December since the year 2000, the design world awaits the announcement of Pantone’s Color of the Year to inspire the next year’s design trends.
What does the Color of the Year have to do with living on the patio? Keep reading and you’ll find easy ways to incorporate the color into your patio and yard no matter the color, or year, or wherever you live — Roanoke, VA or anywhere else!
The Impact of Color
Chances are you have an immediate reaction to the color you see in your environment. This would be based on your personal experiences with the color.
- There is a science to color
Our eyes convert visible light of varying wavelengths into electrical signals that get sent to our brain, which then converts those signals into our visual reality. - There is the psychology of color
Our brain also processes the thoughts, emotions and memories that we relate to different colors. - There is the culture of color
Our associations and perceptions of a particular color is influenced by the cultural trends and norms in which we grew up (in the U.S., blue for a boy, pink for a girl).
While colors can quickly help us identify and understand important information, they also help us communicate and feel emotions. So color is used across industries to achieve results and define experiences. All this reinforces why the Pantone color trend forecast is important and influential.
Who is Pantone?
In 1963, Pantone revolutionized the printing industry with the colorful PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM®, a then innovative tool allowing for the faithful selection and reproduction of consistent, accurate color anywhere in the world – you may have seen the printed color guide ‘fans’ used at a print shop. The tool organizes color standards through a proprietary numbering system and chip format, which have since become iconic to the Pantone brand. Pantone supports all color conscious industries; textiles, apparel, beauty, interiors, architectural, and industrial design, encompassing over 10,000 color standards across multiple materials including printing, textiles, plastics, pigments, and coatings. Pantone Standards are available both digitally and physically.
The Pantone Color Institute™ is a consulting service within Pantone that forecasts global color trends and advises companies on color in brand identity as well as product development.
How is the Color of the Year Chosen?
The Pantone Color Institute studies color trends throughout the year in order to decide on the next Pantone Color of the Year. They take into consideration all aspects of society: fashion, marketing, social media and even politics. The hue chosen as Color of the Year has become increasingly influential in the vast world of design and brand marketing. When the new color is announced in December, designers and developers look into how it can be incorporated into their business.
Should You Care About the Color of the Year?
If you are a lover of color, then yes! The Pantone Color of the Year is a color trend forecast for the consumer, which means that it’s intended to be used for consumer products and designs. Some creative brands renew their look every year according to the new color, but most businesses cannot handle that much change. And neither can consumers.
But hey, it’s a fun way to be “trendy”. So, let us show you some easy ways to incorporate the Color of the Year into your patio and yard no matter the color or year.
Incorporate Color Into Your Patio and Yard
Color is such an emotional and dynamic element of any space or environment such that it is natural that we want to have pleasing colors in our outdoor living space. Here are a few suggestions on how to bring a splash of color to your patio area without breaking the bank:
Paint Something
Paint is an obvious way to incorporate color. Paint a flower pot or a piece of yard art, maybe even a few simple accessories like vegetable stakes or signs.
Rug Color
An outdoor rug is the ideal way to add color to your patio without changing the furniture, having to paint or wallpaper walls, or commit to an expensive carpet that might not last if the Pantone Color of the Year is fashion color and not a timeless classic.
Seat Cushions or Pillows
Add the color with those soft furnishings or an outdoor throw draped across a sectional couch or chair.
Flowers or Foliage
Search and find a color match in your garden or planter pots. Remember the Pantone Color of the Year permeates everything, even plants. And if you cannot find an exact match, you will be able to find some plant in the same color family.
Outdoor Tableware
As mentioned, many businesses look to include the color in their product lines including linens, glasses, serving ware, utensils, you name it.
Color Brings Life to Your Outdoor Living Space
I’m sure we’d all agree that color makes us feel vibrant and truly livens up any space as your personal taste determines. And it is easy to add whether by natural means such as colorful plantings or by human addition — paint, furniture, pillows, umbrellas, and more. Color can be found even in the food we enjoy — red watermelon, a deep green spinach salad, yellow corn on the cob, or one of Julie’s Cosmopolitan Cocktails, which incidentally, is a muted magenta color. So have fun bringing color into your outdoor living space and onto your patio. Change it every season and revel in how it makes you feel and smile. Enjoy!
Please Leave a Comment: Color of the Year
Leave a comment below and tell us if this information was of value to you or let us know what we missed and can add to this post. Have you considered how you might add more color to your patio or outdoor living space? What has been your experience? How did you decide to add your color? Please add a photo to your comment so we can see how beautiful the color you’ve added to your patio looks.
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Very interesting! Who knew! In the new system I would like to keep up with the Pantone color of the year!
Carrie: Yes, great colors come from our Creator! It is so fun to explore color in your garden and patio area. And so easy to add color with plants and paint. It’s easy and inexpensive. And fun to be creative!