Yellow - the color of hope in hard times
If we needed any convincing that color reflects our national mood, just recall Black Friday and Blue Monday.
Sociologists like to tell us that hemlines go up when the economy goes down; or that musicals are more popular than dramas in a recession. In any one of a million ways, our global consciousness can be translated into the visual landscape of our world.
This is all bread and butter for folks like the Color Marketing Group (CMG), the leading international non-profit association of color design professionals, which has been accurately predicting color trends for more than 45 years.
Design experts from the group meet four times a year to look at how color trends reflect the times – both our concern for the economy and our optimism about the future.
Often looking two or three years ahead, CMG predicts more evolution than revolution in color trends for the coming seasons.
What colors are in store for us in 2009 and 2010?
Yellow! The symbolic optimism this color of hope and energy offers surely is mirroring a national and international wish.
From pale mimosa to bright lemon to Dijon mustard, and even to its more glamorous relation gold, "yellow’s glitzy sister," yellow will be brightening our homes and our spirits for the next several years.
Yellow will give us the energy to rebuild the economy, says CMG.
A mix of patterns and unusual color combinations will continue to appeal to the young – and the young at heart.
People still tend to go with neutrals, especially when money gets tight, they have observed. Why? The prevailing thought: safe bets.
Colorful decorative accessories, though, give such quiet rooms a touch of pizzazz or simple makeovers – in both easy and more affordable ways.
"Never forget the value of accents," says Cheryl Gaddie, owner of CG Designs in Siesta Key Village.
"Paint is the cheapest and easiest way to make a big impact, " she notes.
CMG executive director, Jaime Stephens agrees. "We’re finding comfort in colors that are familiar, and yet, at the same time, we’re embracing colors that make us happy – especially as accents.
"Everyone’s concerned about the economy, yet the spirit of the country coming together after the election is powerfully reflected in these choices. Also, the demand for colors and products that reflect an environmentally ‘greener’ world goes way beyond a trend. It’s now a ‘given’."
According to CMG, here are some of the other major color trends that will continue to have an influence for the next few years:
• Purple, purple, purple! Emerging as a hot fashion color last fall, purple is not just a fad, it’s an entrenched trend, strongly influenced by the election. (After all, red plus blue equals purple.) Look for a greyed-out violet that works equally well as an accent or a neutral, as well as redder, plummier purples and more blue influenced fuchsias in a huge range of products. Purple is the current "must have" color.
• Blue is the new green – Various greens have symbolized "green living" over the last few years, but in 2009-11, that "green" environmental message will be delivered by the color blue, says CMG. There are watery blues, sky blues and a whole range of blues that now represent our commitment to living on a greener planet.
• Cooled-down, greyed-out browns and greys – Complex neutrals satisfy our urge toward classic colors in an economically challenged time. They also bridge the area between black, which seems harsh, and brown, which doesn’t seem strong enough.
• Bright accents from India, China and Turkey – The exotic has become the familiar. Oranges, turquoises and teals, reds and yellows will abound in hues from far-away countries that now seem very near. They are the optimistic touches we crave.
• The return of the "M" word – It’s mauve. Remember mauve? An old color that looks new again, in dusty violet shades, mauve works as an accent but also serves now as a neutral, punched up by those bright Asian accents (orange, turquoise, teal, red and yellow.)
So remember paint is cheap, and we could all use a little cheering up these days. Get out there and paint something yellow!