Last week I attended Benjamin Moore’s ColorPulse™ 2011 web conference to get a sneak peak into upcoming color trends.
I sort of envisioned a crystal ball with lights of predictive color flashing out of it. Or perhaps a group of creative souls around a conference table at OPI discussing what to call this season’s nail polish colors.
But really, what I experienced was art imitating life. And yes, life is messy sometimes. It’s amazing how colors can both affect our mood and represent the world around us at the same time.
Four trends that inspire the overall theme of “Balance” were discussed.
- Farm
- Order
- Escape
- Tribe
I’ll do my best to describe them here.
Farm
- Yes, there is a return to farm-inspired colors. It mirrors society’s need to get back-to-basics.
- Think cow prints, textured hay and burlap feedbags, and the creative the use of repurposed farm tools.
- You’ll see tea-stained colors for a rustic tie-dye effect. Imagine the vibrant colors of fruits and vegetables at your local farm stand. Yes, those peas/corn/carrots from the 70’s are coming back!
- Whites will become milkier, and you’ll see more butter yellow and creams. And green will still be hot.
- Earthy soil will replace the cooler gray tones as the strong neutral.
- Oak cabinets will come back in vogue.
- You’ll even see more stencils, needlepoint and yes…even macramé plant hangers.
Order
- It’s easy to see how this trend reflects on today’s need to find order in the chaos of the day.
- Look for minimalistic, geometric, stacking, sort of a modern Puritanism influence.
- The use of outlining gives structure, bright stripes and polka dots are easily defined.
- Primary colors are coming back, but look for the use of monochrome color schemes to continue.
- Black and white with pops of color (primary especially) will be in.
Escape
- If getting back to the farm, or find order in chaos don’t work for you, how about escaping from reality?
- A translucent, soft retro feeling that inspires elegant fantasies and fairy tales.
- Angelic clouds form a veil of wonder. Lots of frosted, pearl and satin finishes. Pink becomes the new red in this trend.
Tribe
- As we simplify our lives and get back to what’s core to our values, it only makes sense that there will be a renewed importance place on communities, or tribes.
- Imagine rich orange and berry hues paired with spicy browns and bronze metallic.
- Tribal accents such as community-inspired sketch’s, beads and new textures will be key elements in this trend.
I know that is a lot to take in, but I’d love to know what you think.
Are they on target? What trends do you like/dislike, and most importantly, what color will you paint your next room?
Update: I just attended the 2012 ColorPulse Color Trend event and wrote a post here about it! I’d love to get your two cents…
36 comments
Whatever trend you would be using for your house, always make sure that you would be choosing the right color combination to make it more attractive and well balanced.
Greens come in all levels of brightness – if you’re unsure about brighter colors, go with a softer green, then use a few punches of colors in the pillows, throws, art, etc.
I’m in the process of re-doing furniture in my great room and don’t know which colors to go with. I still love my wheat colored walls. I like the new greens but am very much afraid of bright colors– when I was younger i could re-paint a room in a day–now if I don’t like a new color –Its harder for me to change not to mention the expense. Are the new greens in sofa’s and leahter recliners also? Love my leather recliner wing back chairs–I feel that making my den look like a living room, but act like a den, one needs to have a little bit of a luxury along with the comfortable furniture. I Would always need the comfort and look of leather wing back recliners in den. Need to know what colors to go with for a new rich in style color scheme.
When designing a new home or re-decorating an old house, there must be balance in color mixtures as it will affect your mood. For 2011, energetic and refreshing like green, yellow, orange, and all those farm-inspired colors are in style.
love the analysis – formed from just pop colors into trends of society. Well done.
Susan, can I post some of your color trends in my little email newsletter to around 250 people. Looking for interesting info all about the home, as I am in real estate. Thanks, BronyaAtHome (on twitter)
what an amazing way to put your inner feelings into your personal surroundings. Escape is “me”.
This is an interesting read. With so many people worried about their jobs and the economy where one lives or finds refuge seems to be becoming more important. With so many of us breaking things down to the basics it makes perfect sense that earthy, organic, tribal colors are making inroads. As we draw family and friends closer our tribe becomes larger.
I love the richness and the warmth the tribal colors bring into play. Even on a muted palette the harmony and calmness they give us helps draw the stress of the day, and the times out of us. It makes me wonder if oriental rugs or the new modern Persian rugs that I have been seeing are going to become even more popular than they currently are.
Me- I’m a color junky and always seem to be painting on something. This article makes me want to paint one of the walls in my house pale kale green with accents of violet purple ( think turnips) in a Mark Rothko manner.
Thanks for posting this
may i know what color best suite for the year 2011,so that i am able to know what is the color of the dress i am going to buy..please add me as your friend sharamae rabina on facebook
So…what did you pick?
thanks a lot for this!!!now i have an idea for the colors…i’ll going to choose.
Hi Marci – funny…I’m in the process of house hunting (moving back to NJ) and I’ve seen alot of vintage design! I love mixing the best of the old with the best of the new!
Susan
I love love love this! I think getting back to the core basics is exactly what people should be doing. I have recently started at a builders supply company on the design center side designing kitchens and baths in a very rural area. These trends will be a great help to getting clients moving on new, but old ideas. The thought of the 70s garb coming back, excites me! I grew up in a home that looked like exactly what you portray and I can’t wait to design a kitchen using the old and the new trends alike! Very cool 🙂
Thank you for posting this! 🙂 I used your notes to put together a collection of photos that falls into each of the themes.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=7923&id=113934671988285
This is so interesting! Thanks, Susan. 🙂
.-= Julia @ Hooked on Houses´s last blog ..Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House =-.
Hey Why S – that is just freaky! Who knew you were so far ahead of your time! I love urban farmhouse – and lentils too.
This is freaky but I’ve been thinking a lot about using vintage farm tools as decorative elements. I have an old plow yoke over my fireplace and a rusted saw blade on my back yard fence. And speaking of tribal, I have a linen print of a celtic design framed and hanging in my living room. AND, when I was choosing colors for living room furniture, I knew I wanted the colors of lentils. I was all over town, saying to salespeople, “lentils, think lentils.” I think my living and dining room actually looks like an urban farmhouse. And these were choices I made a year ago. Mmm.
.-= Why S?´s last blog ..Why I Live in Los Angeles =-.
Hi Kate – I have to agree with you. I like softer colors. I’d like a little more escape in my bathroom as well. No go get your conservatory…great idea!
Love them! The only colours I perhaps wouldn’t go for are the “order” colours. But I could quite easily decorate a different room in my house with the tribe, escape and farm colours. Farm in the kitchen, escape in the bedroom and maybe a tribal conservatory. Must get a conservatory…
.-= Kate Owen´s last blog ..Dishwashers: to buy or not to buy? =-.