{"id":209068,"date":"2025-12-24T19:30:14","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T19:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/209068\/"},"modified":"2025-12-24T19:30:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T19:30:14","slug":"antithesis-of-pantones-color-of-the-year-designers-say-go-bold","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/209068\/","title":{"rendered":"Antithesis of Pantone\u2019s Color of the Year: Designers say go bold"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tReal Estate\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLocal decorators say their clients are following colorful threads, reconnecting with individuality, and looking to outlast fast fashion.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\tNewton-based interior designer Vani Sayeed used patterns and rich hues in this dining room. Jared Kuzia\t<\/p>\n

The Pantone Color Institute<\/a> probably didn\u2019t mean to kick off the new year with fighting words, but that seems to be what happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhite is a conciliatory color,\u201d Laurie Pressman, Pantone\u2019s vice president, wrote<\/a> about white hues, and who introduced the institute\u2019s 2026 color of the year, \u201cCloud Dancer.\u201d<\/a> But it was not.<\/p>\n

White, Pantone suggested<\/a>, represents \u201cthe purest of the pure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The Pantone Color of the Year for 2026 is \u201cCloud Dancer.\u201d \u2013 Pantone<\/p>\n

\u201cRead the room,\u201d answered many in the design community. Social media users clapped back, calling the selection politically tone deaf, and quipped that Cloud Dancer might be better called \u201cLandlord special.\u201d Forbes put out an article titled, \u201cBacklash hits Pantone after Color of the Year slammed as \u2018tone deaf,\u2019 \u2018dystopian,\u2019\u201d<\/a> and the New York Times chimed in as well<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think they have the wrong pulse,\u201d said Vani Sayeed<\/a>, a Newton-based interior designer. \u201c[Pantone] may be experts in understanding color and all of that, but I don\u2019t think they are reading it in a global sense. They are probably reacting to a very alternate consciousness of culture and society.\u201d<\/p>\n

Local designers said if anything, their clients are following more colorful threads, reconnecting with individuality, and looking to outlast fast fashion.<\/p>\n

Color drenching<\/p>\n

\"Color Theory Boston achieved color drenching in this room with textured wallpaper rather than paint. \u2013 michael j lee<\/p>\n

Sayeed, who recently traveled to Mexico City where she observed the bold, color-infused architectural work of Luis <\/a>Barrag\u00e1n<\/a>, as well as Art Basel Miami Beach<\/a>, said that people are tired of beige, white, and gray, and are seeking joy through color.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of all the chaos that\u2019s happening politically [and] socially, in the world, I think people want to celebrate what they have,\u201d she said. Color is symbolic, and a means of self-expression, said Sayeed. \u201cBy dumbing color down, I think you\u2019re defeating the purpose of a culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a recent client who lives in a house dominated by white tones, a bold red kitchen ceiling added a swath ofcontrast.<\/p>\n

\u201cColor drenching\u201d is one way to fully embrace color, said Kendra Amin-Dufton<\/a>, an interior designer and co-owner of Color Theory Boston, referring to the practice of painting everything in a room in a deep, saturated color \u2014 including trim and doors. She said she\u2019s seeing clients become less afraid of embracing personalization.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe more that they\u2019re exposed to, the less they\u2019re becoming really afraid of committing to those bigger ticket areas, whether it\u2019s a full living room and doing all of the walls or kitchen cabinetry, just going really heavily designed like a powder room where we\u2019re doing the wallpaper and the color on the molding and a really beautiful light fixture,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of what \u2026 as designers, you want to push for. You\u2019re looking to take people outside of their comfort zones and ask them to trust their own preferences.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"This teal kitchen was designed by Newton-based interior designer Vani Sayeed. \u2013 Nat Rea<\/p>\n

For color selections, Amin-Dufton is seeing a lot of warm, cozy shades inspired by desert sunsets, such as blues and greens with warm gray or brown undertones, terra-cotta, smoky lilac, and rose. Drenching can apply to wallpaper, too: a confident full-room treatment avoids what can look like an often haphazard accent wall.<\/p>\n

And maybe skip the shortcuts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough [some] stores seem to offer a peel and stick DIY wallpaper option, they are a lot more tricky to apply than you think,\u201d said Tess Leeds, of Tess Leeds Redesign<\/a> in Newton. \u201cIt\u2019s worth hiring a professional if you have a busy pattern and want it to turn out well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tactile textures<\/p>\n

\"This dining room by Newton-based interior designer Vani Sayeed features different textures, patterns, and colors. \u2013 Nat Rea<\/p>\n

Besides paint and wall covering, Sayeed said, pattern and texture can provide further expression, especially when augmented by light. Find additional texture in textiles, rugs, and finish materials, such as natural stone.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m talking about natural stones \u2026 the blues, the greens, the reds, the purples, the plums,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s beautiful \u2026 It adds visual interest. It\u2019s tactile.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to bland tones becoming pass\u00e9, so are some of the adjoining trends like white boucle upholstery<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that kind of was like a gateway drug for a lot of people to go into something that feels a little bit more luxurious and luxe,\u201d said Amin-Dufton. With that interest in texture and color, more \u201cperformance\u201d fabrics are on the market, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat opens the door for a lot more people to feel comfortable embracing something that you know gives a luxurious feeling, but it\u2019s still going to be a piece that you can comfortably and safely live with for a period of time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Plants, too, are another way to approach texture, she added.<\/p>\n

\"Color and texture come into play in this dining room by Newton-based interior designer Vani Sayeed. \u2013 Sabrina Cole<\/p>\n

As social media compresses major trends into faster-moving \u201cmicrotrends,\u201d giving your own tastes a digital detox might be a good thing, said Amin-Dufton.<\/p>\n

Curate choices organically and take your time.<\/p>\n

\u201cVisit the antique malls around New England, and flea markets and things of that nature, rather than just going right to sort of all of the usual suspects, like a West Elm or Crate &Barrel, or, you know, Wayfair, that type of thing,\u201d she said. \u201cI think it\u2019s really important that people be able to identify what they actually respond to, versus just what they\u2019re being fed. Algorithms can become so saturated with the same images over and over that you start asking yourself, \u2018Do I really like this, or is it just something that I\u2019m seeing so repetitively that I\u2019m being trained to like it?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Sayeed discovered antique Jacobian furniture<\/a> in one client\u2019s basement.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m like, \u2018Why are we not using this?\u2019\u201d she recalled. After repair work revitalized the pieces, they formed the basis of a new, frequently used formal dining room.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore clients are asking for an eclectic, non-matchy-matchy vibe \u2014 desiring a home that reflects them without looking like it all came from the same store,\u201d said Leeds.<\/p>\n

Fast fashion, mass-produced, often cheap, and seen as disposable is fuel for a quick-changing trend cycle.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not looking to do something transient,\u201d said Sayeed, who added her design objectives are more sustainable. \u201cI\u2019m looking at something that will be appreciated for a period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Amin-Dufton said white walls probably aren\u2019t going anywhere, but there\u2019s nothing fresh about them, either. And if experimenting with color sounds exciting, go for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s paint,\u201d she said. \u201cIt can always be repainted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAddress Newsletter<\/p>\n

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