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Color/Design trends
I was wondering if anyone uses color/trend forecasting companies to aid when designing. If so, what company(s) would you recommend
Color forecasting
Although I generally do not use them in my designs- I find them very interesting and informative. Benjamin Moore usually offers a few seminars during market (I used to live in San Francisco so this was the design center/ market I used to attend and they offered several). I'm sure Benjamin Moore's website can tell you more about the designer services they offer.
color trends
check out Pantone Color Trends, Color Marketing Group, use the paint companies as well. They have free cards that are easily picked up in the near by stores. Sherwin Williams even has a color idea photo for your iphone called Color Snap. Benjamin Moore has wonderful color cards showing groups and ideas.
more a forecasting question, I think
Thanks, I have the paint store color trends but I was wondering if the Pantone or Color Marketing Group ideas were broader and worth the money to spend on them. My take on the paint company ones was that they were paint colors chosen to complement the trends with a few trends thrown in. The paint trends also come out around the season and if you were looking further down the timeline, I wondered who else to look at.
Re: more a forecasting question, I think
The ones who have it figured out are reluctant to tell anyone. There are companies out there but they are expensive and not worth it. An early mentor of mine told me to watch the runways in Paris and Milan. It takes about a year, but the hot colors (and to some extent even the style trends) in couture clothing will be the ones everyone wants to see in their homes after they finish wearing them. It was described to me as a "train" - What is hot in Haute Couture is the engine and the predominant colors in the catalogues you get in the mail (Pottery Barn, Ballard Designs, Williams Sonoma, etc) is the caboose. Higher end clients tend to pick and want colors/styles closer to the engine (the ones just off the runway) and the mass market wants the caboose colors (arriving in their home everyday).
If you haven't seen it, rent "The Devil Wears Prada". There is a scene early in the movie in Miranda Priestly's office with Miranda and her staff debating belt colors. Andie, her new frumpy assistant, chuckles because the belt colors the others are debating all look the same to her. Miranda turns around and delivers a sharp monologue describing exactly what I am talking about. It is brilliant, and I couldn't believe when I first saw that scene how well Miranda's "lecture" to Andie summed up what I had been taught.
The other thing to keep in mind is that color in decor is psychological. In the make-up department, red lipstick sells best when the general public mood is depressed. Red lipstick sells well in down economic times because it makes women feel brighter - like a mask. Cosmetic companies are doing well right now and always do when people aren't making as much money. This same psychology extends to design and it can alter the direction the trends take from the runway if something in the world causes sudden financial turmoil.
Hope that helps!
Re: Re: more a forecasting question, I think
Thanks, I was originally in fashion and we were told the same thing... that decor follows the runway but I remember it being a lot longer than a year but that was 25 years ago!!!
So it seems that Pantone and Color Marketing group are still at the top of the food chain for colors. At least that's still the same.
