Sourced content from: https://www.domino.com/content/pantone-color-of-the-year-2021/
Today, Pantone, the global color authority that standardizes swatches for the design industry, announced its 2021 color of the year—er, make that colors of the year. Ultimate Gray (described as solid and dependable) and Illuminating (a cheerful yellow) are the winning hues that the company says reflect what people are looking for after this roller coaster of a year. “This is a combination that gives us resilience and hope,” says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. “We need to feel encouraged and uplifted; that is essential to the human spirit.”
This is only the second time two colors have been chosen by Pantone, and the very first time an achromatic shade (gray) has been selected. But to be honest, we didn’t expect anything but a radical choice coming out of 2020. Neither of these two options are particularly easy to decorate with (gray has a reputation for being boring, and lemon yellow can read as kitschy if you’re not careful). So we went to designers Colin King, Mat Sanders, Anita Yokota, and Domino’s very own style director, Benjamin Reynaert, and asked them how they would decorate with this year’s picks.
Pick Your Star Piece
To keep gray feeling fresh, don’t overuse it in a room. If you have gray upholstery, don’t put down a gray rug (it can quickly feel dull and flat). Simply use it as a canvas to experiment with marigold, green, blue, and rust hues. —Colin King
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