Sunday, August 24, 2008

It's not too late to be trendy in 2008


There is (at least one) company that tracks color trends several years ahead. I want that job!

In December 2007, Color Marketing Group, the leading international association of color design professionals, announced that genuine concern for the environment remains the strongest influence on the colors we’ll see and buy next year.

"Our members specify color for everything from paint and furniture to cars and carpets," said Jaime Stephens, executive director of CMG. "They track trends several years ahead, and they’ve rarely been wrong in more than 43 years."

So - are you all looking "green?" It seems that people want things they wear, and use, to look "green," no matter what color they are.

In 2008, looking stylish means looking natural. Materials will look hand-made, un-dyed and unbleached. Products will look more like what they're actually made of, with lots of texture and all the natural imperfections proudly showing through. Off-whites, sandy and linen-y colors, rock and soil colors, brownish-greens – the colors of nature are seriously fashionable now.

Does that mean all my pink tops are seriously unfashionable?

I've never been one to wear a lot navy blue - blue being the "trust me" color - but this year, while buying your fall attired, think deep, vibrant navy so dark you'll swear it's black.

So ... why not just wear black? Oh well, onwards.

Metallics are in, but they should be coppery, or bronze-y. Guess that DKNY Jeans shirt I just bought at TJMaxx with (disappearing) metallic lettering and the Life is Good rosy pink one were right on target (no pun intended).

I love that DKNY shirt, by the way. It's my new favorite garment. As soon as it comes down off the line, it's going on my body.

Ah, well, we get to colors that are good for the fall - Moroccan reds, glowing oranges accented by rosy pinks (Hey! Pink!), sunny golden yellows and lots of turquoise.

Color Marketing Group forecasts color trends up to three years into the future for its members, many of whom must plan ahead for product, space and materials introductions.

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