Crown Paint today unveils the colour trends for 2008. Influenced by social and cultural behaviours
around the world and developed by a panel of experts, including UK Crown colour consultant Judy Smith, Crown reveals
the six dramatic themes that will inspire the way colours are used in the home next year.
For 2008, Crown's colour trends explore the beauty of balance and the curiosity of contrast in our modern way of life.
Our lives consists of opposing, yet parallel choices - from eating organic vegetables one day to microwave ready meals
the next, or pairing a Chloé handbag with a dress from Primark. Within the home, we try to recycle and buy fair trade
sustainable products, but without compromising our desire to live in comfortable, luxurious surroundings.
In the same way that our life decisions are balanced with complimentary opposites, so each colour trend is paired with
a corresponding counterpart:
- Geometric & Informal
- Adornment & Without Nostalgia
- Awareness & Tales Of The Unexpected
So, here's more about each colour trend and how they can be used in the home:
1. GEOMETRIC
In marked contrast to large floral and free flowing designs that are popular at the moment, geometric pattern
creates something that is both complex but easy to understand. Design by repetition - using graphic lines,
contours and rhythmic patterns - can bring clarity to both furniture and textiles, or be used on walls or floors
to add impact and interest.
In the home, a geometric small repeat stencil can be used on a part of a wall - for example, in a stripe from
floor to ceiling or contained within a row of squares. Or take one strong colour like crimson or deep teal and
use in a graphic linear way - something as simple as horizontal lines or a row of crosses - then keep the rest
of the room black and white or white and grey.
3. ADORNMENT
Adornment is about enhancing your home with decoration and richness - not in an ostentatious way but with a
down-to-earth, honest approach. An extra layer of glitz and glamour, just because it pleases us to do so, or a
luxurious sheen of richness and texture can add depth and character to an interior space and make your home a
more enjoyable place to be.
So how does this translate into our homes? Rich and indulgent colours like dark dusky pinks and aubergine add
strength and depth to a flat matt wall. Think textured surfaces, luxurious textiles and sparkle and shine. Areas
of metallic emulsion in gold or silver work perfectly here.
4. WITHOUT NOSTALGIA
In contrast to Adornment's ornamental sensibilities, Without Nostalgia focuses on what is real and instantly
familiar to us - proven colours that, when we see them, we instantly associate them with other objects. Take the
orange of a 1950s Eames chair or Navy blue. These feel more modernist than retro because we understand their
recognisable origins. This trend is about the use of flat matt colour and simplicity of texture and shape to
create a simple, unpretentious home environment.
It's important to keep it simple in the home. Use colour in a clear but understated way and seek those quiet
bright shades that have a timeless quality. These colours will provide a strong backdrop to furniture and
furnishings and enable you to combine vintage finds with a modernist edge.
5. AWARENESS
Awareness of our surroundings, the world around us and our responsibility to be 'green' has created a desire
within us to become more conscious of the origins of objects in our homes. This trend is all about taking a more
responsible, forward-thinking approach to how we source items in order to create a comfortable environment.
Influences from nature are still very strong, with sustainable wood, recycled objects and eco-friendly designs
all becoming increasingly prevalent.
When bringing this trend into the home, work with a colour palette of greens and browns - soft and watery sea
green, the deepest olive, and nut brown. These are tones that harmonize with natural materials, textures and
shapes, so it's a case of simply letting the furnishings and accessories blend with the natural colours that
surround them to give a restful, comforting room.
6. TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED
In contrast to the considered, conscientious Awareness trend, Tales Of The Unexpected is all about having fun with
a room scheme and adding elements of humour and surprise. By incorporating an unexpected object in a room - even
if it conflicts with the overall style - gives a completely different perspective creating an unpredictable, yet
exciting edge to a design. More importantly, it's about using your instincts and mischievous nature to mix up
styles and create interest. Whatever pleases you is the right thing to do!
In the home, this is a more unstructured and quirky use of colour - so go with the flow and do what you fancy and
make a statement. Think about using some uncommon combinations of colours that you would normally steer clear of.
Large stencils or murals, or even freehand painting and drawing will also add a bit of fun to the room while
unusual, almost artificial accent colours such as canary yellow and raspberry red will make the right kind of
impact.
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Judy Smith's Biography
Judy Smith is our Crown Colour Consultant – as one of the UK's leading colour and trend forecasters we love
the way she can spot the up and coming home styling trends.
She's lent her expertise to many of your favourite lifestyle magazines and we rely on her to help us bring you
the very latest colours and finishes for you home.
These striking trends for 2008 show just how passionate Crown is about colour - and with our top interior tips on
how to translate them into colour schemes for your walls, now there's no excuse not to bring the 2008 trends to
life in your home!