How is it that all the fashion designers all seem to know what colors are going to be in during any given season?
Do they all get together somewhere in a secret fashion meeting and say, “This year, we shall use cream and no other color”? If that were the way it worked, then those who design jewelry, fashion accessories like scarves and shoes or purses would never be in style.
Fashion in the Movies
As quoted in The Devil Wears Prada, maybe it is a result of hard work of those who work in the industry to ensure that the rest of us are semi-fashionable.
Miranda Priestly: [Miranda and some assistants are deciding between two similar belts for an outfit. Andy sniggers because she thinks they look exactly the same] Something funny?
Andy Sachs: No. No, no. Nothing's... You know, it's just that both those belts look exactly the same to me. You know, I'm still learning about all this stuff and, uh...
Miranda Priestly: 'This... stuff'? Oh. Okay. I see. You think this has nothing to do with you. You go to your closet and you select... I don't know... that lumpy blue sweater, for instance because you're trying to tell the world that you take yourself too seriously to care about what you put on your back. But what you don't know is that that sweater is not just blue, it's not turquoise. It's not lapis. It's actually cerulean. And you're also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. And then I think it was Yves Saint Laurent... wasn't it who showed cerulean military jackets? I think we need a jacket here. And then cerulean quickly showed up in the collections of eight different designers. And then it, uh, filtered down through the department stores and then trickled on down into some tragic Casual Corner where you, no doubt, fished it out of some clearance bin. However, that blue represents millions of dollars and countless jobs and it's sort of comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you're wearing the sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room from a pile of stuff.
Believe It or Not
Believe it or not, there is a secret meeting of the color wizards in the world. Twice a year, a clandestine gathering takes place in some isolated, undisclosed European capital. This secret group consists of representatives from various nations’ color standards groups. These select few are responsible for creating the palette for the upcoming season. The colors are said to represent the spirit of the time or age of the current society. It is quoted that Honeysuckle was chosen in 2012 because the people needed their spirits uplifted, and honeysuckle is an uplifting color.
While all of these lofty thoughts are intriguing, how do the simple folks who create adornments and accessories gain the information necessary to add to the zeitgeist of the current trends?
Pantone Color System
Enter, the wonderful world of Pantone. Since they are the company that sponsors these covert meetings, they are the company that makes the declaration of the Color of the Year. They also produce a beautifully, rich book of colors that is the mainstay of all graphic designers, fashion experts and interior designers. These books are heavily expensive, and they require regular updates to stay current, but they are a beautiful way to work with color.
The Pantone Color Matching system standardized the color system for printing. This made the printing of colors true when using CMYK, which is typical in print media. This is the use of four colors, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. The proper mixing of these three primaries give all the colors we see in print. The use of black is necessary in order to get a true color, since these three colors will not give a true black. When someone gives a printer a design, they could be asked to submit it in CMYK format rather than the more typical RGB format. If you are interested in more information on printing and graphic design, there is a wealth of information by googling graphic design and printing. Pantone now offers the RGB formula for some of their colors.
Pantone has insisted that they held the copyright to their list of color codes and pigment values. This is not possible because the copyright laws do not cover this type of information, and their lists are not copyrighted. They do have the copyright to their books and other print material, but color lists can be distributed without a problem.
Falling Colors
Here are the colors that are in the fall lineup of fashion. The 2013 Color of the Year is Emerald.
One thing you might notice is that the fall colors are the muted counterparts to the spring color lineup.
While the 2014 Spring colors have not been announced yet, you can be sure that they will follow the mood of the global market.
The colors are announced early in the season, which gives designers a lot of time to work on their latest creations as long as they hustle. As a designer of jewelry or other fashion accessories, you can stay on top of the upcoming mood by watching the fashion layouts in Vogue or any other true fashion magazine. Just remember, once it is published, the industry has moved on to the next thing, but you will get mileage out of those who read the magazines and go looking for those designs.
These JCUIN members are already on top of the fall color theme with their creations. They will surely find a fashionable place in someone’s wardrobe with these winning designs.
ShanghaiTai
7 mm Black Pearl Stud Earrings Sterling Silver Posts Handmade
adora_by_simona
Cubic Zirconia, Freshwater Pearl and 14K Gold-Filled Earrings
bluemorningexpressions
Purple Spot Lampwork Bead Bracelet Yellow Swarovski Crystals Handmade
bohowirewrapped
My Heart Belongs To Garnet Artisan Earrings Sterling Silver
CatherinesJewelry
Wrap Bracelet: Chunky Style with Fuchsia and Berry Colors
craftsofthepast
Ancient Jade Hand Carved Ritual Axe Pendant Religious Symbol Necklace
dianesdangles
Freshwater Pearl White Beige Mother of Pearl Extra Long Necklace
JewelryArtByDawn
Red Coral and Gunmetal Earrings with Gunmetal Accents
M2bC
Orange Cinnamon Gradient Fused Glass Pendant Necklace Curved Jewelry
PinkSunsetJewelryDesigns
Gemstone Single Stack Bracelet Green and Silver Stretch
lunarskies
Charoite and Sterling Silver Dangle Earrings echtd2149
PrettyGonzo
Rustic Czech Glass Spiral Shell Earrings, Faceted Carnelian, Copper
ShadowDogDesigns
Green Mountain Dichroic Pendant Necklace Handmade Jade Pearls Jewelry
Wyverndesigns
Temari Ball Ornament In Shades of Green Gold And Silver Home Decor
zoomgraphik
Rectangle blue lapis bracelet semiprecious stone with pewter beads
As we move into the fall season, smart designers have already begun their plans for the 2014 Spring Season as they wait for the color announcements.
Enjoy
Julie and Blu
Fascinating post, Juie, as always. I get tickled thinking about a group of mysterious people sitting around making pronouncements on what colors are "in" for the season (: Sounds very cloak and dagger! Love your collection of spot-on stylish jewelry! Thank you for including a necklace of mine. Will definitely share the post. Thanks, again.
ReplyDeleteFantastic blog. I studied art back in the previous century ;), and I ran a graphics biz for a while, so Pantone and the color wheel is really a staple of my working universe. It is good to read the fun part of explaining to your readers the impact of fashionistas on what we might sell in the coming months.
ReplyDeleteI am a lapis fanatic, so that last item really, really tempts me!!!
Anna
You are right about the fall colors being the muted counterparts to the spring color lineup. How do they come up with these fancy color names...
ReplyDeleteThank you for including my Mother of Pearl Long Necklace, the Pantone color for my necklace would be Linen. Off to share.
I picked up the green for Linden, Diane :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I've been thinking about the Pantone color system recently and which colors would be declared as 'in' for this next season. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting blog. I too, wonder who gets to name these colors, Often wonder about paint colors too!
ReplyDeleteThank you for including my bracelet - I loved the movie clip above too.
ReplyDelete:D
Thank you for sharing. Beautiful finds.
ReplyDeleteReally interesting to read how a season's colors are selected. I always wondered about that too. Wouldn't it be fun to have a job making up the names for colors?
ReplyDeleteI am very happy to see that my red coral and gunmetal earrings are in this Fall's color palette. It's an honor to have them included with your gorgeous featured items - thank you so much!
This is a fabulous post! So informative - and so much fun! Very honored to have my earrings included here. Thanks so much, Julie and beautiful Blu! Will be a-tweeting! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Ultimately it's always about color. Thank you for including my Charoite earrings.
ReplyDeleteWOW Great post!!!!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting! You will have to keep us updated as to the Pantone colors for next year! The names of the colors are also evocative and help create a mood. Linden is much more romantic than greyish green, and Acai is more exotic sounding than grape purple! :)
ReplyDeleteYou've chosen some gorgeous pieces to highlight the fall colors.
What a great post! I knew of Pantone colors as ink matching colors since I used to work in the printing industry. More recently I learned about their application in the fashion industry through the seasonal colors, but never really understood how that came about, or whether anyone actually paid attention to it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for including my pearl studs. Glad to know I'm "on top of the fall color theme"! I do love those fall colors!
Interesting...
ReplyDeleteMy Fall colors...whatever I wear in the Fall!!! LOL
I am afraid I don't have any lichen green sweats! Whatever will I do!?! LOL
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