FASHION: Colour to put a spring in your step

HAVE you ever stopped to wonder who exactly decides the fashion colours for each season? Or why the same colours dominate in the High Street and boutiques? It’s certainly not random. In fact, experts at the Pantone Colour Institute scour every corner of the world searching for new influences to define upcoming trends – and the fashion industry listens.

The experts look at such ‘influences’ as travel destinations, design technology, socio economic conditions and even the entertainment industry. It’s a mammoth task really, and I wonder with the growing emergence of AI will it all suddenly change? Who knows, maybe in a few years we will just press a button and all that information will be available without input from Pantone, or any other source.

Apparently, up to 60 percent of the fashion brands we know will be using AI before the end of 2024 to avoid errors in buying for coming seasons. Remember Colour Me Beautiful? Well, you can now buy an AI online tool that will accurately identify your most complimentary colours. Zara and H&M have already started using the tool for forecasting upcoming trends.

But for now, Pantone’s colour predictions still rule, and their colour of the year for 2024 is ‘Peach Fuzz’. It’s a warm, elegant colour that’s believed to encourage warm, nurturing feelings, and its Pantone endorsement means it will be seen in everything from coats to dresses, shoes to accessories.

But there are plenty more on-trend colours to choose from this spring.

Pastels

PASTELS are at the forefront of the colour stable this coming season. Delicate pinks, soft blues, soft greens and very light yellows will dominate designs. Pink was such a popular colour last year, but now it’s leaning more towards red. This will be massively evident in coats. 

Green will still play a huge part in the upcoming collections. While the greens of last year were all bright, this coming year will bring in a lot of light greens and gentle colours like moss and sage.

Sky blue? This is the most feminine shade, so much softer than royal blue. It was on catwalks everywhere, especially in accessories, like bags and jewellery.

Lilac is a a bit of a marmite colour, you either love or hate it. It’s a shade that’s favoured by mother of bride or groom. My very first evening dress was lilac crepe, with a guipure lace bodice. I adored it.

Violet and purples will also be evident this year, especially in knitwear. If you prefer something deeper opt for aubergine.

Statements

SNOW white will be one of the most popular statement colours this summer; not the easiest colour to wear, but fabulous on anyone who suits it. I look like a nurse in white, so tend to wear it in trousers rather than tops or jackets. Look out for lots of trouser suits.

Look out too for vibrant and zingy oranges and yellows. They’re classic spring colours. Think daffodils, tulips and that sheer explosion of colour we expect when spring arrives.

The fashion industry has been obsessed with red in recent years, and nothing has changed in 2024. Expect to see lots of it, with cherry red being a big favourite for 2024.

Neutrals

NEUTRALS provide the basis of our wardrobe. Colours like beige, cream and taupe are the epitome of elegance and style, and look wonderfully sophisticated when teamed with complimentary shades.

Grey  is a great neutral, and with so many different shades to choose from you can match it up easily. I particularly love dove grey and silver grey.

Speaking of which, silver is well and truly back! While it faded into the background a bit in recent years, replaced by rose gold and bronze, it will shine again this year. I won’t be going down the silver trousers route, but I just might invest in some shoes or even a bag.

The possibilities are endless. Happy shopping!