Top 10 Color trend report for 2016-17

Six key palettes are identified. Terrain, saturated earth colors makes the most influential mark, notably due to the comeback of brown tones. Frontier neutrals are notably darker than before. Impulse offers a vibrant palette of brights. Mystery offers jewel tones, with burgundy and cyan at the forefront. Nostalgia mid-tones are decidedly more vibrant. Finally, Cleanse acts as a palette cleanser with soft, barely-there pastels.


TERRAIN - EARTH TONES PALETTE

As the name implies, TERRAIN yields a complete palette of saturated earth tones. This season, brown makes a major comeback which is reflected not only with roast, but also in hues like prune and warmer tones like cognac and coppertone. Both camel and toffee are key to the Terrain palette, positioned as influential outerwear colors. Marigold yellow and red rust add a spice component. Greens are also leveraged, from an olive base to light pea.

OLIVE

Olive shifts into a darker shade this season with grey undertones. Olive combinations are best suited next to marigold as an accent or flax as a neutral.

COPPERTONE

Coppertone offers the richest shade of brown, evolving from lighter copper in recent seasons. A favorite combination fuses coppertone with plum and dark chocolate.

RUST

Rust moves away from orange influence and becomes a much more red cast color. Tonal pairings incorporate rust with red orange or cognac.


FRONTIER - NEUTRALS PALETTE


FRONTIER draws in a new group of neutrals which is notably darker than in recent seasons. Blue plays an integral role in the palette, ranging from a mid steel blue to teal-inspired diver and navy as a base color. Brown is also increasingly important with dark chocolate and a hearty flax color. Wheat is offered as the khaki of the season, while rich plum enters. Grey hues include dark charcoal and a mid-tone of slate, while petrol becomes a new sludge-inspired hue.


DIVER 

Diver evolves from dark teal into deeper blue tonalities. Color combinations offer newness ranging from forest to baby blue or violet orchid.


DARK CHOCOLATE

Flax evolves from a lighter shade of hazy taupe into an earthy brown color. Hearty combinations also keep the outdoors in mind with camel, pea and roast.


IMPLUSE - BRIGHTS PALETTE
IMPULSE identifies this season’s bright color palette. Red continues to play the most important role with a vibrant shade of scarlet red, while other warm brights include sunshine yellow and red orange. On the cooler side, Klein blue remains relevant after several seasons, while a similar intensity is channeled with midnight purple. Magenta pink rounds out the offering.


SCARLET FEVER

Red remains a highly influential fashion color, complete with deep saturated scarlet fever. New parings incorporate neutrals like biscuit or soft ceramic blue.


MYSTERY - JEWEL TONES PALETTE


MYSTERY sets the tone for this season’s jewel tones, which become much more rich and enchanting. The reds remain the most powerful message, lead by burgundy, and also extending to a deep cast of crimson. Cyan becomes increasingly popular set to teal tones, while forest adds in a necessary dose of green. Indigo is presented as a jewel alternative to navy. Purple is represented with eggplant and a darker cast of Byzantium. Metallic bronze balances out the palette.


BURGUNDY

Burgundy remains the most important color in the jewel tone palette. Color combinations with magenta, tangerine or salmon add newness.


NOSTALGIA - MIDTONES PALETTE
NOSTALGIA opens the door to one of the most lively mid-tone palettes in recent seasons. Blues play a key role, starting with a vibrant azure hue and extending to light periwinkle and baby blue. Warm colors are represented by tangerine orange and citrine yellow. Shamrock green grows in importance. Purples like light lilac and violet orchid are included, while salmon adds an unexpected element to the palette.


BABY BLUE

Soft sky and blue evolve into a brighter baby blue color. The combination of baby blue with camel 
stands out.


CLEANSE - PASTEL PALETTE
CLEANSE acts as a palette cleanser, offering this season’s pastel shades. The faint palette incorporates color in a delicate way, including ceramic pink, lavender grey and biscuit. Beige tones also play an essential role, with rose taupe and foundation. Ivory presents a season appropriate off-white option, while dust grey rounds out the palette.


DUST

The focus with this report is to demonstrate the most influential color families and combinations as well as direct you to emerging hues.