Pantone® Picks Peri

2022’s Color of the Year reflects a colorful year

It can be a tricky color to work with – let alone define – but periwinkle has worked its way into the annals of elite professional design circles. And it’s well deserved, as this striking shade mixing various versions of purply-blue serves as a provocative tone perfect for accenting.

The results are in: Pantone® Color Institute, the iconic guru of All Things Color, has chosen “Very Peri” as its signature Color of the Year for 2022. This should move interior and exterior designers into inspired action, creating style palettes with the blue/pink/purple composite at their core.

Pantone® is the go-to color entity, a source of shade standards for more than 10 million designers and producers worldwide.
​
Referring to “Very Peri” as a “symbol of the global zeitgeist of the moment and the transition we are going through,” Pantone® chose to make a topical statement. Not a bad idea for a profound point in history, and perhaps an intriguing way to reflect on interesting times by coloring our world with mood and vigor.

Conventional wisdom pins the periwinkle shade to a purple color family, though artful versions introduce subtle blues and even pinks to change it up a bit. It’s a staple in Bohemian-inspired décor, and it shows up frequently in fashion (including the iconic bridesmaid dress). Now periwinkle is officially blessed as a mainstream color to be used liberally, and with pride.

The true periwinkle traditionally features a violet-red undertone, which is not always obvious to the naked eye. As with any color, its appearance shifts depending on surrounding shades. This becomes important when planning interior design, from wall colors to furnishings, accent pieces to linens.

Interested in experimenting with the ingenue shade? Consult the Pantone® website for fabulous ways to work “Very Peri” into a design scheme, making the most of its multi-tone character. Its vibrant mix of shades invokes a spirited mood with plenty of options for assembling a truly pleasing space.
​
Pantone® has chosen some spectacular shades for past colors-of-the-year designations, including “Living Coral,” “Marsala,” “Sand Dollar,” “Tigerlily,” and most recently, the 2021 winner, a first-ever joint color of “Illuminating” and “Ultimate Gray.” Stay tuned for future picks that keep designers on their toes.