Pantone’s Pick is Sky High with “Cloud Dancer”
Tapping an ethereal choice for its annual color of the year, shade aficionado Pantone has selected “Cloud Dancer” to highlight for 2026. Its reasoning is clear: we all need to chill.
A lofty white tone is segregated from all others by an expert in color that has recognized virtually every version of the basics, as well as funky, smooth, bright, and deep tones it offers for the purpose of designers, artists, painters, and anyone devoted to choosing color. Relaxation became front and center for the tranquil choice this year, as the cloud reference invokes serenity of the ages.
“Cloud dancer” makes the most of all color combinations and families, with grays and blacks toning down and light pastels showing off their strength.
Cleverly positioned with a motion term, “cloud dancer” invites an immediate lightness with movement ever so slow. Its flexibility for pairing is limitless; it replaces bright white and eggshell with something a bit more moody.
Pantone offers pastels as a baseline for synching with its annual signature shade, but emphasizes that “cloud dancer” is equally suited to more dramatic and dark hues.
Walls painted with “cloud dancer” bridge the gap between pedestrian and sultry, setting up a starting point for furnishings and accessories that melt right in. Its atmospheric quality becomes a microclimate of its own, bringing to life the neutral, subdued shades that work so well with a vast array of design palettes.
Used in furnishings, “cloud dancer” delivers immediate calm as it accommodates the most accessorized shades. Throw pillows bring out the best in this laid-back hue. Otherwise mundane rug colors stand out, and coordinating accent pieces claim an independent color value.
“Cloud dancer” may not reflect the most edgy of Pantone’s annual selections, but it stakes its claim as a contender for embellishing fabric, furnishings, paint, and everything that goes into fashioning a living space. We love the concept behind weaving calm energy into a setting devoted to easy, peaceful existence. We see “cloud dancer” showing up in window treatments, light fixtures, and accent décor, doing its part to elevate every aspect of an environment.
Pantone has yet to let us down, and their marquee shade for 2026 is no exception.
Photo by Tsuyoshi Kozu on Unsplash