pantone colors of the year 2016

Hello all! And a happy new year. 2016, eh – it’s kind of crept up on me this one! And unfortunately, it’s brought with it (for me) a nasty cold, so I’m typing this feeling rather under the weather today. Forgive me if this post is on the short side! 

This month, I’ve decided to feature the new Pantone’s Colours of the year. Yes, you read that right – colourS! They’ve decided to go for two shades this year, kind of merging them together in an ombre effect, instead of the usual one, strong hue. Meet Rose Quartz and Serenity. 

Let me be the first to say that I am NOT overly convinced by this combination. I do like occasional pastels, but baby blue and baby pink….together?! Not doing it for me yet. And I know I’m not alone from the comments online. 

HOWEVER, what I love about exploring colours is the unexpected things that you find, and how colours you thought you hated can really set you alight when you see them in an alternative palette/context. So this month is going to be about exploring these colours – together and separately – and seeing how bead artists can convince us that these are THE colours for 2016!

I’ve got to say, seeing this little scene from Little Big Bell, the official announcer (I believe!) of the new colours of the year, has got me thinking just a little. I have a feeling that the key to these colours not being too wishy washy may well be the addition of black….watch this space. But I’m also interested to see that both in the above scene, AND in last month’s challenge piece…

…there are pops of yellow that really add a touch of something solid and definite to the delicate pastel tones. As always with colour, it’s going to be HOW you use these colours that really makes or breaks them. 

So what do you all think? I’m interested to hear your thoughts. I’ll start sharing beads I’ve found in these colours from next week – if you spot any, please leave links below! 

And now for the BeadBlogger Links. Have a great week everyone!

Atmos Flare 3D Pen Review
Are you intrigued by tools for 3D drawing? Sarah got to try out a fun 3D pen, though she found it to have a steep learning curve.

Scarfutopia
Here’s a quick video review of this free knitting pattern.

Altered Binder to Store & Enjoy Your Mail Art Collection 
Tall binder rings of an old Franklin Planner binder accommodate a lot of bulky pages while leaving them easy to flip.

Snap out of it, Jean! There’s Beading to Be Done!
There’s nothing like a brand new beautiful calendar to encourage you to express your creative hopes and dreams for the new year. Jean has hers for 2016–you can get one, too! She will show you where!

Rebecca is a Scottish jewellery designer; currently living in the capital city of Edinburgh. You can read more about her and her work at her blog, songbeads.blogspot.com and see more of her jewellery at songbead.etsy.com. She also has a supplies shop at thecuriousbeadshop.etsy.com.