Pantone’s Fall 2009 Fashion Color Report Useful for Designers Across All Industries

Color authority Pantone has released its quarterly Fashion Color Report for Fall 2009. While the report is aimed primarily at fashion designers and retailers, one would do well to keep its predictions for what colors will be hot this autumn in mind when choosing colors for any marketing materials, packaging designs, Websites and, of course, custom labels you are designing.

What Will Be Hot

Based on a survey of New York Fashion Week designers, Pantone has created a palette of the 10 most directional colors for Fall 2009 (pictured above). According to the report, subtle contrasts make up the diverse palette for Fall 2009. Like a painter's palette, Fall 2009 offers choice and diversity, but the unexpected integration of colors is what makes it so appealing, the report says. Here are the top 10 most fashionable colors for this autumn:

• PANTONE 19-1759 American Beauty is a true red with connotations of patriotism and cohesiveness.
• PANTONE 18-3520 Purple Heart is a refined and sensuous color that adds creativity and excitement to any design, especially when paired with American Beauty.
• PANTONE 16-1143 Honey Yellow is a golden version of the Pantone 2009 Color of the Year, 14-0848 Mimosa. For contrast, pair it with Purple Heart, its color wheel opposite; or create a more subdued, earthy look by combining it with Burnt Sienna and Iron.
• PANTONE 18-1306 Iron is Pantone’s “new black” for Autumn. Neither black nor brown, it is a true neutral.
• PANTONE 13-1006 Crème Brûlée is a grayed-down beige. Like Iron, it goes with everything and is a true neutral.
• PANTONE 16-1212 Nomad is somewhere between beige and light gray. Like Iron and Brulee, it is another timeless neutral.
• PANTONE 17-1544 Burnt Sienna is a deep, earthy shade of orange that looks great with Nomad and Rapture Rose.
• PANTONE 17-1929 Rapture Rose is a nurturing, feminine tone that captures both the vibrancy of fuchsia and the softness of pink.
• PANTONE 15-0646 Warm Olive is a rich-green yellow. Use it when you need to add a touch of sophistication or make other colors in your design “pop.”
• PANTONE 19-4125 Majolica Blue is a deep teal blue that looks like a black on its own and like a an exotic navy when paired with brighter colors such as Burnt Sienna or Purple Heart.

Implications for Print and Web Designers

These Pantone colors are a useful starting point for adding on-trend fall color to your design projects. When designing for the Web, you will probably want to work directly with RGB colors, and with CMYK or Pantone colors when designing for print applications. The colors pictured in the illustration above are actually RGB representations of the Pantone colors listed in the Fall 2009 Fashion Color Report. Pantone numbers are listed next to the name of each color, followed by corresponding CMYK and RGB color codes. Please note that when converting from one color format to another, there is always a shift in color. The RGB and CMYK colors listed in the illustration are therefore approximations (not true matches) of the corresponding Pantone colors.

It is also worth noting that our digital printing presses here at Lightning Labels handle design files in CMYK mode only. Therefore, it is always best to send us your custom label design files in CMYK mode.

About Pantone

Pantone, Inc. is a subsidiary of X-Rite, Inc. and is best known for creating the Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color space used by designers in a variety of industries.

Related Resources

How to Convert Pantone to CMYK gives simple instructions for converting Pantone to CMYK in Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, and Quark Xpress
Label Design Tips & Art Specs tells you what you need to know before submitting your label design files to Lightning Labels
Color Psychology : What It Is, & How It Can Boost Your Sales is a related Lightning Labels Blog post