How colour and design adapt with us over time

12 Jun 2024

We all know that colour trends change, but what does colour mean during different times of the year and how can it influence our lives? Color Marketing Group (CMG) are experts at providing colour forecast information, and with such a passion for colour they know just how it influences our homes, workspace and environment. 

We’re bringing you the latest CMG colour alerts each month, along with ideas how you can use these hues in your home. To start, we head back to the new year and take a look at what colours defined the end of one year and the beginning of another.  

December 2023:  

End the year with Inspiración, a pure blue symbolising light diffusion through healing and the life-sustaining flow of water. Emerging from Latin America Color Marketing meetings for 2023, this medium chroma blue represents regeneration and forward movement. Its nourishing water-like quality makes it ideal for health and wellness, maintaining energy while remaining calming.  

Inspiración enhances home décor, balancing neutral greys and beiges while complementing olive green, mustard yellow, and sun-bleached terra cotta. Versatile for paint and wallcoverings, it’s perfect for welcoming front doors and beyond. 

Here are two ideas using this colour trend in hues of Resene Undercurrent and Resene Watermark that you can try in your home: 

Deeper azure ocean blues paired with caramel and darker timber tones, lend a beachy-theme palette a warmer autumnal feel. These walls are painted in Resene Undercurrent with skirting in ReseneTarawera. The floor is finished in ReseneColorwood Breathe Easy, vase in Resene Half Sandcastle, bird in Resene Pirate Gold and bookend in ReseneBlumine. The book on the floor is painted in Resene Calypso with small pot in Resene Juniper. Mat from nest-direct.com, chair from Danske Møbler, cabinet from Mocka. Project by Moneuan Ryan, image by Bryce Carleton. 

The painted circle motif and slate blue add a unique and personalised touch to this home office space while connecting it to the lighter tones in the adjacent room. The main walls are painted in Resene Watermark with circles in Resene Quarter Albescent White, left wall in Resene Indian Ink, right wall (through doorway) in Resene Duck Egg Blue, floor in Resene Foundation with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium mixed with Resene Otter applied on top, desk in Resene Double Duck Egg Blue, pendant lamp in Resene Kia Kaha, DIY artwork in Resene Double Duck Egg Blue, Resene Exactly and Resene Indian Ink, large vase in Resene Foundation, bowl in Resene Watermark and small vase in Resene Indian Ink. Chair from Cintesi. Project by Kate Alexander, image by Bryce Carleton.  

January 2024:

2024 began with Busco! a fresh light purple symbolising the quest for new beginnings. Named from the Spanish "I search," Busco! combines hope and energy, emerging as the key colour for Latin America. Predicted in 2022 CMG meetings, its balance of red and blue with lightness makes it airy and welcoming, yet boldly assertive.  

This multi-faceted hue pairs well with acid yellow, navy blue, grey, beige and deep green brown. Appearing in home interiors Busco! is a versatile and energising colour for the new year. 

Here are three other ideas using similar colourways, Resene Marionette, Resene Ghost and Resene Watermark, which you can try in your home: 

The gentle purple toned pink works great with pastoral greens. Here the back wall is painted in Resene Tom Thumb, with the shelf, bowl and pot in the playful mauve of Resene Marionette. Project by Amber Armitage, image by Wendy Fenwick. 

Try a night mauve for something closer to a neutral. Thanks to their rich grey-meets-taupe-meets-indigo undertones that shift and change throughout the day and night, these hues are infinitely more interesting than a true neutral. This wall is painted in Resene Ghost, battens in Resene Santas Grey, floor in ReseneColorwood Rock Salt, DIY Cloud artwork painted in Resene Gumboot, Resene Matakana, Resene Zulu, Resene Jimmy Dean, Resene Santas Grey,Resene Ghost, ReseneInThe Mauve and Resene Sea Fog with frame in Resene Sea Fog. Rug and glass from Freedom, Chaise and side table from Nood, throw from H&M Home. Project by Laura Lynn Johnston, image by Melanie Jenkins. 

Vivid lilac shades pair with bright yellow for an unexpectedly delightful colour palette. The main wall is painted in Resene Snow Drift with painted shape and shelf in Resene Hawkes Blue. Flooring in Resene Half Milk Punch with a subtle top layer in Resene Tuft Bush, stool in Resene Alabaster and desk in Resene Eighth Black White. Couch from Bauhaus, chair, vases, cushions, lightshade from Places & Graces. Project by Kate Alexander, image by Bryce Carleton. 

For more advice on choosing colours for your home, visit your local Resene ColorShop or Ask a Colour Expert online today.

Published: 12 Jun 2024