That Time Pantone Totally Snubbed Me (Don’t Tell Me It’s Not Personal)

No doubt you saw our amazing cork chandelier project last week and assumed that our relationship with Pantone is rock solid — after all, we did partner with them and call them our friends a bunch of times.

But the truth is, I’m actually pretty angry at them right now. And I know it isn’t right, but I want to use my tremendous fame for a brief public rant that will no doubt capture the attention of Pantone. (Pantone, if this has captured your attention: please don’t sue us.)

It all started back in December 2014, when Pantone announced “Marsala” as their color of the year for 2015. Much uproar ensued across the internet due in large part — and I’m just guessing here — to how unpleasant a color is it. But my biggest beef was that just a few months before I had painstakingly gone through the work of painting my living room light gray, only to discover after the fact that it was the color of the year I’d been painting right over.

From stylish and fashionable:

To stale and off-trend:

As you know, I live to be on the cutting edge of the design world, so this was very upsetting to me. So this year I waited patiently, preserving a wide array of hideous colors on my walls for Pantone to select from.

I know pastels are coming back for some inexplicable reason, so at first I thought that maybe my lilac kitchen had a chance.

But then when I read the announcement that they had selected not one but TWO colors of the year, my heart soared. Could it be? Could my craft room finally be getting the recognition it deserves?!?

Well Pantone, you really crushed me. I mean honestly, how could I have known that THIS color scheme would be a better candidate for your affections?

Okay so I get that my craft room doesn’t work for the design-lover who wants to paint their fraternal twins’ room in the most gender-stereotypical way possible. But other than that, I fail to see what “Rose Quartz & Serenity” have over “Watermelon Explosion & Exploded Watermelon.”

I mean yes, Rose Quarts and Serenity are showing up in the world of fashion:

But so are my craft room colors:

 

Maybe it’s that Rose Quartz and Serenity lend themselves to a more bombastic description/justification?

As consumers seek mindfulness and well-being as an antidote to modern day stresses, welcoming colors that psychologically fulfill our yearning for reassurance and security are becoming more prominent. Joined together, Rose Quartz and Serenity demonstrate an inherent balance between a warmer embracing rose tone and the cooler tranquil blue, reflecting connection and wellness as well as a soothing sense of order and peace. (Pantone.com)

Well I think this sounds just as good:

As consumers seek mindfulness and well-being as an antidote to modern day stresses, welcoming colors that psychologically fulfill our yearning for reassurance and security are becoming more prominent. Joined together, Rose Quartz Watermelon Explosion and Serenity Exploded Watermelon demonstrate an inherent balance between a warmer embracing rose tone and the cooler tranquil blue vibrant green, reflecting connection and wellness as well as a soothing sense of order and peace.

Yeah, I literally had to change four words in order to make this paragraph work because the words have no meaning to begin with.

And if you’re thinking they needed to pick something that is also in Annie Sloan’s limited line of chalk paint colors lest the DIY world explode:

THAT’S NO EXCUSE EITHER.

I just don’t see a rationale explanation, and I feel snubbed. The good news I guess is that now I can paint my craft room without worrying that I’m spitting in the face of a global color trendsetter, but really there’s no winner here. The colors of the year are still baby blue and baby pink, and you can’t persuade me otherwise.

(Sharing at Tip Me Tuesday and Two Uses Tuesday)