Brighter days ahead

After a couple of bumpy years wrought with uncertainty, the world is slowly opening up again – and with that comes the triumphant return of fashion weeks, major design tradeshows, conferences and plenty of exciting new product launches. With so many of these events having been cancelled in recent years, colour and trend forecasting has been tricky.

Though it's become far easier to see what hues are coming down the pipeline, there's a different problem facing designers, specifiers and builders now – we're not able to rely on materials and furnishings ordered from overseas arriving on schedule. Step into any major retailer or supplier where you might have sourced readily-available products before, and you shouldn't be surprised to see the shelves looking sparser and colour options limited. But when it comes to paint colour choices, you can be certain you still have the full rainbow of colours to choose from.

We're over the moon to herald the much-anticipated release of a brand-spanking new Resene The Range fashion collection that's packed with 175 on-trend colours that have been curated to carry you through to 2024 and beyond. The collection features double the new hues that are normally included in a Resene fashion fandeck, with a whopping 125 new colours to fall in love with – designed in line with short and long range forecasting.

So if you've got a client who is keen to push ahead with a project and wants to be on the cutting edge of colour trends, read on to discover the key hues to use now and what colours to watch for in the months ahead.

Likely to be the hue that best defines the decade, something that's rather interesting and unique from a colour forecasting perspective is just how many variations of green are trending at once. With other colour families, it's easy to point to two or three particular shades that have pulled ahead in popularity; but with green, virtually every tone has a place at the trend table.

While you're pretty much free to pick any green you please and still be safely on trend, the hues currently leading the pack primarily fall into three main categories: mid-range nettle and olive greens like Resene Seaweed and Resene Off The Grid, darker forest greens like Resene Top Notch, Resene Rolling Hills and Resene Welcome and paler celery and sage greens like Resene Springtime, Resene Transcend and Resene Wabi Sabi. Vivid chartreuse and peridot yellow-greens like Resene Wellywood and Resene Staycation are also getting a foothold as major statement hues, and classic Kelly greens like Resene Aloe Vera aren't far behind on the trend horizon.

As for using them, try a mix of the olive and sage greens together as part of a tonal scheme and take them across every surface of the space. Or balance picks like Resene Transcend and Resene Seaweed with accents in brick reds and petal pinks such as Resene Scoria, Resene Savour and Resene Soul Searcher for a more contemporary look. But for truly fashion-forward clients, look to a combo of Resene Staycation with a periwinkle like Resene Heliotrope as your statement hues supported with warmed whites like Resene Rice Cake and toasted biscuit tones like Resene Tua Tua.

Pastels persist

Visit just about any major retailer right now and you'll probably find their latest releases in a dreamy pastel palette of Resene White Noise, Resene Contented, Resene Infused, Resene Morning Haze, Resene New Day and Resene Dream Big. Despite the overwhelming popularity of pastels we've been seeing over the past two years, these cooler, crystalline variations feel somewhat refreshing by contrast. As we look to break free from the fatigue and stagnation of the pandemic, these updated versions of colours that started as being representations of the past have become the embodiment of futurism. Combine them together and you'll be sure to win over a client who wants to tap into an ethereal, otherworldly vibe for their space.

But for projects where you need to keep the look grounded, today's popular pastels best serve as an accent hue – especially as a way of balancing and offsetting some of the bolder and more dramatic trending colours you're about to learn about. For instance, try a pale mint like Resene Springtime with a rich romantic red like Resene Pohutukawa and a steeped white like Resene Quarter Tea. Or opt for a buttery yellow like Resene Moondance as a counterpoint to an intense teal like Resene Time Traveller.

Citrus hues squeeze through

During periods of social discomfort and economic downturn – especially when people begin getting antsy for things to start looking up again – it's normal for colour trends to take sharper shifts. Instead of seeing the logical progression of a popular hue warming up, cooling down or taking on a new undertone, more drastic changes happen quickly and surprising new hues emerge out of the ether.

For instance, we're about to see quite a few citrus-inspired hues as ripe lemon yellows like Resene Light Fantastic and Resene I Dare You and zesty oranges like Resene Liquid Gold and Resene Kombucha have become showstoppers on the runway and are soon to trickle into interior décor. While softer yellows and dusty bitter oranges have made brief appearances as trending colours for a season here and there, it has been a good three to five years since bold yellows and oranges have received as much attention as they're seeing now. So if you have trend-focused clients that want to be ahead of the curve, look to start incorporating a spritz of these colours now. Though it can be a challenge to work large swathes into an interior effectively, they make tremendously effective feature colours for exterior doors and highlighting unique architectural details.

Statement hues stealing the show

Citrus tones aren't the only bold hues we're in for this year. Vibrant Klein blues, rich ultramarines and lighter ceruleans such as Resene Wet N Wild, Resene Aviator, Resene Skylight and Resene Idyllic are also top picks – and these colours already have a foothold in the fashion and décor markets. As these hues demand attention, it's best to support them with more recessive pairings that leave them space to shine such as soft blacks, duck egg blues, silver greys and lavish reds like Resene Black Sand, Resene Duck Egg Blue, Resene Aoraki and Resene Incarnadine with a touch of red hot Resene Rudolph.

Hot, lipstick pinks like Resene Temptation have also emerged on the runway, so we're likely to see hints of this hue slowly making its way into furniture and décor later in the year. For a brave client, this colour would make a chic combination with stylish scarlets like Resene Amped and a midnight blue like Resene Indian Ink. Or keep it classic by teaming it with Resene Times Square and Resene Black White as part of a high contrast look.

Red heats up

Although red hasn't had a prominent place in our colour trend forecasts for nearly five years – with brick reds and terracotta being the notable exceptions – there is plenty of indication that both vibrant show-stopping reds like Resene Roadster and deep purple-tinged reds like Resene Pandemonium will be returning to décor over the next six to twelve months. For now, Resene Pioneer Red, Resene Savour and Resene Soiree remain the ideal picks that will win big with clients who have already fallen in love with the brick red and terracotta trend. Try layering them together with greens or pinks like Resene Wabi Sabi or Resene Inspire or get a fresh look by using them as an accent to soft sky blues like Resene Comfortably Numb.

Salted caramel drizzles in

Rich and gooey Resene Salted Caramel is the key one to watch and is likely to be a popular accent hue among clients that want to stick to a fairly neutral palette as well as those who want to embrace the arrival of the new bright bolds. We love it with brick reds, espresso brown and slipper pinks like Resene Savour, Resene Scoria, Resene Rebel, Resene Soul Searcher and Resene Contented, but Resene Salted Caramel is also an excellent complement to nettle and sage greens or golden yellows like Resene Seaweed and Resene Field Day or Resene Daylight.

Dusted blues are renewed

When discussing colour trends, you can't deny the perennial popularity of certain hues. Whether dusted, coastal and duck egg blues are recognisably present in the forecast doesn't mean that they're not relevant as these classic colours are always going to be client-pleasing choices. However, blues like Resene Duck Egg Blue, Resene Baring Head, Resene Watermark and Resene Carpe Noctem have also found their place among trending fashion hues – and they have brought a few glassier versions like Resene New Day, Resene Morning Haze and Resene Infused along with them.

So whether your blue-loving clients prefer their hues to be cool and greyed, warmer with hints of green and yellow in their undertones or bold and daring, the expanse of on-trend options signals that it's very possible that we'll see blues take over as the dominant trending colour family once greens have finally had their day.

For the latest on evolving colour trends and to get alerted to new trends as they emerge, follow the monthly updates at www.blackwhitemag.com.

Keep an eye out on BlackWhite e-newsletters for the release date. If you're not currently receiving BlackWhite e-newsletters, sign up free.

BlackWhite magazine

This is a magazine created for the industry, by the industry and with the industry – and a publication like this is only possible because of New Zealand and Australia's remarkably talented and loyal Resene specifiers and users.

If you have a project finished in Resene paints, wood stains or coatings, whether it is strikingly colourful, beautifully tonal, a haven of natural stained and clear finishes, wonderfully unique or anything in between, we'd love to see it and have the opportunity to showcase it. Submit your projects online or email editor@blackwhitemag.com. You're welcome to share as many projects as you would like, whenever it suits. We look forward to seeing what you've been busy creating.

Earn CPD reading this magazine – If you're a specifier, earn ADNZ or NZRAB CPD points by reading BlackWhite magazine. Once you've read an issue request your CPD points via the CPD portal for ADNZ (for NZ architectural designers) or NZRAB (for NZ architects).