Top Colour Trends for Designers & Makers for Spring / Summer 2018
As a designer and maker it’s always good to keep an eye on trends, even if you don’t intend to follow them in the work you produce. Sometimes a trend can spark an idea for a new collection or inspire you to create a new version of an existing design in a different colourway or material. As well as being a great starting point for your creativity, trends can also help you reach new customers looking for a handmade version of something they’ve seen in a magazine or on Instagram, plus having a piece that encapsulates a current or emerging trend gives you a great chance of being featured by press, influencers or bloggers looking for content and products to share.
In this post we’re going to look at the colour trends for Spring/Summer 2018, and share some examples of makers who are incorporating those trends in their work.
Featured image: Ice Cream Pastel Print by Jenny Robson
Colour Trends for Spring / Summer 2018
Featured above: Rope Yarn in various shades from Craft Sisters, Colour Dot Ear Studs in Mint by Clare Lloyd Jewellery, Oxalis Block-Printed Cushion by Hannah Madden, Make-up Bag in Exclusive Ice-Cream Fabric by Punto Belle, Lemon Sorbet Flower Earrings by Sharon Schofield
It might be hard to believe given all the snow we’ve seen so far this March, but this season’s colour palette revolves around eating ice-cream and celebrating joyous moments. Two things that pretty much go hand-in-hand. After a winter hiding from the Beast from the East, now is the time to feel good and eat gelato. Hurray!
Don’t fret if you’re not keen on dairy, hues of sorbet will do the trick too. Trend bible Vogue tells tales of head-to-toe parma violet on the Spring/Summer catwalk at Victoria Beckham, lemon sorbet at Hermès and extra scoops of pistachio at Sies Marjan.
The trick to making this palette decidedly 2018, rather than a rehash of Springs past, is to really layer it on. Play with depth of colour and pile the saturations one over the other. Fringing and ruffles are going to be big too. So think of Spring 2018 as a three-scoop fragola gelato waffle cone with extra sprinkles and you’re there.
Then just add one extra scoop to your 2018 colour palette: Pantone’s Colour of the Year Ultra Violet. This is a pretty vibrant blue-based purple that can verge on overpowering… but bring it down a notch or two and it will tie in nicely with your sorbet shades.
Makers working in shades of sorbet
Natural Pastels at Beach Shack Project
Hannah Elspeth Marshall from the Beach Shack Project makes jewellery using sea glass or pottery that she finds washed up on the beach. The pieces she gathers have been polished by the waves against the sand, dulling the original colours and giving her jewellery a natural pastel palette that conjures up images of tentatively licking ice-cream on wind-swept shores.
Sorbet Blossoms at Sharon Schofield
Sharon Schofield is a jeweller who works with porcelain, producing delicate studs, drop earrings and rings in delectable hues. All her pieces are handmade, glazed and kiln-fired, often finished with gold gilding wax to add a little sparkle. Her jewellery is the very essence of Spring. “Springtime is a great source of inspiration for me. That first sight of a pretty blossom on a tree is so uplifting,” she explains.
More Gelato shades on Folksy…
Featured above: Meadow Art Print by Ruth Thorp, Ultra Violet Necklace by Stellen, Lemon Brooch by Colourful Cactus Flowers, Mint Earrings by MyBearHands, Hand-Bound Leather Sketch Book in Pistachio and Lemon by Bound, Parma Violet Bath Bomb by The Stuff I Love, Super Chunky Dreadlock Yarn in Lemon by Nellie and Eve, Rhododendron Lino Cut Print by Cally Conway, Lemon Juice Yarn by Abstract Cat Crafts
Read our monthly trend update in Crafts Beautiful Magazine – Britain’s best-selling craft magazine.
