Trend Watch: Brights For Fall

Summer's bold, bright colors make their way into fall decor.


It has been impossible to not notice the influx of bright, bold colors this summer. Everywhere you look, shades of neon have burst forth, in fashion, beauty (especially nails) and even in the home. Now that autumn is around the corner, these hot hues have cooled down, but not that much. Expect to see lots of brights, just slightly toned down for the cooler weather.

Victoria Whitbread, director of Whitbread Wilkinson, a company that designs mugs, notebooks and other accessories based on Pantone colors, believes that bright reds and grape-y purples will be popular this fall. "Because our mugs are so small, it's easy to make a strong statement with really bright colors." She also believes that Pantone's 2010 color of the year, turquoise, will continue to stay strong throughout the end of the year and into 2011.

Being surrounded by computers, cell phones and other technology has caused a bit of a backlash -- it's created a craving for things handmade. "There's a movement towards connecting with nature, folk art and craft, and as a result, rich, bright yarn colors are hot and happening," says Patricia Kositzky, a color specialist for Osh Kosh. "All the colors that you'd see in Native American beading, weaving, and Navajo patterns, like tomato reds, turquoise and sunburst yellows will continue into fall." Another source of inspiration for this trend? Farmers' markets. "Rich saturated vegetable colors are appearing," says Kositzky. "What you see at the farmers' market will provide you with an entire palette of color."

What's great about bright colors is that they are extremely versatile and can be used in large or small bursts. "It's really up to the individual when it comes to how much or how little bright color is used," says Erika Woelfel, Director of Color at Behr Paint. "If you want to do a bright hue and go big, the best places to do that would be in the kitchen or bathroom. Accent or feature walls are another terrific way to experiment. It's always a good idea to test, test, test the colors you want to try though." Erika's picks for fall include blue-based purple, a bright red, and a grape/violet purple, which all "feel fun and youthful when used with other bright colors but work as great accents for contemporary rooms where there might be an abundance of light, white furnishing."

Love the look? Check out some of our favorite brightly colored product picks for fall:

Scan Persimmon Lounge Chair, $499, CB2
Rose Pillow in Aubergine, $50, Z Gallerie
Apple Jar by Huroshi Fujita, $30, MoMA Design Store
Room Essentials Double Vases, $10 each, Target (no longer available)

Carpenter Lamp, $70, CB2
Pantone Mug in Grape, $12, Whitbread Wilkinson
Tripod Table in Saffron, $200, West Elm
Donna Wilson Leaf Motif Pillow, $115, The Future Perfect

Speaking of great colors for fall... enter our contest to win a gallon of paint (and a personalized color consultation with Martha Stewart's protege Kevin Sharkey!)

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