NEW YORK December 9, 2018

Next year is looking a bit brighter now that Pantone has announced the color of the year: Living Coral, a gorgeous “animating and life-affirming shade of orange with a golden undertone.” 
Replacing 2018’s color of the year, Ultra Violet, Living Coral was chosen because it perfectly exemplifies the mix of natural surrounding and modern life. “Living Coral symbolizes our innate need for optimism and joyful, lighthearted pursuits,” Pantone says in a press release. “Inspiring playful expression and experimentation in mens and womenswear, Living Coral evokes comfort and positivity in simpler color stories, and effervescence in patterned, textural and monochrome looks. As an accent shade, Living Coral offers striking contrasts across the color spectrum.”

TEXTILES IN LIVING CORAL; IMAGE: PANTONE

The Pantone Color Institute, which has been declaring colors of the year for 20 years, doesn’t pick colors at random. Rather, colors go through a serious selection process by color experts that use statistics, observations and trends to choose a color that will influence fashion, architecture, interior design, packaging and graphic design for the coming year.

COSMETICS IN LIVING COLOR; IMAGE: PANTONE

There’s no need to wait to start incorporating Living Coral into your look. Today, Butter London has launched a limited-edition 6-piece makeup collection featuring Living Coral nail lacquers, lip gloss and a blush stick. Prices start at $12 at Butter London.

Butter London Pantone Collection in Living Color; Image: Pantone

Though the name, Living Coral, seems somewhat ironic in a time when the coral reefs are in peril, we could all use a little optimism for 2019