Color of the Year! [2022]

Finally! We’ve been waiting anxiously to reveal the full line-up of 2022 Color of the Year selections, but someone decided to be fashionably late to the party *COUGH*PANTONE*COUGH*.

Overland Park, and all of Johnson County, Kansas for that matter, is experiencing a growth boom that has housing developers and builders struggling to keep-up. As a result, we’ve been left with a suburban hell of beige, uninspired homes painted by the lowest bidder for the tightest profit margins.

We’ve talked about how color is one of the two most important factors in design and remodel success. This is the time of year that really gets me excited! Not for the onslaught of questionable holidays, but for the announcement of the 2022 Color of the Year from all the biggest players in the color game!

The 2022 Color of the Year choices can be summarized, mostly, in one word: GREEN.

A lot of green.

A beautiful kitchen with dark cabinets and painted walls

NOTE: The colors on your screen throughout this article will most likely not match the actual colors. I strongly recommend getting a color chip from your local purveyor of premium pigments.

PANTONE

As always, we begin with the company whose name is virtually synonymous with color: PANTONE.

This year’s selection is very clearly a nod to Periwinkle – a color I’ve always found curious and fun to say. This version is a bit more on the purple side, but whimsical, nonetheless.

Very Peri: PANTONE 17-3938

A blueish purple color

As we move into a world of unprecedented change, the selection of PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri brings a novel perspective and vision of the trusted and beloved blue color family, encompassing the qualities of blues, yet at the same time with its violet red undertone, PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri displays a spritely, joyous attitude and dynamic presence that encourages courageous creativity and imaginative expressions.

Latrice Eiseman, Executive Director Of The PANTONE Color Institute

Even though Pantone are pushing this as more of a textile fashion color, Very Peri is well-suited for creative and inspirational spaces: home offices, craft rooms, or a feature wall in a child’s room. A little will go a long way, so I would choose a wall that has complimentary or neutral wall hangings or floating shelves to help enhance the color’s effect without it becoming overpowering.

Best of all, it’s not green!

Learn more about Very Peri here.

Sherwin-Williams

“Evergreen Fog SW 9130 is a versatile and calming hue, a chameleon color of gorgeous green-meets-grey, with just a bit of blue. It’s a simple but sophisticated wash of beautiful, but organic color for spaces that crave subtle yet stunning statement shade.”

Evergreen Fog: SW 9130

Check out Sherwin-Williams page to really understand how the Evergreen Fog will look in a kitchen, a bath, a living room, or in any other space in your home.

I made it no secret how much I loved last year’s S-W selection Urbane Bronze, and this year’s winner makes a wonderful companion color for a space with an earthy, natural, relaxing feel.

It’s actually pretty close to my old body armor shell; cozy and comforting!

We didn’t want it to be too dark or something you’d necessarily relegate to a cabinet or a piece of furniture or an accent wall. We wanted it to be a color you could put on all four walls — and have it look really beautiful.

Director of Color Marketing Sue Wadden

Evergreen Fog should be paired with something equally earthy and elemental for maximum effect. Evergreen Fog combines perfectly with my favorite interior duo Urbane Bronze and Shoji White. Other winning combinations are with Accessible Beige, Uber Umber, Woven Wicker and Bakelite Gold.

Several colors comparison
Graphic courtesy of Sherwin-Williams

Learn more about Evergreen Fog here.

Benjamin Moore

I may be a Sherwin-Williams fanboy, but I really do like Benjamin Moore paints also. I like their mid-tone combinations like 2021’s Aegean Teal and this year’s October Mist. Any sage base comes dangerously close to past overused color trends, but the combination with blue and red (71.76% red, 72.55% green and 65.1% blue) makes a warm, comforting tone.

October Mist: 1495

Check out Sherwin-Williams page to really understand how the Evergreen Fog will look in a kitchen, a bath, a living room, or in any other space in your home.

I love this as an inviting, outdoor feature color as well as a parlor or hearth room color. Great for making an organic, comfortable, inviting color to bring friends and family together.

Learn more about October Mist here.

Pittsburgh Paints

Olive Sprig is a relaxed but enticing green that emulates the feeling of soothing aloe vera or a fragrant plant – brightening any space with organic liveliness. A versatile color that lives well inside or outside, Olive Sprig blends in with nearly any environment.

Olive Sprig: PPG 1125-4

After a year of stay-at-home orders and too few IRL (in-real-life) moments in 2020 and 2021, homeowners, designers, architects, and facility managers are craving authenticity, nature and meaningful human interaction after living in a mostly digital world. Our 2022 Color of the Year is Olive Sprig, an elegant, grounded, versatile and highly adaptable grey-green. This color represents regrowth in a post-pandemic world and mimics nature’s resiliency.

Pittsburg Paints

“Perfect” may be a bit of an exaggeration, but PPG have certainly learned their lesson from last year’s choice(s)! Green is obviously the popular choice of many of the companies this year, and PPG’s is a fine example of the mid-range of that spectrum.

I like this in a smaller room, but I’m not sure it has the chops to carry an entire living or entertaining space, but I could see this being a great color to wake-up to in the morning, especially bathed in natural light.

Learn more about Olive Sprig here.

Behr

I never thought I’d be happy to see a Seafoam Green variant, but it does look refreshing after all the other greens on the list. For homeowners looking to brighten a room, Breezeway is a great choice. It reminds me of what you might find in a Cape Cod, both interior and exterior.

Breezeway: MQ 3-21

“A relaxed and uplifting sea glass green expressing peace and tranquility for the forward movement.”

While my personal preferences for what I consider cozy and comforting run considerably darker, Breezeway can also be a great choice for an open, bright parlor for entertaining friends and family. And after being stuck at home for so long, who wouldn’t want to visually open their indoor space?

A kitchen wall painted in the breezeway color

If Breezeway is the color for you, I’d strongly suggest taking the color code and heading to Sherwin-Williams or Benjamin Moore to have it made. Trust me on this; as much as we all want to save money where we can, quality paint is not something to cheap-out with.

Learn more about Breezeway here.

Dutch Boy

It’s really tough for me to get excited about Dutch Boy paints. A lot of other people too, apparently because I can’t find a single photo of a room using it.

Cypress Garden: 424-4DB

A cypress garden color

It’s really tough for me to get excited about Dutch Boy paints. A lot of other people too, apparently because I can’t find a single photo of a room using it.

While considerably better than last year, the other paint companies did green better this year. This almost makes it seem like they just jumped on board to avoid another disaster like last year.

Dutch Boy offer no copy explaining the influence and inspiration behind their choice, which is also very telling.

Learn more about Cypress Garden here.

Valspar

It’s really tough for me to get excited about Dutch Boy paints. A lot of other people too, apparently because I can’t find a single photo of a room using it.

This is the last time I’ll be wasting space here with Valspar. Just like last year, they’re throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. This year they made the daring decision to take the same tepid color tones of last year and change the hue and brightness.

So inspired boring.

Oh yeah – they also have a green: Blanched Thyme. Actual blanched thyme looks more appealing, so, whatever.

multiple rooms in different hues

Want to learn more about Valspar? Get professional help from a designer!

Closing Thoughts

That’s it for this year, folks! Not quite as diverse and dynamic as years past, and it’s definitely sparking some lively debate online.

What Color of the Year appeals to you the most?

Do you have any strong positive or negative opinions? Let us know over on our Facebook page, and let’s start a conversation!

Are you looking to update your space with a Color of the Year (or any other color for that matter)?

Give us a call at (913) 214-6211 or request a free quote and let’s schedule a consultation!