Illuminating and Ultimate Gray: Pantone’s 2021 duo in the world of interior design

What does the new Pantone 2021 duo make you think of? A yellow raincoat on a melancholic, grey rainy day?

Pantone’s second colour duo comes five years after the first – Rose Quartz and Serenity – which influenced colour trends in many different sectors, especially the fashion world, throughout 2016.

So what’s behind the choice? Most certainly the historic moment we are currently living through across the globe. Leatrice Eiseman, colour specialist and Executive Director at Pantone Color Institute, explains the reasons for the choice:

“The union of an enduring Ultimate Gray with the vibrant yellow Illuminating
expresses a message of positivity supported by fortitude.
Practical and rock solid but at the same time warming and optimistic,
this is a colour combination that gives us resilience and hope.
We need to feel encouraged and uplifted; this is essential to the human spirit“.

These two colours have been selected and paired together to bring a new stability and energy into our lives, perhaps starting from within our own homes – the place, more than any other, we have been living in and rediscovering in this period. But how can we use these colours in a harmonious way? Which rooms are they suited to?

At Santalucia Mobili, we think yellow and grey are the perfect pair for the living area, one of the rooms we spend the most time in. It’s where we do so many of our daily activities, from study and work, to leisure and relaxation.

In this space, walls, flooring and furniture in different shades of grey create a feeling of calm and stability, while splashes of yellow on the shelving, open units and coffee table create warmth and bring energy and vitality.

Yellow and grey can also be used together on a single piece of furniture. Take the sideboard which, whether used on its own or as a pair, looks good in any room, from the living room to the bedroom, and the entrance to the hallway.

For an extra injection of colour, the walls can be painted yellow instead of grey, perhaps in a desaturated shade, to create a warm yet striking backdrop.

The new Pantone duo – if used in just the right way – can create some subdued and subtle pairings, perfectly in line with Santalucia Mobili’s own style.