"Bold Hues Rule”

Bold hues rule as people seek empowerment, self-expression, and optimism by leaving subdued colors in 2016

“Color has long been a form of self-expression over the years,” says Colaluca, “The US election of Donald Trump impacted the colors we are – and will be – wearing this upcoming season. While not in the literal sense of red, white and blue being patriotic, but the notion of Americana and how people want to relate to it was shaken.”

In many ways, the “modern folk/hipster” aesthetic was born in reaction to “consumerism gone wild,” which made natural colors make sense the past three years, but with the volatility of politics, nationally and globally, it makes sense the aesthetic will evolve dramatically once again. Allowing for a feeling of empowerment, optimism, and self-expression.

Colaluca points to strong fashion trends like flannel shirts and red dad caps that have dominated the market such as Modern Folk and Americana start blurring political lines of very different people with distinctly different ethos. As early as Q4 2016, color anthropologists could see a fallout coming on this trend aesthetic in the hipster and early adopter segments because the aesthetics cross over with people of very different political and cultural beliefs, therefore separating themselves from a belief system they don’t share.

To address the fast pace of these shifting color trends, Colaluca highly recommends that fashion designers and brands leverage tools like Archroma’s Color Atlas system.

“The Color Atlas has beautiful modern colors that are constantly relevant,” said Colaluca. “As a designer, this is critical due to a quickly shifting consumer. And, if it doesn’t have the exact color I need, I can request a custom standard to achieve exactly the shade or hue I am looking for.”