Colour is back with a bang for 2023. After a period where everyone seemed to agree that safe, calming neutrals and soft, soothing greens were the best way forward, paint colour trends for 2023 are much more vibrant and wide-ranging. Every winter, experts at the Pantone Colour Institute famously choose their Colour of the Year, and many paint brands follow suit. So if you’re seeking inspiration for a decor overhaul, Good Homes takes a look at the Colour of the Year picks from leading brands and asks the question – who called it best?   

1. Raspberry Blush, Benjamin Moore

The post-pandemic march away from safe greys, beiges and neutrals continued with the announcement of Benjamin Moore’s Colour of the Year 2023 – Raspberry Blush. It’s a vibrant shade of coral, tinged with pink, a red-orange that screams electric optimism and sultry sunsets.

‘We’ve had colours that are on the cooler side of the colour wheel for a number of years,’ says Helen Shaw, colour marketing and development director at Benjamin Moore, ‘and now we’re really starting to see a shift to the warmer colours.’ It’s the perfect way to add a cosy, welcoming feel to your home.

2. Wild Wonder, Dulux

Dulux Creative Director Marianne Shillingford announced Wild Wonder as the Dulux Colour of the Year 2023 – a shade that centres around the idea of hope and renewal. ‘Since lockdown, people have become so creative with colour,’ says Marianne. ‘And they’re not nervous about combining more than one colour on the walls and using colour on the ceiling.’

Marianne calls Wild Wonder ‘a metameric’ colour. ‘Metamerism is the ability for a colour to change in different lights quite fundamentally. So when you buy one colour you’ve got four, and it’s incredibly organic and it’s beautiful and as the light moves and changes during the day, it gives a visually soft and gentle vibe.’

In the morning, ‘it looks like barley just before it’s ripe’. In the evening, ‘it’s like a fresh cardamom pod, which we could describe as a gold green’.

3. Joy, Crown

Crown has opted out of choosing one Colour of the Year, instead offering up a range of colour insights: Joy, Abstract Simplicity and Breathe. Joy is a way to ‘transport yourself to life’s happy moments’, says Justyna Korczynska from the Crown Colour Insights Panel. ‘The specially selected pink-and-mix colour palette of uplifting shades pair beautifully together for charming visual impact. With big, bold stripes as a key feature of this insight, explore all surfaces beyond just walls.’

Joy certainly encapsulates the trends the Good Homes team has seen popping up for 2023, like Dopamine Decor and Pinterest’s Weirdcore, but the Crown Colour Insights Panel has also highlighted Abstract Simplicity, which centres around tranquillity (‘combining muted tones of green, stone and creams’ creating ‘a sanctuary from the outside world’), and Breathe, which takes inspiration from architectural materials that resemble a weave and play with light, form and shadow to ‘remind us that nothing is ever static’).

4. Viva Magenta, Pantone

‘Viva Magenta is a pulsating colour whose exuberance promotes optimism and joy,’ said a Pantone spokesperson of its ‘brave and fearless’ Colour of the Year 2023.

‘Powerful and empowering, it is an animated red that encourages experimentation and self-expression without restraint. Audacious, witty, and inclusive of all, Pantone 18-1750 Viva Magenta welcomes anyone and everyone with the same rebellious spirit.’

‘Pantone 18-1750 Viva Magenta descends from the red family, and is inspired by the red of cochineal, one of the most precious dyes belonging to the natural dye family as well as one of the strongest and brightest the world has known,’ adds Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Colour Institute.

5. Sky blue, Colourtrend

Experts from Colourtrend have focussed their attentions on soft powder blue shades reminiscent of the sky, like Larkspur (pictured below). This delicate, romantic hue can be warmed up with sunny whites or light golds, and cooled down with neutral whites and darker blues. The shade links in with the continuing popularity of biophilic design – the trend of bringing the outdoors in through colour and natural materials like wood.

The Colourtrend team also highlights Nordic neutrals, dark, moody colour-drenching and earthy pinky-browns as on-trend for this year: ‘2023 will see a nod towards the vibrant pink colour, but perhaps not in its boldest form,’ says Sheenagh Green from Colourtrend. ‘An earthy pink-brown can still be strong without being overwhelming, and adds a flair of colour and comfort to any home.’

• 5 of the hottest interior design trends for 2023
• Pinterest reveals interior trend predictions for 2023
• Carpet trends: 7 fresh ideas for 2023

---