In December 2009, Pantone unveiled the 2010 color of the year: turquoise. I emailed one of my co-workers, asking, “What is this, 1959?”
Image from 1950s Atomic Ranch House
It felt very Mad Men of them to appoint such a color, especially on the heels of the 2009 color palette, which tended toward the less exuberant sides of hues like purple and red.
According to the press release, “Turquoise evokes thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a languorous, effective escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while at the same time restoring our sense of wellbeing.”
As I thought about that, and looked at the following pictures, I realized that I could get on board with such a color. After a year that made me go ugh, a soothing, tropical escape sounds like just the ticket.
So frolic with me through the land of turquoise. And here’s to a 2010 that restores our sense of wellbeing.
P.S. You can’t do a post on turquoise without starting out with the House of Turquoise.
Typewriter pic from mytypewriter.com
Judith Balis living room from 10 Can't-Miss Color Trends
And to wrap it up, color inspiration from our product pros at HGTV Marketplace:
If I had been asked to guess the color of 2010, I would have guessed Purple… I feel as though we've passed turquoise's prime, very 2009. The combination of turquoise with bright yellow is surprisingly appealing though. No matter what color pantone picked, I predict 2010 will see a rush of vivid color in home decor. It's already there in fashion. Perhaps we're looking for optimism? Maybe it's the influence of High Def TV?
Sarah, I was totally prepared for them to announce purple, too. The turquoise shocked me — but seeing it in room settings made me recognize its appeal. I'd actually be more inclined to decorate with it than purple.
My kitchen countertops are turquoise. Installed in 1969. Poor things need to be replaced so badly. Might have to wait another year since it's now the color of 2010. I've loved the the color. But they are fading and have no finish left on them.
I just painted my dining room purple which works with my terra cotta/red/orange accented living room. I like the turquoise accents that they featured in the HGTV dream home but it would be difficult for me to go that direction without a major re-do.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by HGTV Decorating, ShaneeP. ShaneeP said: RT @hgtvdecorating: Pantone Color of the Year 2010: Turquoise:… http://bit.ly/87tJjZ <–I feel as if this has been overdone already. [...]
I love turquoise .. it's my second favorite color. I love turquoise jewelry. We have turquoise walls in our home. Turquoise says joy, vibrant, fun, energy, it's happy, it's beauty. There is also a quality of peace with turquoise. The ocean, the sunset sky. It's a comfortable color. Unlimited in shades, there is a color for everyone!
It's my MIL's favorite color. She's had it in her house for years, so I've inherited a bunch of turquoise and aqua furniture, art and accessories. I'm slowly passing them on since I prefer Mexican blue, but I'll always keep some out of fondness for her. And what's your favorite color?
The turquoise is just beautiful. I especially like the kitchen but the other rooms look very nice. It reminds me of the years of me growing up and them were the good years. Turquoise gives a new life of different shades so this will make everyone happy. Any accents and decor will blend in remarkable.
I THINK TURQOUISE WAS A VERY NICE COLOR IN THE 50'S , BUT IN 2010 THE SOFTER COLORS AND BRITE COLORS LIKE TIEL,TEREACATA,ANTIQUE WHITE, WORKS BETTER WITH THE OPENIN OF THE HOME, THE WORMER THE HOME THE SMALLER IT LOOKS.PLUS U CAN CHANGE UR SEASONS BUY CHANGINGS UR CURTAINS,RUGS,BEDSPREADS,THROWS, THAT WILL ENHANCE THE HOME AND KEEP THE WORTH OF HOME.
I agree, I like the soft colors with a splash of bright color.When you put your home on the market,better watch bright colors.{Historial colors are nice also} I am also a realtor.
Ruby
I guess I don't really mind it since I'm looking forward to a lot of bright, vibrant colors in accessories and accent pieces. The majority of my furnishing are brown, linen and wheat with a little white, black, silver and gold thrown in lol Sounds kind of boring on paper but very textured. What I need now are accessories in additon to the colorful wall art I've displayed.
I'm sorry, but last year was so tough for so many of us, and the economy isn't going to suddenly bounce back just because it is a new year. Splashing flashy turquoise around our homes is a little like the madwoman in her cell happily applying bright lipstick and thinking that makes her normal; it smacks of a sense of false security. Softer tones of any color would remind us of what we've come through, what we've learned, and what we can yet endure.
I didn't think I would like turquoise in my house but I painted the Bathroom a nice shade of it and I like it!
howerver it might have come too late in 2009… I hope I can pull it off for this year.. still working on accessorizing with seashell, art and towels. It all started with my shower curtain from Target…circles in different shades!! I had to start somewhere , good a place as any.. next is my floor.
Our store in Little Rock, Arkansas has tons of Caribbean in it this year. Here is a snippet -Kitchen Co. Caribbean for the Kitchen
I find the softer, not vibrant turquoise as appealing. No, not the 1950's where it is so out of place today. At any rate, it will be nice to see something besides grey and black. What depressing, uninspiring colors.
Perhaps, just perhaps, the design team will try to use eco-friendly products; less irreplaceable wood floors; more eco-friendly countertops than granite; more emphasis on energy replacement electrical lighting; and quit offering prices to those who don't (remodel room for $120,000!! and nothing eco-friendly!). In being eco-friendly; HGTV is more likely to cut down a tree than plant one.
I am thrilled to see the color Turquoise in this years Dream Home! It perfectly compliments all the natural earth tones also used and gives it that needed "pop" of color as they say. Especially since it is one of the colors used in my home for years (so everything old can be new again!) Also, by reading up on all the products the DH team used it is very apparant they did use many "green" and energy saving materials in this 2010 Dream Home. Thanks for that! One of my favorite things about each HGTV Dream Home is to see what color and texture combinations Linda will put together for the area where the dream homes are located. She always gets it right. Checking out the HGTV dream homes are always such an enjoyable experience that I hope they never end. Thanks!
Absolutley a great color! Turquoise is great. It is bright and exciting. Although I am a fan of the turquoise, i believe that a color such as lavender or a pale pink would have been a great choice too. I think that the really girly colors have started to make a comeback. I really think that although the turquoise is nice color, purple or pink simply would have been better. That's all
I have a small 1/2 bath that I did in a color called "Alpine Valley" that is a lighter shade of turquoise and it makes me happy every time I go in it!
I just finished renovating a small bathroom and it has a sea theme with you guessed it, pale turquoise accents. I vacillated between sea foam or sea urchin (sand) for the walls. Picked sea urchin and painted the ceilng in sea foam. Shower curtain is a 5 inch wide pale turquoise and white stripe that I had fabricated horizontally. It is fab!!! My favorite color is turquoise, aqua, etc.
besides that's my birthday color, I am always searching places in my house tinge of turquoise as an accent ,such color of the pacific where I grew up, it's always home color to me, love it! I have turquoise throw pillows on a black leather couch cause I have a Turquoise accent chair, the theme is to let colors flow like the color of the ocean.
Turquoise and other tropics inspired colors such as terracotta orange hues and yellow, are popping up in this year's nursery bedding and accessories, left and right! What a fun color palette for our little baby rooms…and mom and dad can't help but to be happy and inspired when surrounded by these colors. I am personally drawn to bright colors and will enjoy this trend when I design my clients' nurseries, for as long as it may last!
Although turquoise was a popular color in the 50's it is one of my favorite colors and I love it! My daughter painted the walls in her baby girls nursery turquoise and it's beautiful. She has dark cherry furniture and the crib bedding is a combo of lavendar, pink, lime green, yellow and turquoise. The theme is butterflies and flowers and even though I thought, "you're going to paint the walls turquoise"?, it turned out really nice. And better yet, the paint was a mistake and she got it for $5 bucks!
this color is so 1954.
Before the holidays, my 12-year-old daughter declared that she wanted to give her bedroom a New Year's makeover…in turquoise! My gut reaction was "ugh!" The photos in this featured not only completely changed, but also blew my mind. Why not welcome a few bright, cheerful notes into the house? I'll have to tell my daughter that she's in sync with design-world trends. If I could only find a way to blend her posters of Taylor Lautner into a design scheme! – Mysia
This new "blue" is simply a brighter version of the blue with brown combo so popular the past several years…. I don't see it as new, but I do love it!
I live in Ga now but being from sunny south FL I had to paint my house to remind me of home. I went with the lighter shade of Turquoise which I just love. I get so many comments on my house from when you walk in the front door and the first thing you see a huge sail fish, and all the tropical colors. I love the calming effect you get when you walk in. You can't help but feel relaxed.
Living in the Southwest I have been using turquoise as an accent color for years. It provides a great contrast to the desert earthtones. Not sure I could use as a dominant color though.
Turquoise looks beautiful as an accent color. It is a bit overpowering as a kitchen cabinet color and one might become tired of looking at that much turquoise after a while. It is one of my favorite colors and looks especially nice with the black and white in the displays of the rooms featured above.
my grandmas house had Turquoise im sure every color has been done. show us carpet with that color that would be something to see. ha
i love it ! — we are opening a gift shop this spring and turquoice, bright pink and black are our colors. i think it's just fun. something i think we can all use right now.
Turquoise is my very fav color even though I have several. The best thing about it is that so many of my other favorite colors look great with it. i have used it in the walls of dining room, my office, and hall bath. Bright pink accents the dining room, fuscia in my office, and golden yellows are in the bath. I am totally happy with them & these bright colors really brighten my mood on these gray days of winter.
I just finished painting my guest room "reflecting color" by sherwin Williams and did the trim in Rice Grain. I love this room so much that I am prepared to leave my master bedroom and move into the guest room instead. It is a deep shade of teal/turquoise.
Nope. I think the color of the year will actually be yellow. Turquoise was last year.
I grew up in New mexico I live in ca. would love to go back home. I have earth tones in my home and turqouise accents in my wall hangings, pottery I love the colors even in my clothing and and jewelry.love it! love it!
LOVE IT!! Yes, it was used in the 50's and was great then and is just as great now. All my gifts from friends and family comes in turquoise as it is my favorite color. Its even more refreshing now BECAUSE of these hard economic, depressing times. I hope to see all the designers use a lot of it in different ways this year on all the HGTV programs.
This is my new favorite color and I am using it as an accent color in my home. I find that there are variations on the color and I tend toward the greenish shade. Love it!
It's a gorgeous color in all it's variations. I'd use it as an accent color or maybe for a wall color in a room that wasn't used all the time like a formal dining room, guest bedroom, etc. It would be a little too dramatic as the wall color in a room we hang out all the time.
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by hgtvdecorating: Pantone Color of the Year: Turquoise: In December 2009, Pantone unveiled the 2010 color of the year: turquoise. I e… http://bit.ly/87tJjZ…
I painted my great room with three shades of turquoise in 2004 and have reveled in its beauty since then.
I love the turquoise colors for I remember my childhood in New mexico. when I used other colors to enhance my home I always felt they did not make me feel quite serene and calm .So I started using sand colors and using the turquoise as my accent colors.Now I feel so at peace. It is my peaceful calming color.
Turquoise accents actually look great against the house of green and white I already have…..okay, so I stole the idea from David B – a white Italian leather couch with rounded corners, two white bear skin rugs over each end section + punches of green and turquois pillows all over. Decadent update for just a few bucks.
The couch is celebrating it's 25th anniversary, rugs from Pottery Barn. My walls are in " elephant tusk" but take on a celery look at night. I'm thinking of painting just the two walls turquoise that make up the dining area; one wall has a mantel so it couldn't be too overwhelming.
I believe the Pantone color theory site talked about turquoise in the early 2000's – saying it was the cross-pollination of blue and green – blue representing peace and green, money. A lot of non-profits used this color…..please send us your check….
horrible
[...] exciting is that?” at House of Turquoise) to aghast (“What is this, 1959?” at Design Happens). So I guess we will see just how much power the Pantone crystal ball holds. Spring lines will soon [...]
Modern, yet retro, soothing, yet fun. Like taking a well deserved break at the beach. You go turquoise!