The major North American paint manufacturers have announced their Colour of the Year picks, and there’s a clear direction for 2026, at least from a colour standpoint. It’s all about safety — not timidity or lack of imagination so much as the feeling that, in an increasingly alarming world, we find a safe harbour in surroundings that are familiar, nostalgic and reassuring.

Pantone surprised many industry watchers last year when it chose Mocha Mousse as its 2025 colour pick. While some found it tame compared to the colour forecaster’s past picks — 2024’s Peach Fuzz and the previous year’s Viva Magenta — it turns out Pantone was right on the money: As the year has worn on, there’s been a kind of contraction in the national mood, an increasing desire for hunkering down and Hygge.

Benjamin Mo

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