Blue:The hue of that portion of the visible spectrum lying between green and indigo, evoked in the human observer by radiant energy with wavelengths of approximately 420 to 490 nanometers; any of a group of colors that may vary in lightness and saturation, whose hue is that of a clear daytime sky; one of the additive or light primaries; one of the psychological primary hues.
I.B.M.'s ''big blue'' is Pantone Blue plus Pantone Violet. Barbie Pink is also a Pantone custom color, trademarked for use in more than 100 categories, including bubble bath and breakfast cereal. Tiffany's is working with Pantone to standardize its signature robin's-egg hue, then secure it by trademark.
Ms. Herbert, dressed in a camel-color sweater (camel's yellow undertones convey warmth and relaxation, she said) and sitting in a rose-beige conference room that was like being inside a fresh suntan, looked great. ''I'd call it a bisque, or a nude,'' she said. ''If you go into bridal salons, the rooms for the brides are done in this kind of color. Everyone looks great.''
Popular color isn't just ''in the wind'' each season. It's generated by high-wind machines like Pantone, whose more than 250,000 client companies subscribe to its palette and custom services, including Nike, Shiseido, Apple, DKNY and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Companies choose to accept or ignore the forecasting advice; then they decide whether to admit or deny that they have even looked at it.
Pantone's color forecast for 2002 was revealed publicly last month. Its seven suggested palettes include ''Aqueous'' and ''Allusion'' -- 20 atmospheric colors meant to intimate softness and calm. (They are largely pastel.) They would be instantly familiar to Pottery Barn customers. In the stores and the January catalog, titled ''Relaxed Style -- Create Your Own Sanctuary,'' new pillows, bedding and paint finishes are nearly identical pastel tones that Pottery Barn, a Pantone client, has given names like Cloud and Sky.
At the housewares show next weekend in Chicago, retailers will see new KitchenAid mixers in Pistachio and Lavender that will complement Pottery Barn's colors nicely in the kitchen. Whirlpool, the parent company, is a Pantone client, too.
Crate & Barrel's windows on Madison Avenue are also displaying cutting boards and mixing bowls in pastels this month. Unlike Pottery Barn and KitchenAid, Crate & Barrel denied using the Pantone forecast in creating its new colors, though a company spokesman said it also looks at it.
Tiffany Blue is the colloquial name for the blue color associated with Tiffany & Co., the New York City jewelry company.
The Tiffany Blue color is protected as a color trademark by Tiffany & Co. in some jurisdictions including the U.S.
The color is produced as a private custom color by Pantone, with PMS number 1837, the number deriving from the year of Tiffany's foundation. As a trademarked color, it is not publicly available and is not printed in the Pantone Matching System swatch books. |
