The Sherwin-Williams colormix 2015 collection tells optimistic color stories that reflect a brightened outlook and adventurous spirit for the year ahead. The colormix palettes provide design professionals with fresh color combinations to inspire creativity as they design spaces for their clients.

“We’re seeing a more cheerful approach to design and have forecasted colors that will provide a range of inspiration for designers to create fresh, joyful interiors,” said Jackie Jordan, director of color marketing, Sherwin-Williams.

Jordan, along with Sherwin-Williams color experts, researched trends in art, fashion, science and pop culture to determine the 40 colors that make up the forecast. The colors are grouped into four palettes: Chrysalis, Voyage, Buoyant and Unrestrained.

Chrysalis
As technology rushes relentlessly ahead, the colors of Chrysalis evoke a calm oasis — a place to pause and find balance. The palette, with colors ranging from off-black to chalky neutrals and dusty blues, is designed to create a more comfortable interior.

“An important influence for Chrysalis is the appreciation of earth’s natural striations,” said Jordan. “The patterns created by land and sky are driving design inspiration, therefore the palette’s colors are found in nature, from rocks found on the beach to a stormy sky.”

Another driver is the layering and deconstruction of geometric shapes to appear soft, which parallels the monochromatic couture found on fashion runways.

Voyage
From space tourism and undersea resorts, the far-fetched, sci-fi dreams of past decades more viable than ever. The Voyage palette looks to these outer limits, featuring hues that represent the color spectrum imagined while emerging from the water into the atmosphere – undersea teal, bright green kelp, light watery blue and deep space purple.

“The colors of Voyage are supernatural and magical. The palette is largely driven by unusual atmospheric events, including a decade-best aurora borealis, that will be keeping our eyes focused on the heavens,” said Jordan. “The lighter colors of the palette create a space that is uplifting, while the deeper tones can be combined for a more dramatic design.”

Buoyant
“We’ve weathered the recession and are finally seeing hopeful signs of growth and expansion. Our revived good spirits echo the optimism that followed World War II, when GIs returned home from exotic locales, bringing a wave of tropical prints and tiki-inspired looks,” said Jordan. “Like that era, we’re expressing our enthusiasm with big, bright florals in fashion and interiors.”
                                             
The colors of Buoyant are reminiscent of vintage floral patterns – light and deep greens, violets and a pop of coral. In addition to renewed optimism, the palette is also inspired by the natural healing of botanicals, as well as the incorporation of green spaces into even the most densely urban environments. Backyards, once a landscaping afterthought, are now as important as front yards, with builders investing in rear “curb appeal” and outdoor rooms.

Unrestrained
From bold, ethnic-inspired colors and designs to the Bohemian lifestyle, the Unrestrained palette celebrates a carefree spirit, wanderlust and pulsing color. The palette features saturated primary hues, including sunny yellow, lively turquoise and bright blue, as well as black and white. Each can be used on its own for a pop of color, or combined, to create a vibrant, energetic space.

“South Africa’s colorful art scene and focus on the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro have strongly influenced a Carnival-like spirit. This spirit is inspiring design with a zest for life, and the vibrant colors of Unrestrained are a reflection of that design aesthetic,” said Jordan.

Color Resources
In addition to the colormix 2015 palettes, professionals can find inspiration with color selection tools from Sherwin-Williams. At swcolor.com, design professionals can view all Sherwin-Williams colors and collections, link to downloadable palettes for use in color rendering software and access the online Color Visualizer. Designers can also register on myS-W.com and order large-sized color swatches and fan decks.

Sherwin-Williams STIR magazine annual print edition and eExtra e-newsletters also provide inspiration, news and resources for design professionals. Visit swstir.com, as well as search for “Sherwin-Williams Design Pros” on your favorite social channels including Facebook and Twitter.

Design professionals will also find a world of color at their fingertips with the enhanced Sherwin-Williams ColorSnap Studio™ iPad app. ColorSnap Studio blends the best of Sherwin-Williams color inspiration tools — the ColorSnap smartphone app, the online Color Visualizer, plus the Explore Color functionality — into one iPad app.

ColorSnap Studio users can access the same functionalities as the ColorSnap smartphone app, which now makes it even easier to take a picture, find the closest-matching paint colors and fine tune colors using lightness, saturation and hue features. The Color Visualizer tool, previously only available for desktop use, has been integrated into the app, allowing users to experiment with thousands of color combinations by simply “finger-painting” onto the image. Both apps offer a quick and easy way to show clients different design options.

With the click of a button, any image can turn into a palette of paint colors, with Chip It!, an interactive tool from Sherwin-Williams. This Web-based tool allows designers to select any online image or upload their own to instantly identify the Sherwin-Williams paint colors that correspond to the colors contained within the picture. Designers, as well as their clients, can now use the colors that inspire them while surfing the Internet and turn them into paint palettes for any project.

For Google Glass owners, Sherwin-Williams ColorSnap Glass allows users to instantaneously act on color inspiration by adding a digital layer right before their eyes. When a person takes a picture, the software will match the picture to Sherwin-Williams paint colors.

In addition to interactive tools and inspiration, Sherwin-Williams offers offline help with COLOR To Go paint samples and the Sher-Color Advanced Color Technology system for fast, accurate color matching.