If you haven’t seen the news yet, universal colour matching system, Pantone, has picked ‘Viva Magenta’ as the 2023 colour of the year. Whilst WGSN (a trend forecasting company) has other ideas, naming ‘Digital Lavender’ as colour of the year.
Each colour represents something different and will have its own effect on the fashion industry. Viva magenta has audacious and rebellious energy, and was picked as, “an unconventional colour for an unconventional time.” Which feels very fitting. It seems like we truly are living in the era of uncertainty currently. A lot of us are still adjusting back into normal life after the emotional and physical rollercoaster ride that the past couple of years has taken us on. Such a striking and bold colour like viva magenta may help lift our spirits and have us feeling flirty and fiery once more.
Although, WGSN’s digital lavender symbolises wellness and digital escapism. The calming and subtle purple hue also ties in with mental health, stability and balance – concepts which seem to be a heavy focus for all of us in 2023. There’s nothing better than a rainy Sunday morning lazing on the couch and escaping into the newest TV series. We need days like these to feel fully rested and energised for the journey that lies ahead of us. Maybe digital lavender is more fitting of a colour for this year than we realise.
So what does all of this mean for upcoming fashion in 2023?
Although nobody can say for sure, it is my guess that designers are likely to pick one colour or the other and stick to it when designing clothes and collections. As you could’ve guessed, magenta and lavender are conflicting colours. The two tones are hard to wear together in a cohesive outfit, however, a full monochrome outfit of just magenta or lavender is very much encouraged – what a fun fashion statement!
In 2022, Pantone picked ‘Very Peri’ as their colour of the year, a bluish tone with a hint of red that makes it seem almost purple. We didn’t see a huge amount of periwinkle blue on the runways last year, which leads me to believe that WGSN has had the better run when it comes to predicting colour of the year. WGSN had selected ‘Orchid Flower’ as 2022’s colour of the year. Looking back, orchid flower pink showed itself to be a prominent colour in fashion last year. Versace released their full pink outfits, complete with chunky square toe heels, zig-zag patterned tights, and mini skater style dress, in their Fall 2022 collection and that’s when we really started to see pink takeover.
Which colour will you be repping in 2023?
