When the international color gurus decided on the definitive home color for 2007, the stick settled on pink.

“Everyone shows up with a palette and a theme, and pink turned out to be one of those colors that popped up in every area,” says Barbara Richardson, director of color marketing for ICI, an international company whose brands include Glidden. “It doesn’t have to be dominant; it just has to be one of the players.”

To be clear, this is not a soft and fuzzy baby-doll pink.

“This color is going to have power,” Richardson says. “It is the pink with the classic sort of appeal. A lot of times it is combined with black and white. It has a Cadillac-y, 1950s sort of resonance.”

OK, but there’s so much more to pink than retro.

The Color Marketing Group is touting earthy hues that mimic water, sky and soil. But pink has a place in its color scheme as well.

The group combines a dark, tribal rug with a tricolor wall of vertical pink, gold and brown stripes, courtesy of Benjamin Moore Paints. In the same room a small chandelier hangs above a daybed covered with an ethnic fabric. The merging of the “adobe dust” pink strip with brown and gold lends an earthiness to the walls that pairs well with the upholstery. It’s surprisingly cool.

There’s also glamour pink — think swimming pools, movie stars — which designer Karim Rashid achieves in his sensual round Omni sofa. In pink ultrasuede, it begs for a feather boa and a playful romp.

And let’s not forget all the pinks that we house our bodies in. The Donald loves pink ties. Designer Naeem Khan plucked a tone inspired by roses as his signature color for spring 2007.

And Betsey Johnson is going with “boudoir blush,” on the peachy side.

source : www.kansascity.com