I love using color stories as a starting point for design projects. In this post I will share my journey with learning how to create color stories and how I use them in my personal and professional projects. I have used fashion forecasting companies such as Pantone for years to learn seasonal color trends. I have used this source when teaching my students about colors popular for each season. In my effort to get students to understand the forecasting concept, I decided to teach them how to conduct their own trend research and to explore and develop original color palettes. I started the process by immersing myself in the world of color by consulting with designers, influencers, an art teacher, a color and dye specialist, university professors, and of course, Pantone. Throughout, I learned how to mix colors to create new and interesting combinations. This new knowledge has helped me to strengthen my understanding of theories behind color and how to apply them into a design project. I created a color journal to document my newfound information. I carry this with me when I source materials for design projects. I am becoming somewhat obsessed with creating color stories. I used them to help design a bathroom and spare bedroom. It keeps me focused when looking for paint colors, fixtures, and hardware, as well as decorations for the space. My color stories have become inspiration for apparel projects to include a mini collection and garment styling. Next came sharing my knowledge with my students. I collaborated with one of my fashion students to create a color story assignment. This assignment brings forecasting to life. The learning outcome is to have exposed students to fashion forecasting and the skill of color development. Students researched color, examined trends and culture, and looked to the past for color influence on design. This work lead to new direction and original color combinations. This assignment opened my students eyes to new possibilities and creative curiosity. Color stories can be done by hand or created digitally using software or apps. My favorite apps are Canva and Adobe Spark. This assignment is used in my fashion merchandising course and my next move is to adapt it for use in my fashion design course. It will be interesting and exciting to see the process go from the development of a garment to its completion. Check out my Instagram at @myfashedu to see images of student and teacher projects on color story development.

Color Story assignment

Student work completed by Sydney Dooley

Color Stories for Design