Best Classic Blue Color Palette | PANTONE 2020 Color of the Year

Classic Blue has been announced as the 2020 PANTONE Color of the Year. Now that the announcement has been made and initial reactions have been expressed, there’s only one thing left to do… get to designing!

PANTONE 2020 Color of the Year Classic Blue Ponder Palette

Classic Blue (PANTONE 19-4052) is steady, reliable & familiar, like an old favorite pair of blue jeans. As we stated in our previous article, the design benefits of a backbone as sturdy as Classic Blue are large. PANTONE is already suggesting color palettes for designing with Classic Blue which are varied and inspiring. It’s a reassurance that a steady base tone can still create audacious, bold color design options.

While some of the more glitzy and non-traditional palettes are grabbing headlines, the most serene Classic Blue color palette may be our favorite. PANTONE crafted the Ponder color palette as a soothing visual trip to the beach, with sand, water & sky permeating the collection. Anchored by 3 quite varied shades of blue (Classic Blue, Baby Blue and Provence), the Ponder palette invites casual daydreaming and calm reflection.

(In particular, we love Provence blue. It’s a gorgeous royal hue which adorns many of Peter Salerno Inc.’s kitchen designs.)

Monument (PANTONE 17-4405) is the anchor of the Ponder palette, the sure-footed gray neutral that keeps it all grounded. It pairs splendidly with all 3 blue hues in this collection (Provence + Monument is a winner).

Peach Quartz, Cornhusk and Stucco remind us of Neapolitan ice cream – a creamy swirl of strawberry, French vanilla & chocolate to keep the Ponder palette playful and appealing.

As PANTONE states in its article regarding Ponder:

The design benefits of a backbone as sturdy as Classic Blue are large. PANTONE is already suggesting color palettes for designing with Classic Blue which are varied and inspiring. It’s a reassurance that a steady base tone can still create audacious, bold color design options. Palettes like Snorkel and Exotic Tastes are proving how bright & diverse designers can be using Classic Blue as a base of reference.

Ponder is available through Pantone Connect for Adobe Creative Cloud.