Pantone Color-of-the-Year Spring 2014

Blue, blue, blue. Thanks, Pantone, for selecting a Color-of-the-Year in blue for Spring 2014. My personal favorite shade of blue is Cornflower, or as I call it, Havel-blue. The Spring 2014 COY is called "Dazzling Blue," and the swatch from the Pantone website looks, indeed, dazzling to me. Look at the color block on the left; that is the swatch from Pantone. Then, look at the swatch on the right; that is a swatch I found over and over again on a Google search for "Pantone Color of the Year Spring 2014." As usual, the variance in the shade is dramatic. That is to be expected since not all monitors display color in exactly the same way. But this time, the two colors are not even close, and that is just the two most-frequently posted swatches I found. 

Every time a new Color-of-the-Year is announced, we see variations in the tone and shade of the swatches posted online. The moral of the story is, for best results where accuracy is concerned, go with the Pantone swatch. It is, afterall, their color. Just keep in mind that one person's "Dazzling Blue" is not always going to look the same as the official Pantone color.

Official Pantone color, left side; popular swatch from Google Image search, right side.

Aniko Goes to the Big Bead Show 2013 in London

Wind Summoner's Necklace by Anna Kolesnikova.

Waiting, excitedly, to hear from Aniko, reporting live from the Big Bead Show in London today. Hoping she brings home a lovely prize.

This is her entry entitled, Wind Summoner's Necklace.

Wish her luck...


UPDATE: Congratulations to Aniko for bringing home Second Prize!! First prize went to Lydmyla (or Ludmila) Heggland.

To Your Health

You won't feel much like claying if you are sick with the flu, that's why we are recommending flu shots to everyone over the age of 6 months. Here is a flu vaccine location finder for the USA. Just plug in your Zip Code for a handy list and map.