Peach Fuzz: A Peachy Approach to Color in 2024

The new 2024 Pan­tone of the Year has been released and the flood­gates of opin­ions of this hue have been unleashed. Some love it, some don’t, and that is to be expect­ed! Not every­one will like what they see regard­ing col­or trends. Plus, a lot can play into how we per­ceive col­or — psy­chol­o­gy, cul­ture, and per­son­al pref­er­ences all play a part. 

Peach Fuzz: A Peachy Approach to Color in 2024

When look­ing into how we want­ed to intro­duce this col­or, we just couldn’t stop think­ing about Bows­er him­self, aka Jack Black. He had us singing peach­es, peach­es, peach­es non-stop. But aside from the catchy song, and being able to see the soft-side of Bows­er, the music video shows how Peach can enhance the way reds and greens look on the screen. 

You may not be feel­ing peachy about this hue, but we can guar­an­tee now that you are aware of it, you will spot it in your sur­round­ings more and more.

Who Predicts These Trends

Before we get fur­ther, we need to address the mat­ter of trends as it’s a con­tro­ver­sial top­ic every year. Con­trary to pop­u­lar belief, Pan­tone, Behr, Sher­win Williams, Ben­jamin Moore, and oth­ers don’t just select col­ors out of thin air. 

Trends in col­or are con­stant­ly evolv­ing based on glob­al impact, socio-eco­nom­ic impact, econ­o­my, con­sumer behav­iors, envi­ron­ment, and oth­er fac­tors. These influ­ence the macro trends ana­lyzed two years in advance, over months of research and with a team of glob­al experts. Each com­pa­ny will select a unique hue based on their analy­sis of trends, their audi­ence, and their pre­dic­tions. This is why you don’t see all of these com­pa­nies share the same col­or of the year. 

What like­ly led to this choice? We have been feel­ing so exhaust­ed and burnt out that our men­tal health has been impact­ed, and nat­u­ral­ly, we are seek­ing ways to find a sense of care and comfort. 

How Peach Fuzz Influences Our Emotions

Peach may not be for every­one, but it can be the right hue for the right audi­ence seek­ing com­fort and calm­ness. While it ref­er­ences the fruit, its col­or is lighter than the oranges we see on most peach­es, influ­enc­ing how this col­or is perceived. 

Brands have used the psy­chol­o­gy behind col­ors for years as they under­stand how spe­cif­ic hues are linked with cer­tain emo­tions. Our emo­tions can influ­ence the per­cep­tion of a brand, increase recog­ni­tion, and even sway our pur­chas­ing habits. 

Here are key emo­tions Peach Fuzz might evoke:

• Warmth

• Com­fort

• Calm­ness

• Nur­tur­ing

• Tac­til­i­ty

The Ancient Connections 

Today, Peach Fuzz can be seen as a hue that appeals to men and women, but ancient Romans con­nect­ed it to Venus, which was linked to fer­til­i­ty and desire due to its phal­lic shape. The asso­ci­a­tion of the col­or peach also became close­ly con­nect­ed to the fruit and its nutrition.

In Chi­na, peach­es were seen as a pro­tec­tion against evil and linked to eter­nal life. These were often depict­ed in folk art, mythol­o­gy, tra­di­tions, and reli­gion. Peach­es were so revered that there are depic­tions of Bud­dha from Chi­na in the 10th cen­tu­ry where he was seen hold­ing a peach. Today, peach­es are still seen as a sym­bol of longevi­ty and are often served to the elder­ly on their birthdays. 

Peach Fuzz in Marketing and Branding 

As a new col­or of the year is announced, the appli­ca­tions and rel­e­van­cy will shift with­in indus­tries. Hues like Peach Fuzz, align with spe­cif­ic under­ly­ing emo­tions that may lim­it its use in broad­er industries. 

Areas you might see Peach Fuzz in:

• Beau­ty products
• Fash­ion industry/apparel
• Home & interiors
• Bak­eries, dessert, and sweets shops 
• Wed­dings

Peach Fuzz is a great fit for brands that focus on well-being, seren­i­ty, and calm. It could open oppor­tu­ni­ties for Spa’s, Yoga or Pilates stu­dios. And per­haps even tea or nat­ur­al juice brands focus­ing on feed­ing your body and soul. 

We might also see the influ­ence of  Peach Fuzz in tiles, tex­tiles, and illus­tra­tion pat­terns. They become state­ment pieces with­in their envi­ron­ment while still cre­at­ing a sense of calm. 

Unlike past col­ors of the year, Peach Fuzz pro­vides a height­ened sense of tactility.

Best Practices for Using Peach Fuzz 

Our rela­tion to col­or is always influ­enced by emo­tion — whether it’s at a sub­con­scious or con­scious lev­el. The effec­tive­ness of Peach Fuzz, like any oth­er col­or, relies heav­i­ly on its appli­ca­tion. Col­or strat­e­gy must con­sid­er not only the hue but also how it pairs with oth­er col­ors and ele­ments with­in a design. 

Peach Fuzz as a sin­gle col­or, could feel one-dimen­sion­al when applied to illus­tra­tions and print— depend­ing on your con­text. How and what you pair Peach Fuzz with oth­er col­ors can enhance its ener­gy and make it more inviting.

Here are some things to consider when using Peach Fuzz:

• Your col­or com­bi­na­tions can dras­ti­cal­ly change the mean­ing. Always con­sid­er what the oth­er col­ors mean when pair­ing these togeth­er. Pair­ing Peach Fuzz with high-chro­ma greens could appeal to a refresh­ing mood that still con­nects to nature and feels regenerative.

• While our world is seek­ing a sense of calm amid hate, tur­moil, and chaos, not all con­sumers will feel con­nect­ed to this hue. It can feel too soft for some. Per­son­al pref­er­ences towards a col­or are impos­si­ble to con­trol, but how you pair that col­or with your con­text and who it’s meant to be for can make a pro­found difference.

• Peach Fuzz is a soft hue that will cre­ate acces­si­bil­i­ty issues. Using white or very light-col­ored text with a Peach Fuzz back­ground should be avoid­ed. Make sure you have enough con­trast for acces­si­bil­i­ty pur­pos­es. You can quick­ly check using a free tool such as Color.Adobe.com.

While we don’t always encour­age drop shad­ows on type, in the exam­ples above, you can see how a sub­tle shad­ow can improve leg­i­bil­i­ty when com­par­ing the image on the left ver­sus the right.

We will be updat­ing our pop­u­lar LinkedIn Course: Col­or Trends, very soon with more infor­ma­tion and exam­ples on how you can lever­age Peach Fuzz. 

While Peach Fuzz may not appeal to every­one, when used with­in the right con­text it can have a huge impact. It serves as a reminder that col­or is an essen­tial part of our world, influ­enc­ing our moods, behav­iors, and decisions.