In the world of fashion and beauty color is a key resource, and can play a vital role in how your products and brand are viewed, bought, and used.
This is why for entrepreneurs like Hope Smith, with her luxury skin-care brand MUTHA™, the time spent creating an impactful style and color scheme is invaluable. Hope herself spent hours upon hours studying the appearances of other successful women’s brands, and took pieces of inspiration that resulted in the MUTHA™ products we see today.
Color has also been known to affect human feelings and emotions, and we know from experience — When we saw Pantone’s 2022 Color of the Year there’s was only one feeling that came over us: HOLY SH*T
Pantone’s 2022 Color of the Year: “Very Peri”
When it comes to color, Pantone knows best. Their color experts search all corners of the world to find new color inspirations, and discover the next groundbreaking trends that will shape product development and purchasing decisions across many industries.
“The Pantone Color of the Year reflects what is taking place in our global culture, expressing what people are looking for that color can hope to answer,” notes Laurie Pressman, Vice President of the Pantone Color Institute.
This year, Pantone named “Very Peri” as it’s Color of the Year. “Very Peri” is part of the blue color family, and has many blue qualities while featuring a violet red undertone. Pantone describes the color as displaying a “spiritley, joyous attitude and a dynamic presence that encourages creativity and imaginative expressions.”
It also just so happens to have a striking resemblance to a color we know well — MUTHA™ Purple. The color used on all MUTHA™ products, from its Body Butter to the Up All Night Eye Cream.
Now whether Pantone is predicting a MUTHA™ led skin-care revolution in 2022, we may never know. But one thing is certain, MUTHA™ has become a dynamic presence in the luxury skin-care industry that encourages people of all sexes to express creativity in any way they see fit, and to imagine possibilities for themselves beyond the constraints of society.
Behind the MUTHA™ Design
Creating the formulas for the award winning selection of MUTHA™ products took Hope years of late nights, and trial and error with hundreds of ingredients in her own kitchen.
“I did my 10,000 hours,” said Hope in an interview on the Cat & Nat Podcast. “I started doing deep dives on my phone or computer in bed, and just ordered raw ingredients. And I really was making versions of body butter in my kitchen for 4 or 5 years before we launched.”
But having unmatched products is only part of the equation — brand design and image are the final pieces to the puzzle of creating a truly landscape changing business.
Knowing this, Hope played a major role in the MUTHA™ brand’s look and feel, taking inspiration from the websites of style icons like Gisele Bündchen, and Cindy Crawford. Clean lines, impactful yet basic base colors, and a highlight color that draws a potential customer’s eye.
The result is the bold, modern look of MUTHA™ today. A brand that empowers women to take control of their self-care, put their bodies on a pedestal, and strengthen their confidence.
More Than Branding: Color’s Effect on Feelings and Emotions
Take a second and think about what you’d wear to a funeral. Chances are you’re thinking of something black.
If you’re wondering if we’re psychic, we’re not (wink). Rather we can assume that because a funeral is a serious and formal event, the odds are that most people will wear black to convey that image.
Another way to think about how color can affect our feelings and emotions is by looking out the window. The orange and yellow of a sunrise gives warmth and a feeling of comfort to start the day.
The feelings and emotions certain colors can give you however, really depend on one factor — you. In a study published in Psychology Today, researchers found that each color has a range of emotions normally associated with it, from most common to least common:
- Red — Love, Anger, Pleasure, Hate
- Orange — Joy, Amusement, Pleasure
- Green — Contentment, Joy, Pleasure, Relief, Interest
- Blue — Relief, Contentment
- Purple — Pleasure, Interest, Pride, Admiration
- White — Relief, Contentment
- Black — Sadness, Fear, Hate, Anger, Guilt
While colors can have different significance for different cultures (for example, in Buddhism, white can be associated with death, instead of black), colors are very impactful on our moods and emotions.
Color can also be used as a therapy according to Kendra Cherry, MS, who spoke on the subject with Verywell Mind, “Several ancient cultures, including the Egyptians and Chinese, practiced chromotherapy, or the use of colors to heal. Chromotherapy is sometimes referred to as light therapy or colorology, and it is still being used today,” she said.
Embracing the Color of Tomorrow
Whether you’re just starting your day, formulating a groundbreaking idea for a company, or buying your next batch of MUTHA™ products, remember the role color plays in your everyday life and the ability it has to affect your mindset.
“Colors, like features, follow the changes of the emotions”
For Hope, incorporating color into style doesn’t start and end with MUTHA™. Color plays a central role in the former model and mother of four’s day to day life — check out Hope’s style and the colors she loves in her photo gallery.