Benjamin Moore's Color of the Year Proves Millennial Pink Isn't Going Anywhere

Photo credit: Benjamin Moore
Photo credit: Benjamin Moore

From House Beautiful

While it seems these days every paint color has a designated, much buzzed-about Color of the Year (case in point here, here, here, and here), arguably no company makes a bigger show of it than Benjamin Moore. Last year, the brand took over the iconic Pool room at the Four Seasons to reveal Metropolitan AF-690; the year before that it was Caliente AF-290, unveiled to much applause at none other than Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim Museum. Tonight, the company took to New York's Skylight Modern to reveal the latest: First Light.

Think this hue feels vaguely familiar? Makes sense—it falls within the group of generally soft pink hues that gained notoriety over the past few years for their popularity with 25- to 35-year-olds. Yes, Millennial Pink. As Andrea Magno, Benjamin Moore's Color & Design Expert says, though, this hue is a slightly cooler take on the hue, making it more flexible.

Photo credit: Benjamin Moore
Photo credit: Benjamin Moore

"It's a very soft kind of wash of blush," Magno told House Beautiful at the official reveal. "It has a little blue undertone, so it's not a peachy pink, which means it can work in any kind of room, warm or cool."

Indeed, Magno encourages homeowners not to think of First Light as pink, but rather, as a new kind of neutral. "It's one of those colors that's the perfect backdrop to anything," she reasons.

Photo credit: Benjamin Moore
Photo credit: Benjamin Moore

And, like it seems most of the world is, Magno and her team at Benjamin Moore are over boring beiges. "We've been in the neutral zone for a long time, and we love neutrals, but we feel people are ready to bring color into the home."

This prediction is in keeping with our own predictions about the rise of a more colorful, eclectic, even daring style in the home, whether that takes the form of outright maximalism, Victorian revival, or the much buzzed-about Grandmillennial style.

After all, Magno says, a pale blush like First Light is the perfect way to bring color into the home in a subtle manner. "It's a good first step," she says. "It's a safe color for people who aren't sure about it, and it's surprisingly adaptable." See ya, beige—looks like pink is here to stay.

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