Pantone FAQs
How often should my Pantone books be replaced?
It is recommended to replace your Pantone books at least every 12-18 months, however this does depend on how you store and use them!
For instance the fan guides or smaller books like the Passport which are left open on your desk or at the end of the press and are used daily will deteriorate sooner than the master copy of the books stored in away in a locked cupboard in the dark.
Some of the reasons for damage to the books can be found below - not to mention spilling your coffee or accidentally marking with a biro!
- Handling = smearing and removing pigment from natural oils on fingertips
- Pages rubbing together = scratching or removing pigment
- Light exposure = fading
- Paper aging = yellowing effects
- Ambient moisture = accelerated paper aging
- Natural pigment expiration = faster, noticeable colour variation, especially in lighter and pastel colours
How to choose the colour and size of my Pantone swatch cards
Go to Pantone >
Fashion, Home & Interior > The first three products on this page are the
Cotton,
Polyester or
Nylon Brights swatch cards. Please click on the swatch card material required. The following instructions work for all of the swatch card options.
1. Click onto the coloured wheel. This will open up an image of all the Pantone swatches as coloured squares, either search through the colours or type the colour number, such as 18-0830 TCX, into the search box above the colour palette. The colour that matches the number searched, will then be displayed on its own.
2. Click onto the colour to select and then click the orange confirm button to proceed to the next step.
3. To choose the size of the swatch card, click onto the drop down box that will say 'Choose an option' and click on the size required. The original 2 ply is the standard size of swatch.
4. Amend the quantity, if you need more than one swatch of the same colour.
5. Click add to cart.
6. Repeat this process for all the other colours you may require.
7. Proceed to checkout by clicking the basket icon in the top right of the page.
8. Add the billing and delivery address and select the relevant mailing option. If you need express post (essential for next day or high value) or standard post.
9. Continue to the secure payment page with Pay360 to complete the order.
10. We will receive the order and process it accordingly.
If you have any questions, please email us at colourstandards@verivide.com and we will be happy to advise and help with your order.
I need a book with CMYK values for printing, should I get the CMYK Guide set or the Color Bridge Set?
CMYK Guides contain only colours which exist within CMYK colour space, 2868 colour variants with the CMYK percentages to enable confident use of 4-colour process colours in offset lithographic printing. If you only work with CMYK colours your clients can select colours from these guides with confidence that they can be accurately reproduced. This is a different system to the PANTONE PMS system and so it does not relate to Pantone Spot colours. If your clients select Pantone Spot colours and you are required to check the CMYK versions of these, you will need to purchase a Color Bridge Guide.
Color Bridge Guides have squares of the Pantone Spot colours with their RGB and HTML code and alongside are squares of the closest match to the spot colour using CMYK inks and the CMYK percentages.
Where can I buy Pantone paint or powdercoat?
Unfortunately due to restrictions on shipping paint it must be manufactured in the Country in which it is to be used and therefore Pantone paint is only available where a License is approved to manufacture it.
Pantone paint for interiors is now available in a number of Countries in Europe.
In the UK some Pantone colours are available as Crown Trade paints in various finishes through
Brewers Decorating Centres
Valspar (UK) Corporation Limited were also a licensee - for more information contact them at
http://www.valsparpaint.co.uk or Email: customerservice@valsparpaint.co.uk. Please note Pantone colours that are available may be limited to current trend colours and not available in all finishes.
Click
here for full details of companies holding Pantone licenses for production of coloured materials including paint, powder coat and inks.
Where can I find out which colours are on trend for Interiors
Please head over to our
Trend Forecasting section, where you will be able to purchase the latest Pantone trend books. The latest issue of
VIEWPOINT COLOUR is currently avaliable, which contains Autumn/Winter 2022/2023 colour forecasts, trend-led colour changes and much more, for only £75.
The Pantone View Home & Interiors is a trend book published annually; it is usually launched in March and contains the trends for the following year. The 2022 volume is available to buy now and features a portable colour card highlighting colour direction, a USB drive of forecast imaging and a download of Pantone Connect providing access to digital data for all Pantone colours for your design software. Please email us at colourstandards@verivide.com if you would like to purchase the latest trend book.
I want to buy Pantone View Home & Interiors but I also need swatches of colour, is this possible?
Yes, the
Pantone View Home & Interiors Kit also includes small strips of the cotton swatches in the trend colours used in the book. This costs £375.00 ex VAT and delivery. The colours are also referenced in the book and so individual
SMART swatches of the colours can also be purchased separately for you to send to clients or suppliers.
How can I buy a Pantone Colour in paint if it is not part of the pre mixed range?
You will need to purchase a Pantone book or a Replacement Page for a Pantone book or a fabric swatch (depending on the Pantone range your colour is from) and take it to a paint wholesaler who can mix paint to a specific colour. VeriVide can sell you the correct colour sample to provide the standard for paint mixing.
I have a Pantone Formula Guide; Can I use this for matching fabric colours?
Yes, you can but fabric suppliers and mills will find it much more difficult to produce a good colour match to this especially to the coated version because of the shiny appearance of the paper. The Fashion, Home & Interiors range of colours have been specifically developed because they are achievable on fabric whereas the Formula Guide coated is for Graphic Designers to use for logo colours and printing on clear film and white paper and so many of the colours are too saturated (bright) to be achievable on fabric. We advise that you select colours from the Fashion, Home & Interiors books and then send your suppliers individual
SMART swatches for them to use as a colour standard.
The only exception to this would be printing of licensed artwork onto fabric as most licences artwork colours are specified using the Formula Guide Coated numbers.
I am creating a homeware range from mixed materials, how can I ensure that they coordinate?
Pantone Plastic Standard Chips are also available in the Fashion,Home & Interiors colours and can be purchased individually, for more information please contact pantone@verivide.com. The Pantone TPG paper books from the Fashion,Home & Interiors range can also be used for specifying the colour of non-fabric goods, these are in the same colour range as the cotton swatches and are created by coating the non optic paper rather than printing for a truly opaque finish.
What does the Pantone numbering system mean?
The Pantone Fashion, Home + Interior system uses a numbering system based on the position of the colour in LCH colour space, therefore, each colour is assigned a six-digit number which defines its position in the 3d colour space. Each pair of digits has a specific meaning: the first pair of digits refers to the lightness or darkness of the colour on a scale between 11 (lightest) and 19 (darkest).
The second pair of digits specifies the hue on a scale between 01 and 65 going around the hue circle, where approximately 10 is yellow, 15 is orange, 20 is red, 30 is purple, 40 is blue, 50 is blue/green and 60 is green. The third pair of digits describes the chroma level of the colour on a scale of 00 for a neutral to 64 for the brightest colour.
In the Pantone Graphics PMS system the majority of the colours are referred to using a three- or four-digit number followed by a C or U. There are also a small number of named colours, such as the 18 base colours like PANTONE Reflex Blue or PANTONE Orange 021 which are named after the pigment which Pantone are replicating.
Metallic colours are 3 or 4 digit numbers beginning with an 8, Packaging Metallic colours are 5 digit numbers beginning with 10 and Pastel & Neon colours are 3 or 4 digit numbers beginning with 8 or 9.
The letter suffix refers to the paper stock on which it is printed: a "C" for coated or gloss paper or a "U" for uncoated paper. Metallic and Packaging metallic colours are only available on coated paper.
How can I find the closest Pantone colour when I have CMYK/RGB/HTML/L*a*b* values?
Pantone does not provide a defined cross-reference between colour data and solid Pantone colours, however, you can use Adobe Photoshop to enter the values and cross-reference to Pantone Libraries. Photoshop will default to the closest mathematical colour. The steps to do this are as follows:
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From the main toolbar, click the foreground/background colour square to launch the Adobe Colour Picker
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Type the desired values into the text boxes provided. Note the change in colour on the picker window.
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Click the Colour Libraries button
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Select your desired Pantone library from the drop list
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Photoshop will display a range of seven colours, with one colour outlined with a black border. This is the default colour which is closest to the values entered
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It is important to note that the above results are mathematical, and are also dependent upon the colour settings used in Photoshop. Results should always be compared to a current Pantone guide or book to ensure accurate colour.
How can I update Adobe Photoshop and similar design programmes with new Pantone colours?
With Pantone Connect you are able to integrate all Pantone Colours from every Pantone library easily into your design files. Some features in the Pantone Connect software are free but cross referencing between ranges and import of colours into Adobe requires a Premium licence. Use of Pantone Connect requires a user to sign up for an account which is then available to them on all of their devices. With
Pantone Connect it is possible to:
Search, sort, and filter efficiently through all Pantone colours and libraries
Convert RGB, Hex, CMYK, and L*a*b* values to closest Pantone matches
Cross-reference between Pantone Colour Systems
Create and share colour palettes with your team to facilitate better colour communication and collaboration