In December, the Pantone Color Institute announced “Tangerine Tango” as 2012’s Color of the Year.
Described as a “spirited reddish orange,” by Pantone, the color has popped up throughout Spring 2012 designer collections, from menswear to beauty. According to Pantone, the color provides an “energy boost.” Get inspired to boost your mood from these various uses of the color.
Nanette Lepore incorporated a variety of neons in shoe, bathing suit, and dress designs. This bright orange suit shows us orange can be worn to work.
Take inspiration and opt for this similar-hued dress, paired with nude heels, from the designer’s spring ready-to-wear collection.
Tangerine tango has been worked into bold prints for the Cynthia Steffe Spring 2012 collection as well. This tribal-inspired dresss with a fringed bottom works in the color with not-so-subtle sequin designs.
This Calvin Klein flowy blouse is one alternative, picking up the printed feel minus the embellishments.
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Head-to-toe tangerine tango was spotted at Elie Tahari.
Try it yourself by pairing a brighter orange J.Crew cashmere sweater with ligher Urban Outfitters jeans. Finish off with gold flats or sandals.
Your guy’s wardrobe could likely use the warm hue to contrast his usual blues and greens. Tangerine tango was all over the men at Tommy Hilfiger, knitted into sweaters and sewn into modern backpacks. These orange khaki-style pants could camouflage spilled Dijon mustard at a Labor Day barbecue or backfire and lead to ridicule. No promises. [pagebreak]
Of course, there are other ways to incorporate tangerine tango into your life without going full on Great Pumpkin. Orange accessories complement gray and beige outfits well—channel the color combo in the above VPL Spring 2012 outfit (note small amounts of black don’t look all Bewitched like our mothers told us).
Go for neutral tops and bottoms and add tote your necessities in this leather Kate Spade handbag.
Or, don these unexpected Vince Camuto flats with a shiny toe.
This bright Marc by Marc Jacobs computer case might even keep you awake in class.
Tangerine tango is all over jewelry this season as well, and you might already have some coral necklaces down in the bottom of your jewelry box from the time before jewelry lines like Tiffany & Co. dropped the material.
An orange stone is a more natural, earthy version of the color than we’ve seen in the neon prints on the runway, and it goes great with gold, as in these Lauren by Ralph Lauren chandelier earrings or the Tiffany ring pictured above.[pagebreak]
Tangerine tango didn’t stop there on the runway this season. The models at Jason Wu sported bright orangey-red lips, thanks to makeup artist Diane Kendal who coated red lips with neon orange eyeshadow. An easier way to do this at home is to mix two lipstick shades.
Try the new CoverGirl Blast Flipstick Lipcolor in Stunner, which has a red shade on one end and a gold shade on the other.
While you wait for the warm months when you can lounge on the beach in a tangerine tango bikini, get your daily dose of orange by eating carrots. A 2010 study by Bristol University showed that the glow your skin takes on with an extra dose of beta-carotene is rated as more attractive than a tan achieved from baking in the sun.