Inspired by the freedom found when we let creativity take the lead, our approach for the 2027 Colormix® Trend Forecast, Rewild, is fresh and deliberate: 48 colors, no pre-curated combinations. Instead, this year’s forecast acts as a lens through which to see color as something alive, contextual, and, as in the natural world, unified through the passage of time.  Three design stories grounded in the past, present and future, as well as a group of 10 Continuity Colors that both transcend and endure trends, drive the forecast.

We invited seven designers – Kerrie Kelly, Ramona Tan, Ryan James Conover, Kim Lewis, Tamara Day, Autumn Dawn, and Laura Hodges  – to be the first to experience this new approach. We asked each of them to put the full forecast into practice, curating a signature palette of their own and sharing how they’re working, what’s inspiring them, and how they’re reviving, reigniting, and reconnecting to what matters through color and design.

For some designers, this year’s approach to color felt immediately right. Kerrie Kelly  sees it as an opportunity to truly own the process of color selection. “This is less about prescribing color and more about inviting designers into authorship,” she says. “That shift feels incredibly relevant right now.” Reflecting on her time at Milan Design Week this year, Kerrie notes that the forecast’s open framework aligns with the global mood of restraint and material nuance she observed there – color that “behaves more like a surface than a statement.”

Ramona Tan is drawn in by a “continued embrace of pigment and saturation,” as she puts it. “The depth and visual texture of these colors create a compelling backdrop for architectural elements like stone, tile, and millwork, reinforcing a broader emphasis on materiality and atmosphere,” she says, describing Rewild as both a creative reference and a practical tool for initiating conversations with clients around mood and spatial experience.

For Ryan James Conover, the 48-color collection felt less like a trend report and more like a reflection of how he already works. “This isn’t as much about trends as it is about returning to exciting color combinations and showcasing how the person of today lives,” he says. “It is as if you, as the designer, are standing in the middle of a roundabout on a main intersection and getting to pull bits and pieces from various times, tones, and styles to create a space for a timeless, enchanting future.”

When presented with an exclusive first look at the full forecast, each designer gravitated to a uniquely personal point of view for their signature Rewild palettes. The choices they made reveal as much about their practice as about the colors themselves.

For her signature selection, Kerrie assembled a palette that is both rich and beautifully balanced. “Each of these colors carries a sense of depth and mineral quality – they’re not flat, and they shift with light and material,” she explains. Her vision for the palette, which features sumptuous dark hues like Deep Sea Dive SW 7618 (279-C5) and Mountain Fig SW 9690, is whole-home and harmonious, “cabinetry, walls, and furnishings layered tonally rather than contrasted,” expressed through warm woods with visible grain, honed stone, and patinated metals.

Tamara Day, designer and host of Magnolia Network’s Bargain Mansions, built an expansive 12-color palette that she describes as “earthy, storied, slightly European, collected, quietly glamorous, and warm but moody.” Her approach is room-by-room and narrative-driven. She imagines Hulett Ore SW 9574 as a dramatic envelope in the living room, Mature Grape SW 6286 (190-C7) diluted and used on a powder room ceiling for a cocoon-like effect, and White Duck SW 7010 (254-C5) as a hallway “reset” between stronger moments. “It has a very ‘old home updated thoughtfully’ quality to it rather than feeling like rooms were decorated independently,” she says of her vision.

Ryan James Conover envisions his boldly botanical palette for “a romantic gathering room, a café by day turned speakeasy lounge at dusk.” He’s thinking in terms of shifting light and layered finishes: “From sipping a morning coffee with the natural light falling on the matte finish of Deep Sea Dive SW 7618 (279-C5) to enjoying a freshly made cocktail at sunset with the chandeliers freckling gold shimmer onto Mature Grape SW 6286 (190-C7) and Secret Garden SW 6181 (213-C7) in a Satin finish.”

Laura Hodges developed a palette that calls upon the saturated tones found in the natural world “with a sense of historical reference,” and she says she can see its versatility working across a full home in a multitude of ways. “I love color drenching a room and would use the stronger colors in smaller rooms for an immersive experience,” she tells us. “Velvets in these rich jewel tones really convey the color beautifully.”

For Ramona Tan’s palette, which is centered on some of the 2027 Colormix Trend Forecast’s most mysterious hues, she says she was led by pure instinct. “There’s a nurturing quality to the palette that is confident yet restrained and embodies a sense of quiet luxury rather than overt statement.” She imagines these hues in wine rooms, lounges, and powder rooms, paired with fumed or ebony oak and expressive marbles.

Kim Lewis's fashion-forward palette is distinctive, unexpected, and representative of a recent shift in her own thinking. “I never thought I’d say this, but I’ve been drawn to ‘cooler’ palettes mixed with warm whites: hot hues like Real Red SW 6868 (101-C6) and Humorous Green SW 6918 (146-C1) in unexpected moments like furniture, grounded with more muted walls and trim like Icicle SW 6238 (273-C3) and Warm Winter SW 9506.”

Autumn Dawn, with a 14-color palette spanning a broad mix of hues and aptly named “World View,” took full advantage of Rewild’s prompt to let her intuition lead the way when it comes to color. “This palette feels multidimensional, inspired by my travels and the diverse colors I observe in the world,” she says. “The world has a long history. When we travel, we notice colors in things like marble, stone, food, and nature. Each one brings its own sense of time and beauty.”

Seven designers, 48 colors, and no map – yet this exercise proved that when you follow your intuition, you’re never lost. And when good design feels earned, not assembled, and color feels specially selected rather than overly structured, we let in more light, more life, and create spaces that resist the pull of algorithms and automation.

The 2027 Colormix Trend Forecast was born, in part, from a broader cultural shift: a collective return to analog hobbies, a hunger for creativity and individuality, and the real mental health benefits those pursuits bring. The designers we spoke with are living this shift, not just observing it.

Experience Rewild, our 2027 Colormix Trend Forecast, for yourself, and bring home your exclusive Designer Sample Kit, which includes our lookbook and limited-edition set of color samples, complimentary with your Design+ membership.