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For many people who has spent years renting, confronted by the same standard-issue magnolia walls and yearning for adding some actual personality to their home, Pantone's new Colour of the Year might seem like a disappointing choice.

This time around, the influential color company has selected white as its annual hue.

In detail, the shade is called Cloud Dancer – a white characterized as "elevated" and "airy" which "functions as a emblem of calming influence in a society re-learning the value of quiet reflection".

It marks the initial instance a pure white has been picked as the Colour of the Year, and it has generated significant controversy.

As stated by Pantone, Cloud Dancer "transcends mere pigment, it's a mindset" and reflects a collective urge to slow down, reset and find calm after years of visual overload.

But some critics have labelled the decision as "insensitive", arguing that elevating minimalist and immaculate white spaces can seem disconnected from the more compact, messier homes the majority call home.

Some observers contend that presenting white as an ideal carries subtext related to race, causing discomfort amid current political and cultural discussions about inclusion and diversity.

Sterile or Serene?

Interior expert Chris Beaumont says the counter-reaction goes beyond aesthetics, noting that white holds deeper meanings and is seldom a innocuous choice.

"The color white sends a message," he says, shaped by a ten-year period of sparse star homes – most famously Kim Kardashian's stripped-back home – that came to epitomize "affluence, order and removal from chaos".

He explains that white is "not about inspiration but being careful not to offend", with Cloud Dancer embodying "restraint, virtuous simplicity and the concept that neutrality denotes goodness".

The designer references the global health crisis as a turning point in how people interact with their homes.

"Overnight they became our offices, sanctuaries and emotional anchors," he says, adding that against this backdrop, pushing the Colour of the Year towards "further visual emptiness feels rather out of step".

Instead of offering calm, he believes white now risks heightening "a feeling of emptiness", especially when paired with harsh, sterile lighting.

'Hospital Vibes'

An interior designer, a UK-based design expert, agrees and says Cloud Dancer "doesn't really read as a colour" and is "firmly in the bin for me".

While it may work in extremely sparse or structural spaces, she says pure white shades rarely create calm in real homes.

"What looks serene in a professional photo can readily seem sterile at home," she explains.

"White can feel stark and unforgiving and you wouldn't wish your home to give clinical feelings."

She continues that "homes should elicit happiness and feel warm and lived-in, and this shade feels quite distant from that."

Beaumont hopes that homeowners will disregard the Pantone Colour of the Year in favour of "full-scale joyful interior design", using colour to express individuality.

A representative of the Pantone Colour Institute stated that people "bring different feelings" to the meaning of the colour, but it was selected as it "works seamlessly with everything around it, providing a sophisticated impartiality that feels deliberate and adaptable".

Since its launch in 2000, Pantone's Colour of the Year has evolved into a powerful industry signal.

Previous selections have featured the hopefulness of a vibrant pink-orange, the serene assurance of Classic Blue, the energy of a bold pink-red, and more recently softer, emotionally driven tones like a soft peach.

These colours don't just live on trend forecasts - they appear in clothing lines, cosmetic products, interiors, packaging and even technology, shaping how products are marketed and how consumers envision the year ahead.

Victoria Robinson, says Cloud Dancer is a "beautiful choice" and while it may seem basic, "this particular shade seems soft and elegant rather than stark".

Contrary to those who say the colour is dull, the expert sees it as "flexible" and says it's best used in "sleeping quarters and living areas where you want a peaceful, restful ambiance".

"Should you prefer not to redecorate, you can incorporate the colour into a room with pillows, blankets and drapes."

Design expert James Mellan-Matulewicz says although he was surprised that Pantone's selection this year was "fundamentally the absence of colour", it is a bit like vanilla ice cream, in that "it is universally accepted but it's nobody's favourite".

He can see its benefits, explaining that white can work especially effectively as a backdrop for design features like panelling and arched doorways which is a "rising style in contemporary houses".

In apparel, white has long been a staple rather than a bold declaration and as a Colour of the Year it poses a different challenge to designers more accustomed to bold shades.

Luxury stylist A styling expert says elevating white feels "less about novelty and more about intention", reflecting a shift towards refinement after years of trend overloads.

"The color white compels designers and those who wear it alike to focus on form, proportion and quality, there's really nowhere to hide," she clarifies.

But she continues that it also carries assumptions around self-image, lifestyle and advantage, saying: "If white is viewed as something only a limited subset of people can wear well, it becomes exclusionary."

She says the fashion world is already cognizant of the problematic connotations associated with celebrating white as an aspirational standard, particularly amid ongoing conversations about inclusion and accessibility, and the true challenge will be whether "companies address that nuance authentically, or simply aestheticise the colour".

A Societal Shift, Not a Fad

Stylist Katie Malik concedes the choice at first surprised her, given Pantone's track record of vibrant hues, but says it mirrors a genuine shift and aligns with a wider mood of "quiet luxury