I first heard about the pink and green color trend late in 2023 from a Spoonflower presenter, Elizabeth Silver, who mentioned "pickle ball and racket sports with pink and green prep vibes."
And as with a lot of trends, I thought "Oh, that's nice!" and promptly forgot all about it.
But then earlier this year I started getting more requests for stitch markers with various shades of pink and green. I currently offer 15 color options, so it's fairly unusual for multiple people to request very similar combinations within a short timeframe. My curiosity was piqued!
First in Fashion
My first instinct when researching a color trend would be to look towards fashion if I were designing jewelry and home decor for fabric. And that's still a good idea! However, with longer-lasting trends that stretch over years, it's a good idea to broaden your search to see other ways that this trend is playing out. Sometimes your inspiration might come from an unusual place. For example, as far back in 2017, Town and Country magazine was publishing "Why Pink and Green is the Best Color Combination Ever" and showing versions of the color pairing in nature, food, and architecture. Homes and Gardens magazine wrote in 2023 how "Experts Love the Pink and Green Kitchen Trend," while many bakeries continue to feature pink-and-green cakes for all occasions. My search even pulled up this beautiful Pink and Green painting from 1960 by Georgia O'Keeffe.
Here are some additional ideas on how to use this color trend (or any color pairing):
1. Combined in a Single Design
This is probably the most targeted way to use these colors, but also the one that takes the most effort as a designer, especially if they are colors you don't normally gravitate towards. I honestly couldn't remember if I'd ever used this particular combination before.
I looked through my fabric designs to see if I'd ever used this color combination and found the plaid in my Watermelon Summer collection. I'd chosen those red/green shades because of the watermelon's green rind and the red flesh.
Tip: Are there any foods that contain your paired colors together? What about materials (fabric, beads, scrapbook papers) that already combine pink and green (or other color pairs)?
I also found this old ring design of mine that used green beads with pink polka dots on them back in 2015. Those beads are glass, but if you're looking for gemstones, unakite is one that combines those two colors.
2. Paired Together
If you don't have (or want to make) anything that has a combined pink and green pattern, perhaps you could find separate pink and green items and combine them yourself. I'm thinking two different throw pillows on the sofa, one pink and one green. A pink top and green skirt. A pink bracelet and green bracelet worn on the same wrist. You get the idea. This seems like the easiest and most economical way to follow this trend. (After the trend fades, just combine the separate items with other colors!)
An obvious way to use this trend as a designer is to make the same design in different colors, the way I did for these two wallpapers: Peace Signs in Green and Peace Signs in Pink. (You can buy swatches of stick-and-peel wallpaper if you want to use it for crafting rather than covering your walls. Think of it as a giant sticker!)
Another way would be to pair two items that are related not only in color, but also in theme such as my Simple Flowers in Pink and Small Leaf Cross Stitch in Green fabric designs.
Similarly, back in 2020, I made some flower bouquet earrings in 2020 that used pink flowers with green leaves.
Tip: Nature is full of examples of pink with green! Are there other color pairings in nature you might use? I'm thinking of the bright blue ocean and the light beige of a sandy beach.
(By the way, in doing research for this blog post, I learned that finding items that are pink and green sitting near one another was a TikTok trend in 2022. It's related to the TV show Fairly Odd Parents. Just a warning in case you're doing your own research that there were a spate of articles about this phenomena!)
3. Shaded
One way to make this color combination your own is to see if there are shades that might work better for you. A couple of years ago I created these tropical flower patterns in magenta and aqua. That's not quite what you might picture when I say "pink and green," but it is a way to stretch your imagination if you're feeling stumped by a particular color combination.
Tip: If your color pairing doesn't seem to be working, try changing the shades of the colors. Can you lighten or darken one or both colors? What about trying shades that are analogous on the color wheel such as a deep red instead of pink or lime green instead of forest green?
4. Plus One
In a sea of two-color designs, make yours stand out with one additional color. (Notice that I used white in the tropical flower example above.) A neutral such as black, gray, or ivory can be a good addition, but don't let that limit you!
Tip: I love looking at other people's color palettes for ideas. Design Seeds is one good source to try.
I hope you enjoyed these pink and green tips! I've already started eyeing some of my previous fabric designs to see if it makes sense to create a green-and-pink variation.