A couple of years ago I did a blog post looking at the Pantone Colour of the Year for inspiration, so this year I have decided to do the same. This year’s colour is Viva Magenta 18-1750:

Pantone (link to Pantone’s website) produce a system for matching colours which is used by printmakers, graphic designers and fashion designers, and every year they select one or two of their colours for the colour of the year. This years Viva Magenta 18-1750 is bright and uplifting and I’m sure we will see it popping up in yarn colours and knitting designs over the coming year. What’s not to like about this strong and vibrant colour. Leatrice Eiseman the Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute describes the colour like this:

In this age of technology, we look to draw inspiration from nature and what is real. PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta descends from the red family, and is inspired by the red of cochineal, one of the most precious dyes belonging to the natural dye family as well as one of the strongest and brightest the world has known.

Rooted in the primordial, PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta reconnects us to original matter. Invoking the forces of nature, PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta galvanizes our spirit, helping us to build our inner strength

Leatrice Eiseman
Executive Director, Pantone Color Institute – pantone.com January 2023.

Now I have magenta on the mind I am seeing it everywhere and we have so many great magenta and magenta-ish yarns in the shop to choose from.

Magenta is slightly hard to place as it’s pinky but slightly purply and slightly red. But its vibrancy is great for all sorts of projects like striking accessories, or bold jumpers. For a closer look at the yarns see below:

The Fibre Co – Cumbria Fingering in Cowberry. 4Ply – Fingering, 60% merino wool, 30% brown masham wool and 10% mohair. Inspired by England’s stunning northwest region Cumbria Fingering combines the best breeds of wool with mohair to give a yarn as stunning as the landscape it has its name from.

Fyberspates Cumulus in Plum. 2Ply – Lace, 74% Baby Suri Alpaca 26% Mulberry Silk. Cumulus is Fyberspates’ most luxurious creation, deliciously soft, heavy lace weight with a wonderful halo.

Noro Silk Garden Lite in 2172. DK, 45% Silk 45% Mohair 10% Wool. All animal fibres used in their production comes from certified organic farms, their distinct dyeing process is slow and meticulous with the upmost integrity and concern for our suroundings, and behind their handspun, loosely processed textures is an intention of creating yarns that remain true to their natural heritage.

G-uld No.4 Mini in Co20091g. Light 4Ply – Fingering, 75% Falkland Merino, 25% Gotland wool. G-uld is a small indie natural hand-dyeing venture based in Bredsten, Denmark. G-uld is based on solid craftsmanship, with an understanding and respect for material, quality and nature.

Riverknits Chimera in Pomegranate. 4Ply – Fingering, 100% Bluefaced Leichester wool. Chimera is a magical hand-dyed marl entirely unique to RiverKnits! It is a smooth, 4Ply, worsted-spun 2-fold yarn with a lot of lustre and amazing softness.

Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk Sølje in Mørk Rossa. 4Ply – Fingering, 100% Norwegian Pelt Wool. Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk AS is a traditional Norwegian family owned wool spinning mill founded in 1898. It has been in the same family for four generations, and some of the machines that are being used are over 100 years old.

Norne Yarn Merino / Silk / Yak Singles in I’ll be your bitch, Gyda! 4Ply – Fingering, 15% Yak 20% Silk 65% Merino Wool. This fibre blend beautifully compliments Norne Yarn’s colour palette inspired by Norse Mythology, combining the deepest of hues with an almost metalic shine.

&Make DK in Mille Pink. DK, 55% Highland wool, 35% alpaca, 10% linen. For their DK &Make yarn, the Fibre Co. added linen to soft alpaca and strong Highland wool, and it really adds a crispness to the stitch definition, making it a perfect yarn for textured stitch patterns – popping purls, crisp crochet, sharp stitches in every craft – this is a versatile 2 ply yarn great for sweaters and accessories.

The Fibre Co Cirro in Sublime. Sport, 40% Suri Alpaca, 40% Organic Cotton and 20% Merino wool. Cirro is a sport weight yarn, processed in a mill in Southern Peru, that combines the long lustrous Suri alpaca fibre with Merino wool. The brushed effect is created by wrapping this blend around an organic cotton binder thread to achieve a light and airy yarn, perfectly balanced for body and drape.

The Fibre Co – Cumbria Worsted in Cowberry. Worsted, 60% merino wool, 30% brown masham wool and 10% mohair. Inspired by England’s stunning northwest region Cumbria Worsted combines the best breeds of wool with mohair to give a yarn as stunning as the landscape it has its name from.

Fyberspates Scrumptious 4ply in Raspberry. 4Ply – Fingering, 55% Superwash Merino, 45% Silk. Soft and incredibly shiny 4Ply/Sport weight yarn, in Fyberspates’ distinctive Merino Silk Blend. The colours practically burst out of this luscious yarn.

Hélène Magnússon Gilitrutt Tvíband in Old Pink. 2Ply – Lace, 100% Icelandic Lambswool. With Gilitrutt Tvíband, Hélène Magnússon has created the first Icelandic plied lace weight on the market today, made of soft 100% Icelandic lambswool. Gilitrutt’s two plies give it strength while maintaining a surprisingly soft hand and beautiful halo.

Black Elephant Wensleydale in Nightcap. 4Ply – Fingering, 100% Wensleydale Wool. Wensleydale is a new addition to Black Elephant’s yarns, this is a sock / 4ply weight 100% British pure wool, strong and hardwearing with a high twist, still the long staple length gives a wonderful lustre and silkyness to the touch.

Norne Yarn Silk Lace in Darradarljod. 2Ply – Lace, 100% Mulberry Silk. With a generous meterage of 800 meters, only one hank is enough for a medium sized shawl. This yarn beautifully compliments Norne Yarn’s colour palette inspired by Norse Mythology, combining the deepest of hues with a lush softness and shine.

Looking to knit something magenta? I have pulled together a phew magenta projects below to get you inspired:

Coiled Magenta (link to designers website) by Carol Feller. The beautiful stripes of this design are created with reverse stockinette helical stripes to create a seamless join. Worked from the bottom up and using short rows to create angles. Its a great way to feature a favourite colour. Its knit here in Stolen Stitches Nua Sport in the colours Café Flamingo and Kitten Fluff.

Treppenviertel Cowl (link to designers website) by Nicola Susen. This cowl looks extremely cosy due to its clever shape. The fold down collar extends in a point to keep you warm at the top of your jacket. Its knit in a 4ply so I would go for Fyberspates Scrumptious 4ply which would feel lovely against your neck.

Jones (link to designers website) by tincanknits. This classic cardigan has just the right amount of cables which giving detail and texture. The folded collar creates a smart look and whats more the pattern is written for babies right through to adults, so the whole family can have one. I think the &Make DK would work here, the linen element would give the cables a slightly rustic quality.

Viajante (link to designers website) by Martina Behm. This giant shawl is a thing of beauty and great for using a beautiful yarn. Knit as a long tube that can be worn in multiple ways. Norne Yarn Silk Lace would be perfect for this.