Blue has featured strongly in interiors this year with Bright Skies being Dulux Colour of the Year in 2022, but now it’s been revealed that the colour is a top fashion choice as well.
According to research, blue is the most-searched primary colour worldwide for people shopping online for coloured clothing.
The study by luxury cashmere brand N.Peal combined Google trends and mood tracker data to reveal the connections between colours and how they can affect our emotions, known as mood fashion or dopamine dressing after the so-called “happy hormone”.
Jo McLaren, head of E-commerce at N.Peal said “Dopamine dressing is a big trend in 2022, colours are now changing not only with the seasons, but also with the mood we are in, or want to be in, each day.”
But does blue make you blue?
Happily, YouGov’s mood tracker does not show a correlation between sadness and shopping for blue clothes.
Whilst sadness ratings stayed fairly constant throughout 2021, more and more people were shopping for blue fashion.
One theory is that people are buying blue because of its connection with calmness and serenity.
Director of Trendlistr and Northumbria University Fashion Communication lecturer, Louisa Rogers said: “We wear and are immersed in colour every day but we rarely realise how much of an impact it can have on our mood, it’s very tangible.
“Blue’s closeness to the sea and sky makes it a colour that can reset our sleep cycles, so it’s perfect for wearing to feel calm, cosy and at peace.”
Red is popular around Christmas, Halloween and Valentine’s Day but the research also found spikes in people shopping for red clothes for spring and summer.
Louisa said: “Wearing red boosts our energy levels, making it ideal for evening wear or whenever you need a bit of an injection of dynamism.”
The data also revealed a correlation between searches for yellow clothing – a colour associated with happiness – and YouGov’s happiness ratings.
Louisa said: “Physiologically it can boost your metabolism but it can overwhelm the senses – so style it with caution!”
