Speak Up Archive: Astrology + Color Theory (?)

You are either in or you are not. It is hard to be in the middle. Do you believe? Or not? I am talking about birthdates, the planets, the moon and the sun, the stars and how they are all in alignment on that one day in which you decided to make your mother cry in pain.

Recently I came across the term: Colostrology. It turns out that Pantone� teamed up with astrologer Michelle Bernahrdt to develop this new system that combines numerology and astrology with color theory. Each month has a color (birth color), and each day it gets more specific with a second color. Not meant to reflect your favorite tones, it will suggest which colors should surround you (in any form) to make you better.

Not wasting much time, and being rather curious I had to go in a find out what they had to say about me:

February — Sheer Lilac (pantone� 16-3617): uplifting, progressive and detached.
The color for the month of February is Sheer Lilac. Inspiring and imaginative, this color invokes the qualities of humanity and kindness. Sheer Lilac helps us comprehend the spirit of mankind and allows us to experience our friends and the people in our community as family. Use this color when emotionally entangled, as it can help you practice and understand detachment. Wear, meditate or surround yourself with Sheer Lilac to enhance your spirituality and compassion.

February 3d — Persian Violet (pantone� 17-3925): Poignant, precise and talented.
You have a myriad of talents from which to choose. Artistic and technical, you can succeed in many areas. It is important for you to contribute something to society. It is your effect on the community and the world that will give you the most pleasure. Your personal color helps you move through the different stages of life with ease. Wearing, meditation or surrounding yourself with Persian Violet reminds you to keep your individuality without distancing yourself from the people whom you love and that love you.

And of course, I had to see what they had to say about Armin:

August — Sun Orange (pantone� 16-1257): regal, inspiring and powerful.
The color for the month of August is Sun Orange. Grand and royal, this is a color that resonates with power and greatness. Gold signifies both spiritual and material wealth. The Sun moves through the majestic sign of Leo during the month of August. The sigh of Leo rules royalty. The brightness of this color dispels darkness and is especially helpful when you feel the need to protect yourself. Wearing, meditating or surrounding yourself with Sun Orange increases joy and optimism. It also assists in aligning you with riches, monetary support and your position in life.

August 5th — Feldspar (pantone� 16-5815): independent, trustworthy and kind.
You have many gifts and talents. Your ability to make something our of nothing is awe-inspiring. People like you and when you feel centered, you can move in and out of professional and social spheres with grace and ease. You need a certain amount of independence and recognition in order to do a good job. Your personal color inspires trust and flow. Wearing, meditating and surrounding yourself with Feldspar integrates your need for independence and your desire for a loving partnership.

Best of all, for $7.50 you can by your own monthly Colorstrology guide (4.36”H x 1.75”W x .5”D), which contains your monthly color and all daily colors (in that month), a unique color profile, three personality key words and color name and number.

Wow!

Back in medieval times the stars & planets gave many bad omens. And some people were born under bad signs (or conjunctions or whatever). Isn't it nice how much more positive the heavens have become over the centuries!

On Oct.07.2004 at 08:18 AM

My friend got suckered into naming a star after his girlfriend. Some star registry thing. I told him it was a scam, he said no way, but now him and his girlfriend have broken up. And design won't fix that..

On Oct.07.2004 at 09:03 AM

Fun, but not necessarily accurate, I think. (Like most generalized personality assessments, you can convince yourself that they fit who you are).

I find it interesting that those February hues coordinate with February's traditional birthstone - amethyst. I wonder if the other months do as well...?

(And a sidenote: Bryony - we share a birthday! )

On Oct.07.2004 at 10:45 AM

I once had a New York client for whom I was doing a one-color cover for her modeling agency facebook. I had to wait like a week before I could get her to decide on the color she wanted because she hadn't visited her color/astrology person to figure out her "color for the year." For a midwesterner, very odd.

Personally, I think astrology is a great way for someone to make a buck off of people who don't know better. But, there are many, many people who are much more comfortable being told how to think than to actually think for themselves.

On Oct.07.2004 at 10:59 AM

Colostrology sounds like Colonoscopy to me.

And just like Colonoscopy, Colostrology helps us know things we can't know on our own.

The similarities are eerie. I'm scared!

On Oct.07.2004 at 11:17 AM

You sure took your time showing up! As a kid I would ask anybody who crossed my path their birth date and then I would run to my room I write down in my calendar in hopes of finding who shared my birth date. Sad I know, the worst part is that for years I would transfer all my “information” to a new calendar my mom would get me.

Isn't it nice how much more positive the heavens have become over the centuries!

It’s funny too, how we all have lots of talent in us (I browed through some random dates and this is what I found out).

It’s curious that Pantone has embarked on this path, at least from a branding sense. There are people who ridicule this stuff and I’m a little surprised that Pantone has embraced it, as they have.

I have to agree on this. Not only is this something I got a kick out of, I was incredulous that Pantone would spend the time, money and energy on something like this. Couldn’t they find a better way in which to spend their resources? Even if it meant researching what color you should paint your son’s room in order to stimulate his brain, trying to make him grow up a mathematician. OK, a bit of a stretch here, but really, what will they get out of this anyway?

On Oct.07.2004 at 11:34 AM

People with synaesthesia are going to have quite an opinion on this. For a friend of mine, Tuesday is a color something like Pantone's February. Wednesday is bubble gum pink.

I'll have to ask her what color the months are. How accurate to her particular thinking do you believe Pantone might be when assigning monthly colors to her profile?

And what about color blind people? What if you can't see your monthly color? Do you get your money back?

Pantone may be branding themselves as "the color authority," but individuals will see the company's limitations.

On Oct.07.2004 at 12:11 PM

kp,

Funny that you mention synaesthesia... my mother-in-law has this phenomenon very strongly. The thing with synaesthetes is that not all of them agree on what colors match which words. And sometimes it's not the words that have colors, but the letters themselves (I made an alphabet book as a design project based off of the colors, genders and personalities she has associated with each letter... like I said, very strong).

There could be a weird intersection here with "nameology" too... if words have colors, then what do the colors say about us, what do our names mean, and how does that meaning intersect with that color?

Whoops, digression.

Here's a question: doesn't culture influence the meaning of colors? How the heck does that play into this?

> But, there are many, many people who are much more comfortable being told how to think than to actually think for themselves.

I think part of it is, as others have noted, how simply glowing all these reports are of ourselves. It's nice to hear those things, and it's almost like a substitute for "real" affirmation from living, breathing people. It makes you feel secure to know your future, to be given a tool to solve a problem with, or to have someone else tell you "there's nothing you can do" and confirm your own thoughts about an issue. As a result, it's a behavior reinforcer. Pay money, feel good/secure, pay money, feel good/secure...

On Oct.07.2004 at 01:03 PM

Weird, my birthday is also 2/3. Good things come in three's, right??

I always get a kick out of this sort of thing, and hell, sometimes it's actually somewhat accurate. I definitely don't consider it fact...more of a novelty...yet I occasionally read horriscopes so go figure.

I find personality tests like the Meyer's Briggs more interesting and believable. I wouldn't necessarily say those things are for people who don't know how to think for themselves. I see it as more of a chance for self reflection in a hectic world.

On Oct.07.2004 at 04:31 PM

hi, another february here (23rd)

but sheer lilac? could anything be further from the truth! i despise all things purple... its also very interesting to see that complementary colors are a half year away (at least in the case of feb and aug...i think those colortologists are up to something...

On Oct.08.2004 at 07:26 AM

My friend got suckered into naming a star after his girlfriend. Some star registry thing. I told him it was a scam

yeah, my parents did that for my brother one christmas:::shakes head::: [sucker]

On Oct.08.2004 at 07:27 AM

I don't buy it, but I'd probably buy a book about it — to see what "the color authority" has to say and how it would be presented. I don't doubt that there is sizable audience that'd do the same. Pantone's resources are probably not poorly spent.

I hope I'm Warm Grey.

On Oct.09.2004 at 07:30 PM