This piece first appeared as Exhibition News: Top Drawer SS17 at blockdesign.co.uk

Top Drawer SS17 was a celebration of bold, saturated colour.Block have always been dedicated to the promotion of a Life in Colour and this season it seems that everyone agrees.

Colour on the catwalk

Happy was a key trend on the runway, brought to life at the Fashion Show by models wearing swimwear by Maryan Mehlhorn, accessorised with bags by Sun Jellies, scarves by Hem + Edge and jewellery from Jackie Brazil.

Colour research

Hosted this year by G.F. Smith, Top Drawer's PaperFest featured a presentation by Mark Jessett entitled: The World's Favourite Colour. Established in 1885, G . F Smith has long been a name that is synonymous with unique and exciting paper. Things are set to get more intriguing than ever this year with the launch of an innovative project to discover the world's favourite colour. 'What is your favourite colour?' Mark asks, rhetorically, 'This is one of the most common questions we are asked as a child, but do we still know the answer?' The interactive colour finder at worldsfavouritecolour.com allows users to take part by submitting the colour they love. The project promises reveal some of the factors that govern our colour preferences: do girls really prefer pink? Are younger people more bold in their choices? As if being part of this unique piece of research were not enough, one person will be chosen from the submissions  to have their favourite colour made into a beautiful new paper which will be named after them. They will also win a trip to the Lake District to see the paper being made at the G.F. Smith mill.

Colour trend forecasting

Also at Paperfest was Laura Perryman, Co-founder of Colour of Saying and Colour, Trend & Material Expert. Laura's Masterclass was a fascinating journey into the world of trend-forecasting, and offered great insight on how emerging design trends relate to key design decisions. Without giving too many secrets away, Laura was able to reveal that the plethora of pastels that have dominated much of the last five years and set to be replaced by greater richness. 'We've been in a bit of a pastel rut' says Laura, 'we are already seeing the growing significant of the home as a sanctuary.' Red, burnt orange and dusky pink are amongst Laura's predictions for the coming season.

Colour trend forecasting is always at the heart of the Block design process. Our latest calendar, Flip Perpetual Calendar  challenges expectations via unexpected colour interactions. At Top Drawer these calendars were one of the most talked about products on our stand. Each page is saturated with colour and die-cut to reveal the page beneath, creating a subtle three-dimensional effect and piece of wall art that changes every day.

Having picked up early on the growing trend in vibrant colours for the home, we were able to show an expanded range of neon-inspired Coat Racks. The Love Coat Rack is now available in Red and Pink and a collection of lightly ironic coat hooks in rich colours have joined the collection.

Conversant colours

When we saw Mark at G.F. Smith, he asked if we had submitted our favourite colours. It's an agonising choice, and we're still on the fence. For Block, colour is all about emotional interaction and we find that colours express themselves best when they have a partner to talk to. For this reason, one of our favourite new designs is a pair of bookends that ask the user to think about how colours converse with one another and the things around them. Currently at prototype stage, we can't wait to introduce these products to our readers later this year.