When I first saw the 2026 Pantone Color of the Year announced - Cloud Dancer - I thought hmmm. White. For tradition-sake, my daughter Rachel @snippetsofsweetness went ahead and ordered us Pantone swatch cards, and the first thing I noticed, was that it was definitely not white-white. At least not Kona White (on the left below); and though closer, it wasn't Kona Snow (on the right below) either.
So of course, I chose to consult my color cards and see what seemed closest. I was surprised to find just two colors I was inclined to order - Cotton Couture Soft White and Painters Palette Rice Paper, shown left and center below with Kona Snow on the right. In the natural light of my studio window, my first choice for a match is the CC Soft White.
As you may have heard, the 2026 Pantone Quilt Challenge is calling for a white-ish quilt.
- Aim for roughly 90% white and 10% anything else.
- "White'"can include: creams, off-whites, beiges, very pale versions of other hues, and low volume prints.
Personally, I'll be using a combination of these in my quilt project (top-bottom below):
- Kona White
- Essex White
- Diamond Textiles Top Stitch in White
- Painters Palette Rice Paper
- Cotton Couture Soft White
