FAQs

Each purchase of a DigiEye system comes with two days training included. VeriVide recommends at least one day of training for each user and training can be provided as a group or individually. Additional DigiEye training can be purchased at any time, useful when new members of staff join. DigiEye service and support packages can be purchased through VeriVide or your dealer. Many DigiEye features can be picked up by anyone. Some advanced features are used only by senior colour and quality control professionals. General colour knowledge is helpful, Colour training is available through VeriVide. If your question hasn't been answered, simply drop an email to sales@verivide.com or call +44 (0)116 284 7790 and we will be happy to answer!

Find out which Interiors colours are currently on trend by consulting the Pantone trend publications. Please head over to our Trend Forecasting section, where you will be able to purchase the latest Pantone trend books. The latest issue of VIEWPOINT COLOUR is currently available. This contains Autumn/Winter 2024/2025 colour forecasts, trend-led colour changes and much more, for only £75. The Pantone View Home & Interiors is a trend book published annually; Usually launched in March, it contains the trends for the following year. The 2024 volume is available to buy now and features colour directions. Additionally the book is available in a kit with swatches of the featured colours in either fabric or plastic material. Please email us at colourstandards@verivide.com if you would like to purchase the latest trend book.

It is possible to purchase Home & Interiors swatches. Pantone Connect software enables selection of colours from the Pantone, Home +Interiors range. These colours are available as individual SMART swatches and can be purchased separately for you to send to clients or suppliers. The Pantone View Home & Interiors trend book, published annually, is also available in a kit. The kit has two versions, fabric swatches of the featured colours for soft furnishings or plastic chips for hard goods.  

If you are using mixed materials to create a homeware or accessory range there is a challenge to colour match the hard and soft goods to match or coordinate. The mixed materials in the Pantone Fashion, Home + Interiors colour range facilitates excellent colour matching. When producing soft and hard goods for the same range we recommend that the soft goods are matched to cotton TCX SMART swatch standards and the hard goods to Pantone Plastic Standard Chips which replicate the cotton TCX colour range on large Polypropylene chips. The same colours are available in both materials. Pantone Plastic Standard Chips are available in the Fashion, Home + Interiors colours as well as the Graphics Coated colours and can be purchased individually, for more information please contact pantone@verivide.com. Alternatively the Fashion, Home & Interiors range also includes the Pantone TPG paper books which can also be used for specifying the colour of non-fabric goods, these are in the same colour range as the cotton swatches and are created by coating the non optic paper rather than printing for a truly opaque finish. Individual colours are also available as large TPG sheets. Please note applying the same colour to different materials may cause different colour appearances due to surface construction, reflectance and other variables.

Pantone numbering varies according to the Pantone range.

Pantone PMS

Pantone PMS or Pantone Matching System™ is the original Pantone colour system for the Graphic Design and Printing industry. Most Pantone PMS system colours are referred to using a three or four-digit number followed by a C or U. There are also a small number of named colours, including the 18 base ink colours. Examples include PANTONE Reflex Blue or PANTONE Orange 021 which are named after the pigment. Greys and Blacks also have a name and the number changes as the depth and tone of the colour changes. For example there are 11 different Cool Gray colours. Metallic colours are 3 or 4 digit numbers beginning with an 8, Packaging Metallic colours are 5 digit numbers beginning with 10 and Pastel & Neon colours are 3 or 4 digit numbers beginning with 8 or 9. The letter suffix refers to the paper stock on which it is printed. "C" for coated or gloss paper or "U" for uncoated (matte) paper. Metallic colours are only available on coated paper. The Pantone CMYK book has a different numbering system. Numbers begin P and each page in the book contains 16 versions of a colour. For example, page 103 is a blue shade and the variations are numbered P 103-1 through to P 103-16.

Pantone Fashion, Home + Interior

The Pantone Fashion, Home + Interior system uses a numbering system based on the position of the colour in 3d LCH colour space. Consequently each colour is assigned a six-digit number with each pair of numbers corresponding to one of the attributes. Lightness is represented by the first pair of digits on a scale between 11 (lightest) and 19 (darkest). Hue is specified by the second pair of digits on a scale between 01 and 65 going around the hue circle. Approximately 10 is yellow, 15 is orange, 20 is red, 30 is purple, 40 is blue, 50 is blue/green and 60 is green. Likewise the Chroma is described by the third pair of digits from 00 for neutral to 64 for the brightest colour. The suffix after the 6 digit number relates to the substrate - TCX suffix relates to Textile Cotton, TN to Textile Nylon, TSX to Textile Polyester and TPG to Textile Paper.

To find the closest Pantone colour to CMYK/RGB/HTML/L*a*b* values use a physical book or Pantone Connect software. If your supplier provides CMYK, RGB, Hex or L*a*b* values to colour match instead of a colour standard you can convert to the closest Pantone colour. It is possible to look up some data in Pantone Graphics books. The Pantone CMYK Guide provides CMYK values for every colour in the Guide. Likewise the Pantone Color Bridges provide RGB and HTML codes for the Pantone PMS spot colours and CMYK values for the closest colour match to these in 4-color process printing. For digital design Pantone Connect enables the conversion, you can search, sort, and filter efficiently through all Pantone colours and libraries and convert RGB, Hex, CMYK, and L*a*b* values to closest Pantone matches. Pantone Connect allows import of all Pantone libraries into Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. Once the colours are imported it is possible to search for the closest colour to the supplied data. Photoshop will default to the closest mathematical colour. The steps to do this are as follows:

1. From the main toolbar, click the foreground/background colour square to launch the Adobe Colour Picker
2. Type the desired values into the text boxes provided. Note the change in colour on the picker window.
3. Click the Colour Libraries button
4. Select your desired Pantone library from the drop list
5. Photoshop will display a range of seven colours, with one colour outlined with a black border. This is the default colour which is closest to the values entered
6. It is important to note that the above results are mathematical, and are also dependent upon the colour settings used in Photoshop. Results should always be compared to a current Pantone guide or book to ensure accurate colour.

With Pantone Connect you are able to integrate Abode design software with Pantone Colours from every Pantone library easily into your design files. Some features in the Pantone Connect software are free but cross referencing between ranges and import of colours into Adobe requires a Premium licence. Use of Pantone Connect requires a user to sign up for an account which is then available to them on all of their devices. With Pantone Connect it is possible to: Search, sort, and filter efficiently through all Pantone colours and libraries Convert RGB, Hex, CMYK, and L*a*b* values to closest Pantone matches Cross-reference between Pantone Colour Systems Create and share colour palettes with your team to facilitate better colour communication and collaboration

No, fabric swatches are only available for colours in the Pantone Fashion, Home +Interior range, all of the other Pantone ranges (e.g. Coated and Uncoated) are produced on printed paper not fabric. The Pantone Fashion, Home +Interior range colours have 6 digit numbers and they are available on three different substrates: 2626 colours are available as Cotton swatches where the numbers have 6 digits and are suffixed TCX e.g. 11-0601 TCX, purchase Cotton fabric swatches 203 unique colours are available as Polyester swatches where the numbers have 6 digits and are suffixed TSX e.g. 14-1906 TSX, purchase Polyester swatches 21 unique colours are available as Nylon swatches where the numbers have 6 digits and are suffixed or are suffixed TN e.g. 16-2150 TN, purchase Nylon swatches We try to maintain stock of at least 2 swatches (more of popular colours) of every one of the 2850 FHI colours ready for same day despatch if orders are placed before 12.30pm. To purchase fabric swatches (and cut down variations of these) see the swatch ordering page of our website.

Why is my Pantone swatch labelled revised standard, have they changed the colour? Revised Standard means that the dye recipe has changed since the colour was first established; it may not have been recently. The colour will still match the original colour standard under D65. The first Pantone TCX colours were formulated in 2007 these 1925 colours are still in the range, however dyeing technology has changed since and some dyes are no longer available. The recipes of some colours were changed in response to customer demand, to make them more reproducible in the real world and to reduce problems achieving the colour. Pantone has worked closely with a number of dyeing mills to optimise colour matching, where difficulty remained the decision was made to reformulate the colour. It does not mean that the actual colour swatch has changed as the revised recipe is formulated to match the original colour perfectly under D65 daylight lighting. The swatches are marked up to alert you to the possibility that the colour may be slightly different under another light source (metameric).

Yes, if you and your suppliers have purchased SMART fabric swatches recently and stored them correctly* they will match. Ensure both sets of fabric swatches match, purchase direct from an authorised Pantone partner such as VeriVide. Production of Pantone fabric swatches is tightly controlled,  subsequently they are shipped globally to Pantone offices and authorised Pantone partners. Swatches are sold sealed in a protective plastic wrap.*Once opened we recommend that you replace the swatch inside the plastic wrap. Store away from light and dust in a closed box or drawer to prevent fading and contamination. Dyeing of SMART swatches occurs in one dye house and the quality control is very strict. Fabric for SMART swatches is matched to the original spectral data standard with a delta E measurement of 0.5 or less. This is hardly noticeable when visual matching. Additionally, production of a colour is always on the same side of the standard in chroma, hue and lightness. Still worried? First check that your supplier is matching to a SMART swatch. Matching to a paper or fabric Pantone book  will cause variation. The Cotton chips in the Cotton Passport, Cotton Planner or Cotton Chip Set are affected by the background paper and glue. The paper books are produced using ink pigments and will not be a perfect match to the cotton swatch. Ask the age of the SMART swatch, old swatches may have faded or be dirty from handling!

Fluorescent colours absorb ultraviolet light and emit it as visible light which increases the perceived brightness of the colour. Used in fashion products as well as in safety clothing these colours are in demand. Pantone developed the Nylon Brights Swatch ring which contains 21 super bright colours - brighter than can be achieved on Cotton. The colours are dyed on Nylon 6,6 to optimise lightfastness and wash fastness. Of the 21 colours, 14 contain flavine or rhodamine acid dyestuff which qualifies them as true fluorescents. Colours include Safety Yellow 13-0630 TN, Green Gecko 13-0340 TN and Knockout Pink 16-2130 TN Pantone developed additional fluorescent colours on Polyester, found in the Polyester Swatch Book. Sun Glare 13-0663 TSX, Lounge Lizard 16-0163 TSX, Candy Kiss 15-1863 TSX, Live Wire 15-1363 TSX. Individual large swatches are also available, select Nylon swatch Cards or Polyester swatch Cards to access the colour range. Cotton cannot be dyed with fluorescent dyes, therefore fluorescent colours cannot be found in the Pantone Fashion, Home +Interiors Cotton TCX range.

No, If you only require one Pantone colour you can purchase individual fabric swatches, TPG sheets or Plastic Chips if it is a Fashion, Home + Interiors colour. Cotton, Polyester or Nylon colour it is possible to purchase individual and we hold stock of all 2850 colours in the range, we also sell Replacement Pages for the TPG Color Specifier. If you need a Graphics Coated (C) or Uncoated (U) colour then you can purchase a Replacement Page for all of the Graphics Solid Chip books pages contain up to seven colours and each colour is represented by 6 perforated chips like postage stamps to tear out (approx 2cm x 2cm). To purchase Replacement Pages please order online and then advise colour numbers or page numbers in the comments box under the billing address at the check out. Individual Plastic Standard chips are also available for both Coated (C ) and TCX colours. Of course a Pantone book is a good investment for regular use and offers flexibility for your clients colour selection For more assistance contact pantone@verivide.com and the team will point you to the best product for your project.