The Guardian reports that Leatrice Eiseman claims that beige is a relaxing color that gives us a robust/sturdy/always-present vibe. A vibe that people, younger people, may be needing? Something dependable?

“'The economy plays into it – people are concerned about how they’re spending their money and where they’re putting it,' says Leatrice Eiseman, the executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. 'In the human mind, light tones like beiges are reliable – it’s the colour of the sphinx. People will often refer to the beige tones as everlasting and classic. They also associate these tones with nature, sand and stone – they’re dependable.' Eiseman sees beige less as a trend than as a presence: '*It’s always there*'... But some find this presence a little menacing."

But while menacing to some, others are receiving signals from high status influencers to adopt the color.

"'It’s a look that’s all over Instagram,' says Isabelle Gregory, the 25-year-old owner of a beige-on-beige home in Hampshire. 'There is a fresh and clean feel to it.' Kim Kardashian was an early adopter, with her [$60m 'minimal monastery'](https://pagesix.com/entertainment/kim-kardashian-los-angeles-house/) with cavernous neutral-hued spaces and scant evidence of any human habitation. Former Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague’s [Molly Maison](https://www.instagram.com/mollymaison/?hl=en) is a red wine drinker’s nightmare, while [Meghan Markle’s new Netflix show](https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2025/jan/03/meghan-markle-netflix-show), With Love, Meghan, contains a litany of beige – from personalised candles to flowers...'People my age are really influenced by what’s on social media,' says Gregory, who works in education. 'And if that’s what everyone’s going for online, then that’s just what a lot of people will tend to pick up'.... Last April, the great **beigification** reached new heights when influencer [Sydney Gifford brought legal action against fellow influencer Alyssa Sheil](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/dec/10/influencers-lawsuit-sydney-nicole-gifford-alyssa-sheil), alleging that Sheil had appropriated her aesthetic. Both women are evangelists of the all-neutral look; both live in a world where everything is beige and clean and shoppable via an Amazon affiliate link."

My two concerns:

1. Influencers participate in a system that involves signal. Once they signal their trend, people click and the influencer's message gets amplified to more people. More people see the trend catch on, perhaps they see themselves in that story and feel a social norm to endorse and/or participate in the trend. Now we have beigification.

2. Is beige the bandaid drug-like intervenor in our system that might solve a surface-level issue but fails to address a root cause? And, are influencers well-enough aware that this stress exists and are taking advantage of our malfunctioning systems?

I do not argue against beige. If people like the color, why should I get in their way. Instead, I believe it's important to look at these trends and ask questions about what system archetypes are at play and who benefits from them... and (potentially) who doesn't. I want us to be honest with ourselves about the tradeoffs.