Royal Fine Jewelers Blog

Music Friday is when we spotlight songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, international blues troubadour Eric Bibb turns a single gemstone metaphor into a powerful message about perseverance, self-worth and encouragement in his uplifting 2006 track “Shine On.”



At the heart of the song is one resonant line: “You’re a diamond to me.” It’s not a boast about wealth or status, but a reminder of intrinsic value — the idea that pressure, patience and persistence can reveal brilliance where others might only see rough edges. Bibb’s diamond imagery becomes a stand-in for human potential, urging listeners to keep striving even when the road feels steep.

Bibb sings, “Don’t stop ’til you win your prize / Lean on all the love that is in my eyes / You’re a diamond to me, yes you are / Shine on.” The gemstone reference does the heavy lifting here. Diamonds don’t shine by accident; they emerge from pressure and are brought to life through careful cutting and unhurried mastery, a process that mirrors personal growth and hard-earned achievement.

Co-written with Figge Boström, “Shine On” appears on Bibb’s album Diamond Days. Reviewing the release for PopMatters, critic Joe Montague noted, “There are no rough edges on Diamond Days or Eric Bibb… The man is so effortless when he plays that one has difficulty determining where the guitar stops and where Bibb begins.”

Born in New York City in 1951, Bibb grew up surrounded by music. His father was active in the 1960s folk scene, and family friends included Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. When Bibb expressed interest in learning guitar, it was Dylan who famously advised the 11-year-old to “Keep it simple, forget all that fancy stuff” — guidance that still echoes in Bibb’s clear, uncluttered songwriting style.

After a brief stint studying psychology and Russian at Columbia University, Bibb left academia behind and moved to Paris, immersing himself in pre-war blues traditions. That decision launched an international career that has taken him across Europe, Canada, Australia and the United States. Along the way, he earned three Grammy nominations for albums including Shakin’ a Tailfeather (1997), Migration Blues (2017) and Ridin’ (2023).

Nearly two decades after “Shine On” was released, its message remains timely — and Bibb remains very much in the spotlight. In 2026, he is actively touring in support of his album One Mississippi, with dates scheduled across the UK, Europe and a full-band Australian tour in May.

Please enjoy the audio clip of Eric Bibb performing “Shine On,” and feel free to sing along with the lyrics below…

“Shine On”
Written by Eric Bibb and Figge Bostrom. Performed by Eric Bibb.

Life gives you the runaround you say
You wanna know
How much dues must you pay

Well, you can pay off what you want
When there’s a will
There’s always a way

Keeping your eyes on
That mountain top
Stepping up time
Don’t ever, ever stop

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby keep on
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that is in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on

I know what you’ve been through
I see
But it’s time to leave it behind and let it be
Yeah

Hard-earned wisdom is something you can’t buy
It’s the wings of experience
That make you fly

Don’t look back
Don’t look back
Don’t turn around
You’re on the right track

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby keep on
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that is in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on
Shine on

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that’s in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on
Shine on
Baby you got to shine on
That’s what you’re born to do
Me and you
You got to shine on
Sparkle baby

Baby you got to
Shine on



Credit: Photo by Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A simple question to Siri turned into a glittering family memory — and a genuine diamond discovery — for a Texas family visiting Arkansas’ Crater of Diamonds State Park just days before the new year.



James Ward, a 41-year-old high school teacher from Cypress, TX, uncovered a 2.09-carat yellowish-brown diamond on December 30 while exploring the park with his wife, Elizabeth, and their sons, Adrian (9) and Austin (7). Planning for the unlikely adventure began weeks earlier, in mid-December, during a casual moment at home.

“One day we were watching TV, and Austin came and said, ‘Mommy, Mommy, is there any place in Texas or nearby that we can mine for crystals?’” Elizabeth recalled.

A quick query to Siri pointed the family toward Murfreesboro, AR — home to the only public diamond mine in the world where visitors can keep what they find.

Elizabeth said, “I sent the link to James, and he’s like, ‘Oh wait, that’s only like six hours away. We can go!’”

With no previous holiday plans holding them back, the Wards packed up and made the six-hour drive to the park, arriving on December 29. Their first day in the 37.5-acre search field proved challenging. Winter temperatures were biting, and after four hours of searching, the family nearly called it quits.

“We were so cold,” Elizabeth said. “But Adrian was the one who wanted to come back.”



The 9-year-old's persistence made all the difference. On their second day, James was raking through soil by hand near the park’s West Drain area when something caught his eye — a metallic-looking crystal unlike the pebbles around it.

“I didn’t know what it was,” James said, “but I knew it was different.”



He slipped the stone into a paper sack with their other finds and headed to the park’s Diamond Discovery Center, where staff confirmed the family’s luck: a 2.09-carat diamond, roughly the size of a corn kernel.



According to Assistant Park Superintendent Waymon Cox, the shield-shaped gem displays the dark yellowish-brown hue and metallic luster typical of Crater diamonds, though it is a broken crystal — common for stones forged under immense geological pressure.

Diamonds discovered at the park formed deep in the Earth’s upper mantle and were carried to the surface by an ancient volcanic pipe. Many show chips, fractures or internal features from that journey.

"Given its current size, you can imagine how much bigger Mr. Ward’s diamond might have been as a complete crystal!” Cox explained.

Brown diamonds account for roughly 20 percent of all diamonds found at the park, with their color caused by a phenomenon known as plastic deformation — structural irregularities that affect how light travels through the stone. Diamonds discovered at the park average just one-fifth of a carat, making the Ward family’s find especially notable.

The family named their gem the Ward Diamond, and its future remains undecided.

“I’ll have to see how much it’s worth first,” James said.

For now, its greatest value may be the story itself — a reminder that persistence, curiosity and a child’s simple question can sometimes lead to extraordinary discoveries.

Credits: Images courtesy of Arkansas State Parks.

For Trevor Van Camp and Danielle Jenkins, a winter proposal at Boyne Mountain Resort in Boyne Falls, MI, became an unforgettable test of nerves, love and human kindness when an engagement ring slipped through a groom-to-be's trembling fingers and plunged 118 feet from SkyBridge Michigan into the snow below.



Van Camp had planned an aerial proposal because his girlfriend had been sending him TikTok videos of the resort’s SkyBridge — an illuminated, 1,200-foot-long pedestrian suspension bridge strung with more than 200,000 twinkling lights. Though Van Camp admits he’s “not a big heights guy,” he booked a surprise weekend getaway just for her.



After taking the chairlift to the top, the couple began their walk across the bridge, suspended between two mountain peaks. Van Camp stopped midway, suggesting they take a photo. Then he dropped to one knee.

“She said yes,” he recalled. “And when I went to get the ring out of the box — mind you, I’m shaking — I looked down. Not a good idea.”

The ring slipped free, falling through the bridge’s open grating and vanishing into the snowy ski slope below.



“We panicked for a minute,” Van Camp said. “Then we looked at each other and said, ‘We’ve got to find it.’”

What followed was a two-and-a-half-hour search beneath the bridge, aided by Boyne Mountain’s night shift snowmaking supervisor, Pat Harper, who arrived with two metal detectors. As night deepened and hope began to fade, the couple prepared to leave around 10 pm.

But Harper and his associates weren't done.

“They promised us they were going to find my ring,” Jenkins said. “There were no ands, ifs or buts about that.”

After the couple departed, Harper continued alone, sweeping the snow-covered terrain. When his detector sounded near a set of footprints, he began digging. At first, nothing. Then, with one last scoop of snow, the edge of the ring appeared.



“I kind of sat there for a minute,” Harper said. “There was no way I just found that.”

The next day, as the couple packed up and prepared to visit a local jeweler to start over, they received confirmation that the ring had been found. The couple returned to Boyne Mountain, where Van Camp finally placed it on Jenkins’ finger.



“I give big props and kudos to Pat,” Jenkins said. “He saved the day."

"We now have a story to tell of our engagement," she added. "It's our story to share. We will probably come back in the wintertime to finish our journey across the bridge with the lights and enjoy the full experience that we cut short to find my ring."

Credits: Video screen captures and promotional images courtesy of Boyne Mountain Resort.

January’s birthstone is often celebrated for its rich color, durability and deep symbolism — but few garnets have ever made a statement quite like "The World’s Largest Polished Garnet." Carved into a jewel-encrusted egg by renowned German lapidary artist Manfred Wild, this extraordinary objet d’art elevates garnet from gemstone to sculptural masterpiece.



Reminiscent of the imperial jeweled eggs created for the Russian court by Fabergé more than a century ago, Wild’s "Garnet and Diamond Egg Creation" was fashioned from an immense rough almandine garnet sourced in Odisha (formerly Orissa), India — one of the world’s most important deposits for that garnet variety. Once polished, the garnet alone weighs an astonishing 5,696 carats and glows with the rich, wine-red hue prized in fine almandine.



The egg’s artistry extends far beyond its remarkable size. When opened, it reveals a rotating diamond-set cross mounted in 18-karat gold and platinum, set on both sides with 456 diamonds totaling approximately 8.50 carats. At its center sits a faceted octahedral brown diamond weighing about 5.74 carats, accented by five natural yellow diamond cubes totaling approximately 10.04 carats. The cross rises from a large, mirror-polished rock crystal quartz sphere measuring 125 mm in diameter, creating a striking contrast of transparency and brilliance.



Below the egg, an 18-karat gold “crown of thorns” functions as both collar and mechanism, allowing the egg to open and close when turned. The tapering stem features two precise rows of 46 calibré-cut almandine garnets separated by a faceted rock crystal spacer, while the base — another substantial rock crystal — has been embellished with 24 flat garnet inlays. In total, the piece incorporates 403 grams of 18-karat gold and 30.5 grams of platinum, standing approximately 12 inches tall.

Wild, whose family has been cutting gemstones in Idar-Oberstein since the 17th century, is celebrated for transforming rare materials into objects of fantasy and refinement. This garnet egg is widely regarded as one of his most ambitious and accomplished creations.

In November of 2014, the “Garnet and Diamond Egg Creation” was one of the top lots in a Bonham’s Los Angeles auction titled “Gems, Minerals, Lapidary Works of Art and Natural History.” Its pre-sale estimate was set at $300,000 to $400,000, but the piece remained unsold. Its current owner hasn't been publicly identified, adding to the mystique surrounding the piece.

While garnet is best known for its deep red varieties, it is one of the most diverse gemstone families in nature. Common garnets used in jewelry include almandine, pyrope, spessartine, grossularite, andradite, demantoid, tsavorite, rhodolite, hessonite, and uvarovite. Their colors range from fiery orange and vivid green to purple, pink, and near-black, depending on trace elements such as iron, manganese, calcium and aluminum.

As a January birthstone symbolizing protection, vitality and enduring love, garnet has long held a place of honor. In this amazing egg, it also claims its place among the world’s great lapidary achievements.

Credits: Images courtesy of Bonhams.

When Dove Cameron confirmed her engagement to Måneskin frontman Damiano David on Saturday, it wasn’t just the announcement that created an internet buzz — it was the ring. Front and center in a series of Instagram posts shared with her 47.3 million followers, Cameron’s vintage-inspired engagement ring instantly positioned itself as one of the most closely watched celebrity jewels of the new year.



Cameron revealed the news with a carousel of romantic images captioned simply, “My favorite part of being alive.” In nearly every frame, the ring glints prominently as the actress-singer poses with her fiancé.

The design aligns with the growing demand for vintage-inspired engagement rings, a trend supercharged by Taylor Swift. At the center of Cameron's ring is a substantial cushion-cut diamond — estimated at three to four carats — prized for its softly rounded corners and old-world elegance. The center stone is encircled by a full halo of smaller diamonds, amplifying its presence and brilliance. A split-shank band, lined with pavé-set diamonds, adds further sparkle and architectural interest. The metal — believed to be 18-karat white gold or platinum — keeps the look crisp and luminous, allowing the diamonds to command full attention.



The overall effect is bold, glamorous and unapologetically maximalist, yet rooted in classic design cues. It’s a style that resonates with today’s couples who want a ring that feels both timeless and fashion-forward — an aesthetic Cameron herself, now widely regarded as an emerging style icon, embodies effortlessly.



Cameron, 29, and David, 26, first met at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, reconnecting a year later and officially confirming their relationship in early 2024. After nearly two years together, they made their red-carpet debut at a pre-Grammy gala and have since shared glimpses of a deeply supportive partnership. Cameron has described their bond as healthy and grounding — sentiments echoed by David in interviews.

Professionally, both are riding high. Cameron rose to fame on Disney Channel’s Liv and Maddie and the Descendants franchise before reinventing herself as a pop artist with hits, such as “Boyfriend” and “Breakfast.” She continues to expand her career with new music and an upcoming Prime Video series. David, meanwhile, became an international star as the charismatic lead singer of Måneskin following the band’s 2021 Eurovision win and has since launched a solo career, all while establishing himself as a global fashion figure.

With Cameron’s ring now circulating across social feeds and style pages, its influence is just beginning. For couples exploring design ideas this engagement season, Cameron's vintage-inspired ring may deserve a closer look.

Credit: Images via Instagram.com / dovecameron.

As the calendar turns from Christmas toward New Year’s Eve — two of the most popular proposal dates of the year — engagement season is well underway. But new survey data suggests that while the timing of proposals may remain traditional, attitudes about who pays for the ring are rapidly evolving.



According to DatingAdvice.com’s recent "Holiday Engagement Survey," more than 70% of women say they’re willing to contribute to the cost of their engagement ring, signaling a notable shift from long-standing expectations that the financial burden falls solely on men.

Nearly 19% of women surveyed said they would pay for the ring in full, about 23% would contribute partially, and another 29% would chip in if needed — underscoring a growing view of the ring as a shared investment rather than a solo purchase.

The findings reflect broader cultural changes. With more dual-income couples, later marriages and heightened awareness around debt and budgeting, many partners are approaching engagement ring shopping more pragmatically.

As The Knot reported, the average engagement ring costs about $5,200, and in an era of rising prices, couples appear increasingly comfortable discussing cost — and sharing it — openly.

Financial shifts are only part of the engagement-season story. The DatingAdvice.com survey also explored how pressure to propose varies by age, revealing a clear generational divide.

Nearly one in three Gen Z respondents (29%) and millennials (27.6%) reported feeling some level of pressure to get engaged during engagement season, compared to just 20% of Gen X and 8.3% of boomers. Younger couples, often juggling career-building, financial strain, and social-media expectations, are far more likely to feel the heat as holiday proposals flood Instagram feeds.

Interestingly, men reported higher levels of intense proposal pressure than women. About 11.5% of men said they felt “a lot” of pressure to propose, nearly three times the rate of women. The findings suggest that expectations around planning, financing and executing the “perfect” proposal — especially during peak engagement season — may be weighing more heavily on male partners.

When it comes to how proposals unfold, however, spectacle appears to be losing ground. While social media has popularized elaborate, public moments, the survey found that nearly a third of respondents prefer a private proposal. That preference increases sharply with age: more than half of boomers said they favor a private engagement, compared to just over 20% of Gen Z and millennials.

Taken together, the results paint a picture of engagement season in transition. Rings are still deeply symbolic, Christmas and New Year’s remain prime proposal moments, but today’s couples are rewriting the rules — sharing costs, easing pressure, and prioritizing authenticity over performance.

The "Holiday Engagement Survey" survey was conducted by DatingAdvice and Prodege and includes responses from 1,000 U.S. adults ages 18 to 79 who reported being in a committed relationship. The sample includes a broad distribution across gender, age and US regions. Fieldwork was completed in December 2025.

Credit: Image by BigStockPhoto.com.

Nature appears to have impeccable timing — and a sense of humor — when it comes to Alrosa's most unusually shaped rough diamonds. Just as the holiday season approached this year, miners at the Severalmaz processing plant in Russia’s Arkhangelsk region unearthed two remarkable rough diamonds that look uncannily festive: a 17-carat crystal shaped like a Christmas ornament and a 2.7-carat stone that resembles a playful puppy.



The discoveries were made at the M.V. Lomonosov diamond deposit, part of Severalmaz, an Alrosa subsidiary known for producing some of the company’s most visually distinctive stones. The larger crystal’s rounded silhouette and natural symmetry evoke a classic holiday bauble, while the smaller gem’s contours bring to mind floppy ears and a wagging tail.

According to Ilya Zezin, chief geologist at Severalmaz, there is a geological explanation behind these fanciful forms. The Arkhangelsk deposit consists of six kimberlite pipes containing more than 250 million tons of diamond-bearing ore. Diamonds from this region often display unusual morphological features, including rounder shapes and a higher number of natural facets than stones from other deposits.

“Severalmaz’s mining operations are distinguished by the discovery of diamonds of rare shapes and colors,” Zezin explained, noting that these crystals are valued not only for their scientific significance but also for their aesthetic appeal. In other words, the geology itself encourages diamonds to grow with softer outlines and unexpected personalities.

This isn’t the first time the Lomonosov deposit has delivered stones that seem perfectly timed to the calendar. Earlier in 2024, miners recovered a rough diamond shaped like a Christmas tree. In 2023, the same deposit produced the 38-carat “Cloudberry” diamond, named for its resemblance to the northern berry. And in 2022, a nearly 40-carat gem-quality diamond emerged with wings spread wide, unmistakably butterfly-shaped.



That sense of coincidence will sound familiar to our longtime readers. In 2019, we wrote about Alrosa's now-famous “Matryoshka” — a diamond encased within another diamond.



That same roundup included rough stones resembling a soccer ball, a skull, a fish, and a Valentine heart. Remarkably, many of those discoveries surfaced at fitting moments: a soccer-ball diamond just days before Russia’s dramatic World Cup match in 2018, a heart-shaped diamond revealed ahead of Valentine’s Day in 2019 and a skull-shaped stone unearthed just before Halloween.



Whether coincidence or cosmic choreography, Alrosa’s unusual diamonds continue to blur the line between geology and whimsical storytelling. This month, Mother Nature knew exactly when to deliver a little extra holiday sparkle.

Credits: Diamond images courtesy of Alrosa Diamonds and via Alrosa/Instagram.

Christmas arrived in sparkling fashion for Jordyn Woods and Karl-Anthony Towns. On Christmas Eve, the New York Knicks center proposed to the fashion icon during an intimate rooftop celebration overlooking the Manhattan skyline. By Christmas Day, the couple made things official — announcing their engagement on Instagram and giving jewelry lovers their first close look at Woods’ showstopping emerald-cut diamond ring as she appeared courtside at Madison Square Garden.



The proposal took place at Overstory, a sleek rooftop bar perched 64 stories above New York City in the Financial District. Against a backdrop of the vast cityscape, Towns dropped to one knee and presented Woods with a dramatic emerald-cut diamond estimated at 10 carats or more. Family members were reportedly present for the milestone moment, keeping the Christmas Eve proposal both personal and celebratory.



The following day, after Towns played in the Knicks’ Christmas Day matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers — a nail-biting, come-from-behind victory — the couple shared their engagement publicly. In a joint Instagram post captioned “Marry Christmas” (punctuated with emojis of a Christmas tree, red heart and engagement ring), Woods and Towns included images from the proposal where the ring was front and center.



Woods later debuted the ring in person while supporting her fiancé courtside at Madison Square Garden, pairing the massive diamond with a wintry white look that echoed the icy brilliance of the stone. The elongated emerald-cut diamond is set on a slim platinum pavé band, a design that places full emphasis on the center stone while allowing it to sit elegantly and proportionally on the hand.



Emerald cuts are a favored choice for diamonds of this size — and for good reason. Unlike brilliant cuts that prioritize sparkle through numerous facets, emerald cuts feature step-cut facets and a broad, open table that showcase a diamond’s clarity and color. This “hall of mirrors” effect creates long, elegant flashes of light rather than glittering fire, making emerald cuts especially striking in larger, high-quality stones. Their elongated shape also gives the illusion of greater size while flattering the finger with clean, architectural lines.

Jewelry experts estimate Woods’ ring could be valued well into seven figures if the diamond is natural, depending on clarity and color.

The engagement marks a new chapter for Woods, 28, and Towns, 30, who began dating in 2020 after years of friendship. Their relationship deepened during the pandemic, as the couple supported each other through significant personal loss, forming a bond they’ve often described as rooted in friendship first.

Woods, 28, is a model, entrepreneur and media personality known for her work in fashion, acting and her inclusive activewear brand, Secndnture. Towns, 30, is an NBA All-Star and widely regarded as one of the league’s most versatile big men.

Credits: Images via Instagram / jordynwoods and karltowns.

Each year, a new Norway spruce is specially hand-picked to stand at the heart of Rockefeller Center, ultimately becoming one of the most photographed Christmas trees in the world. While the tree itself changes annually, one constant crowns it from above: the dazzling Swarovski Star — a 900-pound, crystal-studded masterpiece that once again tops the 2025 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, a beloved symbol of the holiday season in New York City.



The monumental ornament spans more than nine feet in diameter and glistens with over 3 million precisely cut crystals. Designed in 2018 by renowned architect Daniel Libeskind, the three-dimensional star features 70 radiant spikes, each illuminated from within to amplify the crystal’s refractive brilliance.



Libeskind originally described the Star as a modern symbol of hope, unity, and peace — an interpretation that continues to resonate as it shines nightly above Rockefeller Plaza. The design replaced an earlier Swarovski star introduced in 2004 that weighed 550 pounds and featured just 25,000 crystals, underscoring how dramatically the scale and ambition of the current topper have evolved.



Installed in mid-November, the 75-foot-tall spruce traveled roughly 150 miles from East Greenbush in Upstate New York to Midtown Manhattan. Donated by the Russ family, who had cared for the tree on their property for more than 60 years, this year’s spruce carries a deeply personal story. Judy Russ has said the family offered the tree in memory of her late husband.

"As my husband has passed away, I know he would have loved to have been here for this moment," Judy Russ told NBC correspondent Joe Fryer on TODAY. "We always talked about it being the (Rockefeller Center) tree. It's so special that my family’s tree gets to be America's, if not the world’s, Christmas tree.”

Placing the Swarovski Star on top of such a majestic tree is no small feat. Each year, a specialized crew hoists the massive ornament by crane, delicately positioning it nearly eight stories into the air. Once secured, the Star completes a dazzling display that includes more than 50,000 multicolored LED lights woven throughout the tree using nearly five miles of wire.

The tree officially lit up Manhattan during the nationally televised Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on December 3, marking the ceremonial start of the city’s holiday season. The tree and its Swarovski Star will remain illuminated nightly through mid-January 2026, welcoming millions of visitors from around the globe.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree tradition dates back to 1931, when Depression-era construction workers erected a modest tree adorned with handmade garlands. The first official lighting ceremony followed in 1933, and since 1951, the event has been broadcast nationwide, transforming a simple spruce into a global holiday icon.

When the season concludes, the story doesn’t end. Since 2007, Rockefeller Center has donated the tree’s lumber to Habitat for Humanity, where it is milled and repurposed into building materials for homes across the country — a fitting final chapter for a symbol rooted in generosity and renewal.

Credits: Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree photo by Anthony Quintano from Mount Laurel, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Photo of Nadja Swarovski and Daniel Libeskind with the Swarovski Star in 2018 by Bryan Bedder Getty for Swarovski (PRNewsfoto/Swarovski). Screen capture of Swarovski Star via YouTube.com/Swarovski.

After more than a decade of bold, expressive hues — from 2012’s Tangerine Tango to 2022’s digitally inspired Very Peri — the Pantone Color Institute surprised the design world by selecting "Cloud Dancer" (PANTONE 11-4201) as its 2026 Color of the Year. Instead of a vibrant splash of color, Pantone landed on a billowy, ethereal shade of white — its first-ever white selection — prompting both reflection and debate across fashion, design and creative circles.



Described by Pantone as a “lofty, balanced white,” Cloud Dancer is meant to feel airy rather than stark. The institute said the shade symbolizes calm, renewal and quiet focus at a time when many consumers feel overwhelmed by visual noise, digital saturation and constant stimulation. According to Pantone, Cloud Dancer acts as a blank canvas — inviting creativity to breathe rather than compete for attention.

Still, the choice sparked discussion. Some critics questioned whether white qualifies as a “color” at all, especially in the context of paint and pigment, where white is often described as the absence of color. Social media commentary ranged from playful skepticism to genuine disappointment, with some wondering whether Pantone had sidestepped its role as a color authority.

Pantone leaders addressed those concerns directly. Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman emphasized that Cloud Dancer was not a default or minimalist cop-out, but a conscious choice. She described the hue as a symbol of clarity and simplification — one that opens new avenues of thinking rather than closing them. Vice President Laurie Pressman echoed that sentiment, noting that Cloud Dancer reflects a cultural moment defined by transformation and a desire for fresh starts.

As with previous Color of the Year selections, Pantone’s decision reflects the broader global zeitgeist. While earlier choices leaned into optimism, vibrancy or digital expression, Cloud Dancer speaks to a collective yearning for stillness and balance. In that sense, it’s less about making a loud statement and more about creating space for lightness and well-being.

For the jewelry industry, Cloud Dancer offers a particularly elegant source of inspiration. Its soft, luminous quality pairs naturally with gemstones that share a sense of lightness and serenity. Cultured pearls are perhaps the most intuitive match, with their creamy glow and timeless appeal echoing the shade’s cloudlike softness. From classic strands to modern pearl-accented earrings, pearls align seamlessly with Cloud Dancer’s understated elegance.

White diamonds also shine in this palette, especially when set in platinum or white gold. Their crisp brilliance complements Cloud Dancer’s clean aesthetic while still delivering sparkle and luxury. For jewelry-lovers seeking something more ethereal, moonstone brings a subtle, internal glow reminiscent of drifting clouds, while white opal adds gentle flashes of color within a milky base.

Even mother-of-pearl finds a natural home here, offering quiet luster and organic beauty that suits minimalist and contemporary designs alike. Paired with soft pastels or warm neutrals, these gemstones allow Cloud Dancer to serve as a sophisticated foundation rather than a blank void.

As with every Color of the Year, Cloud Dancer is likely to influence product development, merchandising and consumer tastes well beyond fashion, extending into jewelry, interiors and branding. Whether viewed as controversial or calming, Pantone’s 2026 choice underscores a powerful idea: sometimes the most meaningful statement can be communicated with a whisper, not a shout.

Here are the Pantone Colors of the Year dating back to 2011…



PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse (2025)
PANTONE 13-1023 Peach Fuzz (2024)
PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta (2023)
PANTONE 17-3938 Veri Peri (2022)
PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray (2021)
PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating (2021)
PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue (2020)
PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral (2019)
PANTONE 18-3838 Ultra Violet (2018)
PANTONE 15-0343 Greenery (2017)
PANTONE 13-1520 Rose Quartz (2016)
PANTONE 15-3919 Serenity (2016)
PANTONE 18-1438 Marsala (2015)
PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid (2014)
PANTONE 17-5641 Emerald (2013)
PANTONE 17-1463 Tangerine Tango (2012)
PANTONE 18-2120 Honeysuckle (2011)

Credits: Color swatch images courtesy of Pantone.