I’m beginning to really dislike reflex blue. To me, nothing says boring, conservative, unimaginative, unyielding corporate business than the particular shade of 100% cyan and 100% magenta (give or take a few percentile). And yet we see it used everywhere, I’m sure businesses think it denotes class and reliability – maybe they just feel more comfortable following the herd. It’s the fall-back colour for the indecisive, the unadventurous and those who can’t be bothered exploring alternatives. Even grey or black are preferable to me, and yet it feels like 70% of the jobs I work on – reflex blue is the dominant colour. If the fact that it’s everywhere isn’t enough, it’s also a bastard to print. Print a big expanse of reflex blue and don’t seal it with anything, come back in three years time and run your fingers over it, you’ll still get ink rubbing off onto them, it’s a bastard to dry. No two jobs printed in reflex blue ever feel like they match when placed together, don’t get me started on roller marks. So in response to the great sorrow that reflex blue brings to my life and as a means of trying to exorcise that demon, I have written the following haiku:

‘Reflex blue tell me why
Your cobalt hue makes me cry
Not again I sigh’

Reflex blue, if you can help it, just don’t do it. Pantone blue is beginning to get up my nose as well….