It can be overwhelming because there are so many colors to choose from. First, you need to learn about color basics…
Here are a few questions to consider when in this color choosing process
1) What kind of emotions will the colors inspire?
2) Will the scheme be memorable?
3) How many colors do I really need?
4) Will the color scheme fit well with the architecture of the room?
First lets look at the basic types
1) Primary- red, yellow, blue
-There are different primary colors for light and pigments are different, but we will just stick with these for now for the simplicity
2) Secondary- orange, purple, green
- two primary colors make these
3) Tertiary- Red-violet, red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-green, blue -violet
- a primary color and a neighboring secondary color create these
Here is a little more vocabulary, even though some of you probably know them, it always helps.
1) Hue- pure color
2) Tint- hue mixed with some white to lighten it
3) Shade- hue mixed with some black to darken it
When comparing colors you can use these terms.
1) Chroma- describes the intensity of a color
2) Value- describes a color’s brightness
3) Temperature- describes color as being warm or cool
Now it is time to choose your pallette…
There are different color combinations, among them are some of the basic ones listed below
1) Monochromatic- one hue is chosen but different shades and tints of it are used
2) Complementary- two colors that are opposite of each other on the color wheel
3) Triad- 3 colors that are equidistant from each other on the color wheel
4) Analogous- 3 or more colors that lie adjacent to each other on the color wheel
(Look at the color wheel above and see if you can find these color combinations)
