Watch how warm and cool colors are used in this scheme to create the desired effect. A rectangular scheme may use a combination of red and green with red-orange and blue-green. The arrangement of colors comes from two sets of complementary colors, meaning the four hues are not equally placed around the color wheel. starts with purple for the borders and right rail and adds green and orange accents for photos and text.Ī tetradic (or rectangle) color scheme, which uses a combination of four colors, is similar to the triadic because it is vibrant and should contain one dominant color. Balance color by selecting a dominant hue and use the two other triadic colors as accents. Triadic color schemes also tend to be quite vibrant and should be used in a way that best uses this feature. Triadic color schemes create a sense of equality and security, because of the use of varying hues. Triadic color schemes, which use three colors equidistant from one another on the color wheel, are among the most popular used by designers. This principle is applied on the website for the Yellow Bird Project, which appropriately uses a yellow scheme. Think of a field of grass, it is made up of many variants of green and yellow. One idea behind this use of color comes from nature. Select a second color to support the dominant hue and a third to use as an accent. One of the colors in an analogous color scheme is used as a dominant hue. The result is a visually pleasing and calming display of color. Analogous Color SchemeĪnalogous color schemes use adjacent colors from the color wheel. Further, the near complementary scheme uses a hue just to the right or left of the complement color on the wheel to form a color pair. A dual complementary scheme uses two colors side-by-side on the wheel and the pair of opposite colors. The split complementary scheme uses a color, a complement and the two colors adjacent to it. Several other types of complementary color schemes combine this two-color pairing with additional colors for four-hue palettes. Avoid using a complementary scheme for large projects or as the basis for your website, also avoid text in complementary colors. A complementary color scheme is great for small pops of color to make items stand out but can be difficult to use. Using complementary colors creates a high-drama, high-contrast look for your project, especially when the pure hue is used for each banking giant ING showcases a complementary color scheme.
Red and green, yellow and violet and blue and yellow-orange are complementary colors. Complementary Color SchemeĬolors from opposite positions on the color wheel are considered to be complementary. Match hue to hue, tint to tint and so on for the best color combinations.
Each color scheme can be made from a pure hue, tint, shade or tone. Tertiary colors rest between the colors used to form each on the color wheel.Ĭolor schemes are generally created by selecting and combining two, three or four colors in a palette. Each color has a two word name, such as red-orange, blue-purple or blue-green. The last group of hues, tertiary colors, is made from mixing a primary and secondary color. The results – orange, green and violet – are centered between the colors mixed to make them on the wheel. Secondary colors are made by mixing two primary colors from the color wheel. Primary colors are the basis for all other color and any color can be made using a combination of primary colors. The colors are placed equidistant on the wheel. The basic principle of the color wheel starts with three primary colors – red, yellow and blue. Adding gray to a color creates a different tone. Shades are a darkening of each hue accomplished by adding black to a color. A tint is a variant of a color made by adding white to lighten it. Some wheels also include tints, shades and tones of each color.
White, black and gray are neutral and take on the properties of surrounding colors.Įxpanded color wheels build on this design and add equal variants of color around the wheel. Cool colors, which range from violet to blue and green, are considered calming and soothing. Warm colors are vivid and energetic and fall on the wheel from red to orange and yellow-green. Colors are also divided into categories of warm and cool. Colors can complement one another, or even create chaos. The basic design has evolved over time but the concept remains the same – almost any color combination from the wheel will work together.Ī basic color wheel features 12 colors that can be combined in a variety of ways to create a number of different effects. Other color charts, though, existed before that time. The first color wheel has been around for more than 300 years and was developed by Sir Isaac Newton, according to ColourLovers.