Color combination is very important - it can define the total look and feel of your project 😉 whether it is a mixed media or a scrapbooking craft, a card, or even painting your cupboards! Therefore, using colors and their combinations can sometimes be quite difficult.
But let's start from the basics...
Initially, color theory starts from the color wheel.
The standard color wheel sorts 12 colors into a circle and shows the relationships between those colors. They are divided into three categories.
Basic colors: red, yellow and blue.
These three colors are the basis of the color wheel and cannot be created by mixing other colors together. Instead, these three primary colors are the colors used to create the rest of the color wheel.
Secondary colors: green, orange and purple.
These colors are made by mixing the primary colors together. For example, red and yellow make orange, yellow and blue make green, and red and blue make purple.
Tertiary colors: yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple.
These colors are made by mixing a primary color with a secondary one, thus giving an intermediate shade.
Now let's see what all these mean in practice 😉
Let's start with monochromatic combinations: different tones of one color.
For example, blue in navy blue, baby blue, dark blue... It is a very simple combination that gives the feeling of seriousness and elegance. But if you feel that your project is much more serious than you would like, you can add details to its complementary color, i.e. the one opposite it on the color wheel: a little yellow or orange.
Another option is to combine three colors. We achieve painting harmony when the colors we choose create an equilateral triangle on the color wheel. For example, blue yellow and red... a combination that symbolizes strength, faith and love 💓
...but see how different this combination looks is if we choose the same three colors but in their pastel versions...
If you want to achieve a 'soft/calm' color combination, choose one main color and one or two others found on the color wheel next to it.
Therefore, if you choose yellow as the main color of your creation, you can combine it with green and orange. If you want to add strength and make a bold style, you can choose an adjacent color and the opposite one as well.
This way the contrast between the colors will not be so great.
So if you chose yellow, you could combine it with orange, which is next to it, and purple, which is the opposite.
This is how we give a bolder touch to our work without losing harmony 😉
Finally, there is the opposite combination, which, as its name indicates, means that you will combine colors that are found opposite each other on the color wheel. That way, if you choose pink, you can combine it with green.
With this combination, your project acquires an impressive dynamic since the colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel emphasize each other.
This color combination will definitely not go unnoticed.
At scrapbooking, when it comes to a mini album, for instance, what you should consider are just the colors in the photos! A mini album usually has a theme, so the photos are most likely to have the same color tone. We advise you to stick to these tones for a more harmonious effect.
What you should keep in mind, is the style of your creation and the mood you want to create. So you can choose between cool or warm tones...
Finally, the color ratio in your creation is also important. An equal, balanced proportion in your color combination can make your project look boring, so play with the proportions and enjoy!
So, until next week, stay warm and enjoy a hot cup of coffee! And of course, keep on creating!
Artistic kisses!
