The Color Wheel - The Goof-Proof Way to Coordinate Your Scrapbooking Layout

The colo r wheel is the basis for coordinating colors. It consists of 12 pure hues in a circle. The color locations around the wheel designate which colors schemes are appealing to the eye. There are four color combinations to examine: Complimentary Complimentary colors are 2 colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel. Generally, the colors should be of the same tint or shade. For Example, bright lime green and fuschia would be complimentary. Another choice might be pale blue and peach. Triad Triad consists of 3 colors that are equidistant apart from each other on the wheel. For example, primary colors blue, yellow, and red are part of a triad. Or one might choose purple, orange, and green; using the same tint, which is a paler color than the pure hue; or the same shade, which is the darker color of the pure hue. Analogous The next color combination is the analogous, which consists of 2 or 3 adjacent colors. This tends to be very calm and pleasing to the eye. Monochromatic The fourth possibility is monochromatic. This is choosing a range of colors within a single color family (hue). In other words, using various tints and shades of a particular color. Monochromatic schemes can be somewhat boring if there isn't something else added such as texture, or a complimentary accent color. Use the color wheel next time you design a scrapbooking page layout (or a room!), and you will be pleasantly surprised with the infinite number of color combinations that can be used, many of which you probably never even had thought of before.