Tuesday 11 October 2011

Choosing Colours


I always find choosing colours very traumatic. Some wool ranges are better than others, but often you find that the colours in the range just don't seem to go with each other. So for example, there might be a nice pastel yellow, pink and blue, but the only green is a completely luminous glow in the dark acid colour.

What I try to do is choose pinks - blues - purples then, I make the best of the rest.
For each of : pinks, purples and blues, I try to pick a pale pastel, then a mid colour, and then a bright. So for the pinks I'll choose a baby pink, a rose pink, and then a hotter pink. That usually works. Then I check that the pales all match, the mids all match, and the darks all match. So for example, I check that the baby blue, the baby pink and the baby purple look ok together.

Then its on to trauma territory, because I hate yellow, but know that it tends to make other colours sing. So I choose the least worst yellow - usually a mid tone if they have it.

I find that the worst colours are the greens. Green is my favourite colour, but there are usually very few greens in a range. Mostly the greens are a dark earthy sage colour. I'll take that if there is nothing else, but try to find a mid green if there is one.

Red I love, but often find that the red in a range clashes horribly with the hottest pink. Sometimes I'll take it, sometimes not.

Then I look at the other colours, and see if they tone in with what I have already - I might choose a hotter orange, but never peach since peach is my worst ever colour (worse than yellow).

Then the base colours - I never use black. I sometimes take a soft grey if it tones in. I usually prefer a cream to a white, so long as it is not yellow toned.

The pictures are Rowan DK wool, one of the better ranges for having colours that match each other. It is expensive though.


Off on a work trip till the end of the week to Cambridge. Hoping I can sneak out at lunch to find a wool shop, but suspect we will be having working lunches, sigh :)

3 comments:

  1. Yellow is lovely!

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  2. I've just discovered your blog and am thrilled to add it to my Bookmarks :) I'm looking forward to reading more of your postings.

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  3. I love this pattern. Would it be possible to have a link for it?

    Thank you very much.

    Zinnia

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