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Color schemes, or color harmonies, are essential tools for creating visually pleasing palettes. Using a color wheel, you can explore different harmonies that evoke distinct emotions and reactions. Understanding these combinations helps you craft the right effect for your audience.

To build a successful color palette, start by defining the message you want to convey. Is it warmth and comfort, or energy and excitement? Knowing the purpose of your design helps you select colors that align with your goals, enhancing the overall impact of your work.

Exercise #1

Monochromatic color schemes

A monochromatic color scheme consists of different variations of a single hue. For example, a yellow monochromatic palette can include pure, saturated yellow along with its tints, shades, and tones.

Monochromatic combinations create a harmonious and visually appealing look. The hue unifies the design, which works well if you want your brand to be identified with a particular color. Monochromatic palettes are also the easiest to create. The downside of monochromatic palettes is that they can end up being boring and lacking visual interest. To avoid that, make sure there's enough contrast between light and dark hues. Another strategy to liven up a monochromatic scheme is to add a solid neutral like white or black.

Use monochromatic harmonies to:

  • Create calm and serene designs
  • Convey reliability
  • Create pages with a lot of text content

Pro Tip: When creating monochromatic, text-based designs, use dark shades for text and lighter shades for background. Save the brightest variation for graphic accents.

Exercise #2

Analogous color schemes

Analogous color schemes consist of colors that sit directly side by side on the color wheel. Similar to monochromatic harmonies, analogous schemes evoke serenity and peace. Some say this is because these combinations exist in nature — like the colors of a sunset. While quite harmonious, analogous color palettes feel more dynamic than monochromatic ones.

The simplest way to create an analogous palette is to choose a primary color as a base, then choose 2-3 neighboring hues as accent shades or tints. Make sure your base color dominates, and the other two are used as highlights and don't compete for attention.

It's easier to balance analogous colors if you use only warm or only cool colors. Also, be wary of choosing colors that are too closely related, as they may blend together and wash out your design.

Use analogous harmonies to:

  • Add visual interest to an otherwise monochrome color scheme
  • Create a calm and unified look that won’t distract users from your primary message
Exercise #3

Complementary color schemes

Complementary color schemes include colors that sit directly across from one another on the color wheel. These colors have high contrast to each other, which makes such compositions feel more dynamic.

Complementary palettes are one of the most difficult to pull off successfully — especially for new designers. When done wrong, they can feel overwhelming, especially if you're using highly saturated colors. A way to balance complementary colors is to pick one hue as your primary color. Then use the complementary color as a highlight to make essential elements stand out.

Use complementary color schemes to:

  • Draw attention to your focal point
  • Express boldness and inspire action
  • Create youthful, lively designs
Exercise #4

Split complementary color schemes

Split complementary color schemes are a variation of the complementary color scheme. Instead of picking the complementary color of your target color, use the two colors that sit on either side of it. For example, if you start with orange, don't take its complementary blue but use cyan and indigo instead.

Split complementary color schemes add more variety than complementary color schemes as they include 3 hues. This results in dynamic palettes but doesn't create tension because of the analogous colors of the contrasting hue.

Using split complementary color schemes, you'll get both warm and cool hues. This will give you more room to balance the colors than a high-contrast complementary scheme.

Use split complementary schemes to:

  • Experiment with complementary harmonies — especially if you're a new designer
  • Make an impact without being too flashy
Exercise #5

Triadic color schemes

A triadic color scheme uses 3 colors that are evenly spaced around the color wheel. It's a variation of the split complementary color scheme. To find triadic colors, take an equilateral triangle and place it on the color wheel. The colors at each point will be a triadic combination.

Triadic schemes are vibrant and have a lot of energy, especially compared to monochromatic and analogous schemes. But because the colors are evenly spaced around the color wheel, they also feel balanced. This is especially true when you let one color dominate and use the others as accent colors — similar to a split complementary harmony. Depending on the mood you're trying to achieve, it can be a good idea to use one bright or dark color and a paler tint or tone of the other two colors.

Tints and shades can help create a sense of calm and tranquility, while full chroma hues are ideal for more youthful concepts. Triadic harmonies look vibrant even when toned down, tinted, or shaded.

Use triadic harmonies to:

  • Create balanced drama and contrast
  • Create compositions that need more than two colors
  • Grab the viewer's eye without creating tension
  • Create bright designs that use full chroma colors
Exercise #6

Rectangular tetradic color schemes

Rectangular tetradic color schemes use two pairs of analogous colors that sit opposite each other on the color wheel (i.e., two sets of neighboring complementary colors). The analogous colors can be directly next to each other or have a single hue in between them.

A rectangular color scheme is the richest of all available color schemes. This gives you the most variety when working with color. These schemes work best when you choose one of the 4 colors to be a dominant color and others as accent colors. Otherwise, your project may appear too busy and unbalanced. This simply means avoiding using all 4 colors in equal portions.[1]

Use rectangular color schemes to:

  • Draw attention to a photo, room, or advertising piece
  • To create a typography hierarchy by using the darkest color for body text and the 3 remaining colors for headings and subheadings
Exercise #7

Square tetradic color schemes

A square tetradic color scheme is a variation of a tetradic color scheme. It uses two pairs of complementary colors spaced evenly around the color wheel (with two colors in between each one). You can find a tetradic combination by placing a square on the color wheel and choosing the colors at each corner.

These color combinations are always loud and fun, and the vibrancy makes designs stand out. However, be cautious while finding a balance because these combinations can easily be overwhelming. For the best results, choose one dominant color and use others as accent colors. This way, colors won't compete for attention or overwhelm users.

Use square color schemes to:

  • Designs with color-coded elements, such as signage or transit maps
  • Create a type hierarchy with a different color for each level of heading
Exercise #8

Adding neutrals to traditional color schemes

An easy way to harmonize your color palette is to add neutral colors to the scheme. Neutral colors are black, gray, white, brown, and beige (even though brown and beige aren't pure neutrals but variations of orange).

Each neutral color produces a different effect on the overall palette. For example, adding white to a monochrome palette can make it look softer and friendlier. At the same time, adding black can make it look sophisticated. Experiment with different neutral colors to see what best achieves the desired effect.

Add neutral colors to your color scheme to:

  • Create options for increasing contrast
  • Harmonize colors that are competing for attention
  • Serve as a background for the rest of the colors
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