Painting with Color Series: Part 1 Color Terminology

I get so many questions about using color, I thought I would post about it.  This first Color Series will be on how to use the color wheel and some tips on using the color wheel when selecting paint colors.  Additional color posts will be about actually decorating with color, once we learn some basics. 

One of the most powerful ways to create change in our environments is the use of color.   It can whisper, it can shout, it can brighten, or even fool the eye.  Color can set a mood, a tone, or a style.

It’s exactly because color can do so many things that choosing color can become confusing or even overwhelming.  It’s important to consider many things when selecting color.  But first… I want to familiarize you with the some Color Terminology.

HUE: The technical term for what most people refer to as color.  For example- light green, medium green, and dark green are all the same color or hue- green.

Hues are rarely used in the pure form in which they appear on the color wheel, because of their intensity.  In their pure state, they have a tendency to appear too bright or raw.  Softer or muted tones appeal to our human eye more than the pure hues.  Typically, lighter or darker variations of these pure colors are used.

Those variations of color are achieved by adding white, gray, or black to a hue.  When this is done, it’s value changes.

VALUE: This simply refers to the lightness or darkness of a hue.

TINTS, SHADES & TONES: By adding white to a color, the result is a tint of that hue- which is lighter in value than the pure hue.  When adding black to a color, the result is a shade of that hue, which is darker than the pure color.  By adding gray, the result is a tone, which is a muted version of a pure hue.

So, with hues, values, tints, shades and tones, endless colors can be created.  Oh my!!

So, stop back tomorrow to learn more about using color.  Oh, and if you’d like a specific question answered about color… leave it in the comments and I will answer them too!

Have a “Colorful” evening…