topic Re: Warm vs cool colors in Home

Warm vs cool colors

Abrowneyegirl — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 14:43:30 GMT

For some reason mixing warm and cool colors is jarring to me. It is not pleasing to my eye. It is not just about what 'matches' it is the flow.

My DH wanted to wear green pants the other day with a blue dress shirt. Green and blue coordinate well, however, I was trying to explain to him that the green pants were a warm shade and the blue shirt was a color tone-thus can not be worn together.

Once we had a warm/warm combo and cool/cool combo for him to look at he agree the look was better but still does not know exactly why.

I honestly think this is one of the tricks of good interior design as well. Mix colors, textures, patterns- BUT pick warm or cool and STICK with one or the other.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Nonametoday — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 14:58:28 GMT

Well, I must disagree. One of the prettiest color combinations I have ever seen was on a beautiful woman who was wearing a warm olive jumper and a cool baby blue blouse with a simple strand of pearls and the colors were stunning together.

Perhaps it was the warmth of the pearls that pulled it all together.

I don't know what but I wear that color combination although I never thought about it until I saw her, and that was some 40 years ago and I have never forogtten it.

I like it on me as well. I am a summer, close to autumn and I can wear the cools of summer and with the right makeup I can wear the warmth of autumn.

It's interest that makes all good design work and for me, with interest is sometimes unlikely colors, unlikely textures or composition that is an interesting. I am not a symmetrical person, but you may very well be and if you are a symmetrical person (as a DIL of mine is), that could explain the reason why that combination is not appealing to your eye.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

ILTH — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 15:25:39 GMT

There is no, one, definitive way of combining color.

If you like monotone and find it appealing, then sticking to one temperature works for you.

If you like some excitement and tension, then warm and cool playing off of each other works for you.

Having, many moods, what appeals to me ebbs and flows.

ETA

Color theory and personal preferences are too complicated to analyze here. ☺

Re: Warm vs cool colors

GingerPeach — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 20:39:12 GMT

I quite agree with @ILTH and @Nonametoday .

I see no reason why we have to "stay inside the lines" when it comes to art, color, or expression.

It reminds me of something one of my DD's friends once mentioned when I was giving them a ride back when they were around junior high age (many moons ago).

My DD's friend said that her art teacher said she had to stay inside the lines of some project they were doing. My DD's friend sounded so sad when she was telling us this, as if she'd failed. I ended up telling her that art was about expressing yourself, not conforming. And that it seemed rather odd that an art teacher would actually say something like that. She felt renewed after hearing that.

And so it is now that we are adults. Sometimes we think we have to conform, but by doing so all the time, we may lose ourselves along the way.

ETA: I was found to be a winter, which is a cool season, but I much prefer to be surrounded by warm tones. I typically wear cool tones, however, as they do look better on me. Just in case anyone was thinking I only wear and/or decorate with one type.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Nonametoday — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 15:21:00 GMT

While it appears as if the visible spectrum of colors placed on a wheel, the real basis for color is founded in Sir Isaac Newton's experiments with prisms. His experiments led to the theory that red, blue and yellow are the primary colors from which all color is derived. While that is not entirely true, it is still influential in colors derived from same today. Add to that the secondary colors of violet, orange and green, a result of mixing the aforementioned primary colors and one begins to see the shaping of the color wheel. Then the tertiary colors yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green and yellow-green complete the color wheel. These colors are similar to Munsell’s hue circle. The value of the color wheel is its ability to help designers create appealing palettes by applying the underlying theory of the color wheel with the way WE SEE color, i.e., a palette based on color wheel's conplementary colors would include colors that are the opposite one another on the color wheel such as red and green, and red is a warm color (but it can be a cool color) and green is a cool color (which can be a warm color given additions of secondary, primary and tertiary additions).

Then we get to hues from which we add shades, tints and tones to arrive at variations of darker, lighter or intoned colors.

Does that analyze color somewhat?

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Nonametoday — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 15:21:55 GMT

@GingerPeach wrote:
I quite agree with @ILTH and @Nonametoday .
I see no reason why we have to "stay inside the lines" when it comes to art, color, or expression.

It reminds me of something one of my DD's friends once mentioned when I was giving them a ride back when they were around junior high age (many moons ago).
My DD's friend said that her art teacher said she had to stay inside the lines of some project they were doing. My DD's friend sounded so sad when she was telling us this, as if she'd failed. I ended up telling her that art was about expressing yourself, not conforming. And that it seemed rather odd that an art teacher would actually say something like that. She felt renewed after hearing that.

And so it is now that we are adults. Sometimes we think we have to conform, but by doing so all the time, we may lose ourselves along the way.

@GingerPeach

Totally expression! Yay for you.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

ILTH — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 15:37:54 GMT

@Nonametoday wrote:
While it appears as if the visible spectrum of colors placed on a wheel, the real basis for color is founded in Sir Isaac Newton's experiments with prisms. His experiments led to the theory that red, blue and yellow are the primary colors from which all color is derived. While that is not entirely true, it is still influential in colors derived from same today. Add to that the secondary colors of violet, orange and green, a result of mixing the aforementioned primary colors and one begins to see the shaping of the color wheel. Then the tertiary colors yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green and yellow-green complete the color wheel. These colors are similar to Munsell’s hue circle. The value of the color wheel is its ability to help designers create appealing palettes by applying the underlying theory of the color wheel with the way WE SEE color, i.e., a palette based on color wheel's conplementary colors would include colors that are the opposite one another on the color wheel such as red and green, and red is a warm color (but it can be a cool color) and green is a cool color (which can be a warm color given additions of secondary, primary and tertiary additions).

Then we get to hues from which we add shades, tints and tones to arrive at variations of darker, lighter or intoned colors.

Does that analyze color somewhat?

Not really.

As a professional portrait and landscape artist, I can tell you that that explanation doesn't even come close to explaining how color works when dealing with reflected light, ambient light, juxtaposition, determining what's cool or warm because everything about color is relative. Cool warms, warm cools. And the list goes on. AND personal preferences. Some genetic, some acquired. Some a little of both.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Tyak — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 15:50:27 GMT

@Abrowneyegirl

I'm curious....did he change his clothes because they weren't pleasing to you?

Re: Warm vs cool colors

GingerPeach — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 16:19:17 GMT

@ILTH

You make a good point. I think reflected light/color is often forgotten.

I find it's an important aspect to consider when painting, especially interior walls. For example, I prefer warm tones inside, like peach and the like, because the reflected light is flattering.

It's not just what we look at, it's what is looking back at us (if someone wants to think of it that way).

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Desertdi — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 17:57:20 GMT

I am a "cool" tone. I will not wear clothes, decorate, or even drive a car that is not flattering to me (!!!)

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Spurt — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 20:46:50 GMT

@Abrowneyegirl

Look at a color wheel for good combinations

Color Schemes

There are some tried and true color schemes already at your disposal. The are Complementary, Triadic, Analogous, Split-Complementary, Tetradic, and Square schemes. They are formed using by creating different zones on the wheel. These schemes are used over and over in various ways and are guaranteed to work together.

Complementary

Complementary colors are directly across from one another on the color wheel. They are opposites. They compete for attention, yet also emphasize the other. The basic ones are Red and Green, Blue and Orange, Yellow and Violet. I’ll include Black and White because they are opposites and considered complementary even though they are technically not colors. Fun fact: mixing two complementary colors together will get you a murky brown!

Triadic

Triadic schemes use three colors that are evenly spaced around the wheel. They can be your primaries (RYB), your secondaries (OGV) or a mix of the tertiaries, as long as they are evenly spaced out from one another on the wheel. It’s probably good to point out that trios tend to be the most visually appealing number in a grouping so triadic schemes fit the bill great. Trios create a great sense of balance. Or pick one hue to be the main focus and use the other two as accents to shake things up a bit.

Analogous

Looking for a calming atmosphere? This is probably the one for you. Analogous schemes use the same hue but in varying values. If your favorite color is blue, then you could use navy, teal, and aquamarine together as your analogous scheme. Since the underlying hue is the same, the overall look comes across as relaxing.

Split Complementary

Do you love red but are not so keen on a Christmas scheme? You can split it up! This scheme involves grabbing the two neighboring colors from a complementary color instead of the exact complement. So red would be complemented with blue-green and yellow-green instead. This way you get the strong contrast, but no holiday theme.

Tetradic

Can’t narrow it down to three? Four colors work for tetradic scheme! You are creating a rectangle on the wheel. This is essentially using two complementary color schemes in the same space and making it work. That’s why this scheme is also called a double complementary. The secret to making this style work is to pick one color to stand out and use the other three as supporting colors. Pay attention to the balance between warm and cool hues too. The use of a good neutral tone will also keep this scheme from giving you a color overload.

Square

Similar idea to the tetradic, except instead of a rectangle you are creating a square on the wheel. These four colors are evenly spaced out around the wheel to create the ultimate balanced scheme. Each warm color is balanced by its opposite cool color. It’s often best to used tints or shades of your hue choices to create a more harmonious scheme instead of a competition for attention.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

jeanlake — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 20:52:18 GMT

The colorwheel is beautiful to me. I agree, some colors flow together better than others. Favorite combo is blue and green. Something new -- I'm beginning to wear true purple with any color and it works. At least I think it works.

I have icy, blue-gray eyes (thank you, dad) but my childhood hair color is medium brown with red highlights when the sun shines on it. Getting highlights in my hair was always confusing to me. Cool or warm?

Re: Warm vs cool colors

stevieb — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 21:23:48 GMT

From the get go, I don't think of most shades of 'green' as warm colors... Some of the yellow-greens, yes, otherwise, I see green as a cooler, peaceful and restful color... As for mixing them, I think a deft hand can mix cool and warm and make something spectacular... To me, the best rooms combine elements of warm and cool, though I'd not always say the same for outfits we might wear... With clothing, it's so immediately close to our persons that what works best depends on our coloring...

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Foxxee — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 00:41:01 GMT

I'd recommend finding out what colors flatter him most. Reference the book "Color Me Pretty." It applies to men, too.

True blues and greens, cool jewel tones, for example, look best on those with Winter coloring. Greens and blues look great in plaids and prints as long as they are one of the following: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer.

I'd stay away from a solid cool tone blue shirt with warm tone green pants. An exception, I think is light khaki, a warm color many men like to wear. I can't think of a color that doesn't go well with light khaki...maybe gray.

Some will disagree, but I agree with you @Abrowneyegirl.

You'll find many more men with varying degrees of colorblindness than women, so they won't see colors the same way. They might not even know they have problems with colors. To find out, you might try putting out different colors and ask what colors he sees.

He might not even know the difference between warm and cool colors. You could give him the Color Me Pretty test to see what colors he looks best. If willing, he could read the book. He'd be more inclined to choose his best colors if you tell him how good he looks in them. Tell him it makes him look younger. I think the right colors do.

Then, I suggest giving away those other colors if he approves, of course, but he might not care about colors at all.

You could help him with colors by pulling out those that go together whenever he goes somewhere. My mother does this with my father who is a bit colorblind. He's gotten to the point he asks her to do it.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Katcat1 — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 01:09:46 GMT

I say go with what pleases you and looks good together. I believe the warm and cool colors come more into play for clothes and what you are wearing.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Abrowneyegirl — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 01:26:23 GMT

@Foxxee

He looks great in warm colors. I usually shop with him and make sure all his work colors are warm tones and coordinate well with each other. It is so much easier when shirts, jackets, and ties mix and match for a cohesive, polished look. I hate looking for that one tie that works with that one shirt!

Many of his work shirts. ties and jackets are custom made or special ordered because he is tall and regular length ties and such are too short. At those $$$ mix and match is key.

The cool blue shirt is a beautiful shirt and looks great with black and grey trousers. The cool blue does not look terrible on him by any means it was just jarring when teamed with the green trousers.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

Abrowneyegirl — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 01:40:46 GMT

A current head-scratcher is a friend just finished a kitchen project.

She picked out a cool white marble with gray veining and specks throughout, as her backsplash. It looked great with her blue delph collection.

She paired it with a warm granite countertop. Now the backsplash tile looks a muddy or dirty shade of taupe and the blue delph looks out of place.

The warm and cool of the materials are not complementing each other at all. She is ready to have all the countertops replaced (again). I suggested she change the light bulbs in the kitchen to see if that helps.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

shoptilyadropagain — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 13:02:19 GMT

It's not a black and white (see what I did there....and it was unintentional.....LOL) situation for me. It all depends on the colors and shades of them whether I like the combo or not.

Re: Warm vs cool colors

wagirl — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 15:19:45 GMT

I prefer the warm colors and tones altho my fave color is green---I chose to use griege as my color scheme in the new part of my house----the cool tones depress me as I live in WA state and 3/4 of the year is grey and gloom and rainy, altho it is very green here too---so I need the warm colors to counter all that outside. My grey is a warmer tone and the beige is too --used white to brighten and had the whole house re wired with recessed cans for light. Have oil rubbed bronze lights as my grounding pop.black is too---black--some warmth with the bronze. Paint is a warm tan with a hint of grey, and will add my green somewhere---will be moving back in this week after 4 months in a rental---can't wait!!!

Re: Warm vs cool colors

faeriemoon — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 15:59:58 GMT

I mix warm and cool tones all the time. I feel (in decorating anyway) it gives the feeling of balance and harmony.