Understanding Color Terms Simplifies Decorating
There are several things to keep in mind when it comes to changing a room’s color scheme. While color is basic in home decorating, remember that it’s complex. The human eye registers 10 million different colors. That means the variety is endless. Choosing color can be a daunting task. First off, it’s crucial to understand some basic color terms.
Describing Color
Hue.
Described as being in the same color family.
Value.
Relative lightness or darkness of a color depending on a neighboring color.
Intensity.
The degree of color.
Spectrum.
When light passes through a prism, it creates a rainbow of color, or a spectrum.
Primary Colors.
A color that cannot be made from any other color. For example, blue, red, and yellow. All other colors are made from primary colors.
Primary colors are cheerful and good in high traffic living areas such as the kitchen and bathroom.
Secondary Colors.
Colors made from combining primary colors, or blue, red, or yellow. For example, a secondary color is orange, green or purple.
Secondary colors are popular in a bedroom or study. Oranges, greens and purples evoke a sense of coziness and warmth, good for rooms in which you relax.
Tertiary Colors.
Combining both a primary and a secondary color. A tertiary color would be yellow-green, for example.
Tertiary colors go well in a living room where it may be more appropriate to decorate in a more formal style.
Color Families.
Six basic colors defined on a color wheel – red, blue, yellow, green, purple, and orange.
Neutral.
No identifiable hue. Good examples are gray, white and black.
Written by the editors of HouseNet Inc.