Some color wheels depict 3 primary colors, 3 secondary colors, and 6 tertiary colors in separate spokes while other color wheels blend colors one into another as a continuum. It’s important to understand the color wheel because it guides how you choose coordinating colors.
Complementary colors can also include tertiary colors.
As another example, blue blends into purple, making blue-purple in the middle.
For instance, monochromatic colors in purple could include lavender, plum, and grape.
While this is a good general guideline, there are times when a warm color looks nice paired with a cool color, like a rich, warm gold accented with cool purple tones.
For instance, try a black suit with a pale pink shirt or a silver dress with a bright blue jacket thrown over it. When pairing neutrals like navy and olive with other colors, think about their hues. For instance, olive complements maroons and oranges, but it also does well with blues and golds because they’re nearby on the color wheel.
Another good way to use complementary colors to good effect is to pair 1 complementary color with a paler tint of its opposite color. For example, mix a purple dress with a pale yellow shawl.
Another example of using analogous colors to good effect might be a scarlet red dress with gold jewelry and pink shoes. While you usually should avoid mixing warm and cool colors, you can occasionally break that rule if you find something that looks good together. For instance, with your bright yellow dress, you might find a pale green cardigan that looks smashing with it. [8] X Research source
When you’re creating a monochrome look, try to stay in the same spoke on the color wheel. That is, if you choose blue, make sure you’re picking true blues, not purple-y blues.
If you want to go bolder, try pairing more than 1 primary color in an outfit, such as blue jeans, a bright red top, and a yellow purse.
Try a soft grey, a cream, or pale tan, for instance. An alternative option is to pick a bold color you like, and put that in the room you want it in. Then move out from there, picking colors that coordinate throughout your house.
For example, if you choose a periwinkle for your dining room, you might pick a light peach for the hallway, since those are complementary colors.
For instance, for an analogous scheme, you might paint one room pale yellow, the next one pale peach, and the next one pale pink.
This is especially true if you have an open concept house. With separate floors, you can use different schemes if you’d like, as the stairway creates a separation.
