Create a Captivating Colour Palette with the Colour Wheel

Today we’re continuing with our mini-lessons on colour and diving into how you can use the colour wheel to transform your home.

Ready to get creative?

First things first, let’s get acquainted with our friend, the colour wheel. See the image below as a reference or order yourself this handy little tool from Amazon. I use it constantly when planning new schemes and clients find it really helpful when sitting down to discuss a colour palette for their project. 

Click the image to purchase.

Here’s the basics:

• It’s organised into warm colours (reds, oranges, yellows) and cool colours (greens, blues, violets). 

• On the outside of the wheel it shows the ‘pure’ colour, then as it works its way inwards it shows lighter tints. 

• Colour theory works in two ways: contrast or harmony. 

  So, let’s talk strategy! See different methods for building colour schemes below. 

Tonal: When you choose one singular colour (e.g. green), but vary its tone around the room (e.g light green on the walls, a deeper green on the sofa etc). This is very popular due to its calming nature and is often seen in more neutral interiors. 

Stunning tonal bedroom in deep auburn and rust by Sarah Solis.

Complimentary: These are colours that sit directly opposite each other on the wheel, creating a contrasting yet dynamic look. Some examples are red and green or blue and orange. This can also be broken down further, such as, violet-red (pink hues) and yellow-green. One of my favourite ways to use a complimentary scheme is navy blue walls or furniture paired with rusty orange soft furnishings (as demonstrated below).

Navy blue walls paired with a rust orange sofa, taken from DigDigs. Perfection.

Analogous: The colours that sit next to each other on the wheel. Pairing these together create a sense of harmony and flow. Let’s take a living room, for example, where we want to maximise feelings of relaxation and cosiness. We could start by using a warm, earthy terracotta hue as our base colour, then pair it with complementary shades like mustard yellow or deep olive green to add depth and interest. This stops the colours from being too similar, which would make the room feel ‘flat’.

The living room of Julia Reed’s home - green walls, yellow curtains, red undertones in the wooden floor and drawers. What a lovely example of an analogous colour scheme!

Triad: You guessed it, this method includes groups of three. This is where you choose three colours that are equidistant on the wheel. Think of placing an equilateral triangle on the wheel - the distance between each colour is the same. One example of a triadic scheme is blue, yellow and red. This is a more bold approach and is a fun way to add personality and charm to a space; I particularly like using this method in a children’s bedroom.

A sophisticated triadic scheme showcased in this study space by Hunted Interior.

The key to creating a successful colour palette is balance. Play around with different shades, tones and textures until you find the perfect combination that speaks to you. Also consider the emotions you want to evoke within a certain room - scroll down to our previous post for more on this!

Have you ever used any of these methods? Let us know!

Happy decorating!