One of the parts that beginner quilters find more difficult when they start their quilting journey is how to choose colours for a quilt.
When I started making quilts from other pattern designers as a hobby, I realised that I tended to go for the exact same colours they used for their samples as those, apart from the design, were the things that drew me in to buying the pattern in the first place.
Another reason for this was that I was feeling a bit lost regarding how to create a completely different version of that quilt using a whole bunch of new colours. After reading a few quilting books and watching many tutorials on YouTube, I realised that I needed to understand Colour Theory properly to then apply it to my quilts, both when designing a pattern and when making one from another designer.
What is Colour Theory
Definition
Colour Theory is related to how colours interact and relate with each other. The colours (also called 'Hues') that you pick for a quilt are a reflection of your personality and taste and that's what makes your quilt one of a kind and different to any other, even when you are using the same quilt design.
Colour defining terms
You will use many of these when choosing colours for a quilt so it is a good idea to understand them before doing anything else. Now, let's start with HUE, INTENSITY and VALUE.
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- HUE (or colour): it is usually the name of the most dominant colour.
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Primary Colours: all colours are derived from these three hues.
- Red, Yellow and Blue.
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- Secondary Colours: these are formed by mixing primary colours.
- Orange (red + yellow), Green (yellow + blue) and Purple (blue + red).
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Tertiary Colours: these are formed by mixing primary and secondary colours
- Red-Orange, Yellow-Orange, Yellow-Green, Blue-Green, Blue-Purple and Red-Purple.
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- INTENSITY or SATURATION: these terms refer to how bright the fabric is.
- Low Saturation: dull, muted or faded colours.
- High Saturation: bright, bold or vibrant colours.
- VALUE: this refers to how light or dark a fabric is.
- Shade: this is a colour that has had black added to it. It can make a colour look more dramatic.
- Tone: this is a colour that has had grey added to it. It can make a palette look calmer.
- Tint: when white is added to a hue. This can make a colour look paler or softer.
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- TEMPERATURE: colours can be hot or cold and the Colour Wheel divides these up with reds and oranges on one side of the wheel and blues and greens on the other.
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- MONOCHROMATIC: this term refers to using tints and shades of the same colour for a harmonious look.
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- NEUTRALS: these are weak colours that allow others to move forward in the design. Neutrals can be white, black, grey, brown, navy or even a colourful hue in a dark shade, light tint or low saturation.
Colour relationships and creating your own colour palette
The Colour Wheel can be used to explore different colour combinations when selecting fabrics for a quilt. Keep these colour options at hand when designing a palette for your next project.
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COMPLEMENTARY: this colour palette uses colours that are opposite to each other, creating a strong contrast (e.g. yellow and purple).
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Within this option, you can find:
- SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY: combining one colour with the two that sit to either side of its complementary. It can be used to add small pops of a different colour.
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- DOUBLE SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY: this colour palette can be created using two pairs of complementary colours that form an X on the colour wheel.
- ANALOGOUS: this option uses three neighbouring colours in the colour wheel (e.g. red, orange, yellow). This colour palette creates a calm more coordinated quilt.
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- TRIADIC: this combination uses three colours evenly spaced around the colour wheel.
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- And you can also find RECTANGULAR TETRADIC COMPLEMENTARY and SQUARE TETRADIC COMPLEMENTARY (example below).
As you can see there's a lot behind choosing colours for a quilt but! as soon as you learn the theory and practice, it will become second nature. And remember, that you can always go back to your Colour Wheel to check any colour combination :)
I hope you found this post interesting. Thank you for reading and I will see you back here soon for part 2!
Happy quilting,
Ana
xxx
References:
'Modern Quilt Bible' by Elizabeth Betts
Just Get It Done Quilts YouTube channel and website
Cottoneer Fabrics Colour Theory post