Color Tutorial
Man, once I get started, I just can't stop! I hope you all are enjoying this wealth of sharing on the old blog. Don't get used to it, I may only have so much to give. Once it's gone, that's it.
OK, color, what does it mean to you. In all of us, color evokes feelings and emotions. Some of us find joy in certain colors* and some of us are sick at the sight of others. Not only do colors have value to us, they also have Value. Color Value/Tone is the lightness or darkness of a color. If we go to the Color Scheme Generator we can see the difference in color value. Click on the color of your choice on the color wheel. You will see 4 values of that one color. The color didn't change, just how much white or black is shading it. You may think you hate the color pink, but maybe it's just the value that you dislike. Think of that color as lighter or darker and see what you think. When you click on the yellow color that is where the cold colors start, you will see a dull value on the top right corner. Not a pretty yellow. Remind you of something your kid produced as a baby in diapers? Yet to the left is a bright sunny yellow that can't help but cheer you up.
What else does Color have? It has Hue. Hue is the spectrum of colors present in the rainbow. The colors we identify as red, orange, yellow, green, blue indigo and violet. ROY G BIV. Within these hues are Primaries (red, yellow, blue) and Secondaries (orange, green, violet). So the Hue is the actual color, the Vaule is the depth of shade of that color.
And what can we do with those hues and values? Make beautiful knit items to wear. Even if you are only making a solid colored sweater, the hue and value of the color can make or break your design. OK, it's not that critical, but there are some pointers to keep in mind.
Bright isn't always right. I love bright shades for baby stuff. Not so for me. But that doesn't mean I can't wear eye popping colors. I just need to tone them down. My preferred range of colors are in the Jewel tones. Jewel tones are usual colors with more depth, or value, than their bright cousins. When we think of bright we think of ABC Primaries. Even the Secondaries. To get a Jewel tone we just need to add some black to give the colors depth. Think Royalty and the Tyrian Purple that was reserved for it. With the dye so dear in producing, you can understand why only royalty cold afford cloth of it's color. It wasn't the Barney purple, it was much deeper. Can you imagine the different feelings you would get seeing Barney Purple and Tyrian Purple?
Dark Shadows don't help show off the crossings of cables, nor turns and twists. Deep lovely shades of color all have their place, but not in a design that is full of texture. Dark shades are full of black. Black absorbs light, so a sweater with texture is not going to show when your color is sucking the light out of it. You don't have to go bright, just don't go dark as night. Consider how much effect of the design can be lost with the choice of color before you begin, or try and swatch and then stand back from it to see what the visual is. You may be surprised at what is lost.
Nature knows something. When working with mulitple colors as in Fair Isle, Intarsia or just striping along, consider putting together colors you normally wouldn't. If nature can get it right without rules, why not sweaters. The one thing to keep in mind is that colors of similar value can get lost when they are used together. At a distance, our eyes read similar color values as being equal. When piecing a quilt the most important thing to watch out for is similar values. The colors could be completely different in hue, but if their values are similar they will cancel each other out. When I am helping customers pick out colors for a Market Squares Bag, so glad XRX released Knitter's Dozen in bags, I always show my version. I have a problem with the placement of the olive green color. It gets lost between the burgundy and the taupe. It's too close in value to the burgundy. But I still love the bag.
Look at these 3 Fair Isle Bags for understanding of why Value is so important. The bag at left has issue with some of the colors. The Taupe and Light Blue above the center band. You can barely tell there is a design in that band. Bag 2 didn't fare any better. The pink and orange are too close in value. 3rd bag. Still wrong, but that whole bag is wrong. Problem was, the designer did her colors all wrong. If you follow her pattern you will end up with this mishmash. When chosing colors for FI you need to have a range of values that will read in contrast to each other. In the first 2 bags the center band works right. In the 3rd one, again the values were all too close to use. I was just trying to use stash and they were all heathers. Good thought, bad result.
There are a few gadgets on the market to help you avoid these issues. A Taleidesope allows you to see the colors in a fractured view that helps you determine if a color is lost in the mix. A Value Viewer actually eliminates the hue of the colors and leaves only the values. It will show you the contrast level between the colors you have chosen. And last, but definitely cheaper, the naked eye. Or I should say the squinted eye. Place your skeins of yarn together and step away from them. Squint your eyes as you look at them and see if you can pick out each color. Do you lose one or two?
Now, go back to the Color Scheme Generator. Click on those boxes underneath the color wheel. View the color combos of the Triad, the Tetrad and Analogic. Out to the side of the viewing square you will also see the values of each color shown. Don't like how deep the colors are, pick the lighter values. If you are ever stumped for another color to add to your mix, try a color wheel that is full of the entire range from Primary to Tetrad. You are sure to find that perfect match. Find the one that makes you feel good!
Can color evoke feelings, cause us to take note or to not even see something. Sure! Which is why nature has used the effect of color to live, survive and propagate for forever. When animals don't want to be eaten they blend in with their surroundings. When animals want to find that special someone, they have colorful displays. How about you? When you are feeling blue do you put on some comfy, cozy clothes? Or when you are out and about are you wearing your best and brightest? Watch how colors meet or feed your moods. Take note of how you feel when you put something on.
When I slip into lime green I can't help but be cheerful. When I put on my gray top and yoga pants (not for yoga) I am ready to be comfy. But on the other hand, when I slip into black pants and a jewel tone top I feel so elegant and stylish. Each of us has a different reaction to colors. Some of us even have genders for the colors. In my world the ladies are White, Pink, Red, Yellow and Orange. The gentlemen are Purple, Blue, Green, Black and Brown. Go figure?
And lastly, color has a temperature, but not a fever. We group the hues into cool or warm shades. Cool shades are what I call the gentlemen and warm shades are the ladies. Except for white which is cool and brown which is warm. Red evokes passion and blue makes us calm. It's unbelievable what color can mean to us. Can you imagine the signals you would send in a red hot sweater? Or the elegance you would present in a little black number. The colors we wear can say a lot about our personality and mind set. Take a look at your stash. What is it saying about you?
If you had to pick a color that represents yourself, what would it be? Green all the way for me. Green for envy I feel towards those who have more stash than me. Green for money I want to spend on more stash. Green for the tranquility of a pasture full of sheep whose wool is being grown to make more yarn for me!!! OK, you get the picture. I love green!
Blessings: Color in my world. It thrills me whether it's the color of the yarn I am knitting, the fabrics in my house or the clothes on my body. The colors in our surroundings make life shine.
*Yes, you all know my penchant for anything green. Chartreuse, Key Lime, Spruce, Grass, Celery, any shade of green.