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Basic Priciples of Complementary Colors:
(Designer colors (Designing with Colors), and what color matches with what)
Low-Tech and High-Tech Solutions
Choosing color for your rug or any decorating challenge should not be so mysterious or difficult.
Here we find a simple artist's color wheel... Simply choose the Base color you would like to use from the wheel and draw a line straight across the wheel. These are the colors that definitely complement each other.
You will need two colors that compliment each other and an accent color. This page discusses choosing two colors that are complimentary. It usually takes three or more colors for a color scheme, because you need accent colors-
First is the Low-Tech Solution:
Simple Color Wheel:
In this Simple Wheel you can see that the complement for red is green.
(that would explain our color choices at Christmas)
Complimentary Colors:
In This Sample Version of the color wheel you get an expanded idea for color choices (Adapted Red to Green) . These are more modern colors. Of course this does not mean you cannot use other complementing colors, but if you keep to the model you will always be pleased with the result. This simple tool can be of great value in choosing your paint, rugs, furniture, window coverings, etc...
(In the example above, the white line across the wheel indicates a fairly neutral green complimented by a magenta color)
Contrasting Colors:
Triadic Approach
(The Black Lines show the Triad)
To Find Contrasting Colors using the color wheel, Simply take three points of equal distance in a triangular shape across the color wheel. (In this example we can choose a shade of yellow as our main color. We find that various shades of blue and various shades of magenta to deep rose would make nice contrasts for your home decor).
Three points of equal distance anywhere around the wheel will give you a good quality standard for contrasting colors
Here is a Wheel you can PRINT AND DRAW YOUR OWN LINES. (Simply right-click on image and select print. (I suggest using a ruler for drawing your straight lines)).
I really like this colorwheel - the colors on it are more contemporary
RealColorWheel Picture Provided by permission from Don Jusko at RealColorWheel.com (Thanks Don) Don has a great site for artists - with tips and examples where you can order his 5"x5" Laminated Color Wheel
By the way, most of the rug choices on this web site were chosen for their versitility and ability to match most household color schemes. (Check out our Rug Specials Area)
Now For the High_Tech Solution: CLICK HERE for an online solution (This software was designed to pick a color scheme for web sites but it works great for
our purposes here also - Check out the Triad View-
It gives results for (contrasting colors which are great for interior decorating)
If you have High-Speed Internet CLICK HERE for a really cool online color experience. (New from Adobe - a truly interactive colorwheel that shows how each approach affects colors)
If You need a program you can use offline or on the jobsite with no web access Here is a great FREE program that you can download to your computer (and take it with you)...
Absolute Color Picker - is free software for webmasters and web-designers. This is a simple application based on Absolute Color Picker ActiveX Control that lets you select and pick colors by means of various color models and convert them into HTML-based hexadecimal representation. Being a great compact color designer it features a free color picker, color scheme generator, color history builder, color scheme management system, screen color grabber and much more. Absolute Color Picker is 100% compatible with most graphics packages and is the best compact choice for professional designers, freelancers and home users.
Click Here to Download Absolute Color Picker (FREE)
Article By Charles Beason
Charles is a Flooring Design Consultant. His base of operations can be obtained at www.rugrunnerbiz.com
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