Colour 101

“What colour roses should I buy for my girlfriend?” he asked.

“Well, it depends with what you trying to show.” I replied.

“Love, of course.” he answered.

“Red. Then definitely go with red.” I concluded.

Source

This conversation wasn’t as brief as I have made it seem. Before we arrived at the ‘red roses’ conclusion, I had already confused my friend with a number of information with regards to colours and techniques of mixing and matching {Complementary colours, Triad colours etc.} some of what we popularly refer to as ‘Colour Blocking’.

Figuring out which colours work well isn’t a matter of chance. It is a Science! Each colour has a specific meaning tied to it and different colour combinations fit into different categories. Colour brings out the current mood and even personality. Colours also play a huge role in creating the first impression and they determine how things are perceived.

As a designer, it is essential to understand colour. When creating applications either web based or mobile, the choice of colour should be taken into a lot of consideration. The right combination will get a lot of audience attracted to it and have the right message in the application conveyed to them visually in a very simple way.

I noticed that so many apps that I use have been developed in blue. From the top of my head, there is: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Truecaller, Shazam Telegram, Skype and Dropbox. I am sure I have left out a bunch though but here’s where you come in and add to the list. So why is this? Why are there so many blue apps?

Blue: This is probably the favourite colour of most people. It is nature’s colour for water and the sky. Dark blue depicts trust, dignity, intelligence and authority. Bright blue depicts cleanliness, strength, dependability and coolness. Sky blue depicts peace, serenity, ethereal, spirituality and infinity. Negative depictions associated with blue are its representation of sadness and depression as seen by phrases like Monday blues, feeling blue, Chelsea… No, please don’t go….

You can’t go wrong if you use blue in your apps. However, it can end up as a design cliché if used alone. Combining it with another colour creates more awesome effects.

Red: This is the colour of extremes. On one hand it denotes love and passion, hence the roses but on the other hand it represents anger and danger as in warning signs. Context is everything when designing with red. When red is placed on a black background it glows while when on a white background, it appears duller. Red captures attention. It is one of the most visible colours second to yellow. {Pink is a combination of red and white. Pink roses also signify love as well as gratitude and appreciation}

Awe-inspiring apps that have been designed in red include Flipboard, Pinterest, Google apps like G+ and YouTube.

Yellow: This is the most luminous of all colours and captures one’s attention the most. It is the colour of happiness, optimism, enlightenment, creativity, sunshine, spring, sticky notes, emojis (emoticons), minions  and Sponge Bob. I mean, who doesn’t like Sponge Bob? Or minions? See me after this! On the flipside, it also depicts cowardice, betrayal, egoism and madness. Yellow roses stand for friendship, joy and good health.

When combined with black it can gain a lot of attention. Most notable apps in yellow include the yellow pages app, Google Keep, Post-It, and Bloom.fm among others

Green: This colour signifies growth, rebirth, youth, fertility, health and also wealth as it is the colour of money. Conversely, it also represents jealousy. There are so many shades of green. When combined with yellow – lime green, when combined with blue – aqua and turquoise.

Agricultural apps will find it beneficial to use green in their development and a good example is M-Shamba. Evernote, Vine, WhatsApp and eFamily (Formally, Origami) are also perfect green app examples.

N.B. Approximately 8% of men and 0.5% of women of the world are born colour blind. Green and red are the most affected colours. Keep this in mind when designing using those colours.

Orange: If you are looking for something vibrant, hot, healthy, fruity, energetic and engaging, your best bet is to go with this colour. However, it can also seem abrasive, annoying (as in the case of ‘The Annoying Orange’) and crass. There are many shades of orange and each carries a meaning. Darker oranges offer a sense of comfort, spice and earth. Lighter oranges are soothing and healthy. Orange roses signify enthusiasm and passion.

Some of the apps that I love which incorporate orange include: Swarm, Eventbrite, SoundCloud and Blogger of course.

White: This is the presence of all colours visible in the spectrum. White can be associated with sterility, holiness and softness. It is great for connoting health and cleanliness. White roses signify marriage, spirituality and new starts.

Most apps have white incorporated in it as it can be used to merge all the other colours used quite well. It makes apps seem spacious and well arranged. Are there apps that you know of that don’t include any white spaces or words?

Black: This is the opposite of white in so many ways. It is the absence of colour and to many, it signifies evil, horror, decay and even death. It can also represent anxiety and despair. However, I love black. It is a staple for me. When you combine black with gold, it creates a luxurious feeling. Black combined with silver or grey denotes sophistication. I’ve heard of black roses, never seen one of them though. Black roses are a symbol of dying love.

Apps dealing with hotels, cars, jewellery or wine would look really good in black and a combination of either platinum grey, gold, silver or white. E.g. Olympia Gold Beach Resort App, Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, Mercedes Benz Guides among others.

There are so many colours. If I was to write about all of them, we’d be here till Christmas. So instead, you can look up Colour Matters and Site Point for more info and fun facts about colours. The sites helped a lot with my content. In conclusion colour is beautiful! Never shy away from it when dealing with design work or even when picking out items of clothing. I should know, I am donning a mustard skirt today.

One design rule you should take home: There are no bad colours, only bad combinations.

#HappyDays