Colour Combination Principles

Monochromatic means one single colour (mono=one)

Different shades, tones and tints of the same colour can be used to give the impression of different colours and provide variety and interest. A single colour is considered unified, peaceful and harmonious. Single colours are effective for establishing an overall mood and tying things together but are considered dull because of the lack of colour variation.

The analogous combination are colours that are side-by side on the colour wheel. Analogous combinations are versatile and eye catching. This scheme uses two to three related colours next to each other on the colour wheel to create visual appeal. 

 One colour is often a dominant colour while the other is an accent colour. The wide selection of possible combinations makes this a versatile scheme to use. For example: A selection of purples and blues or oranges and reds can be used to create this scheme. The similarity of the related colours makes the scheme harmonious. However, the use of more than three colours can dilute the overall effect on this scheme.

These are all analogous colour combination schemes.

ORANGE + RED + Yellow

or a range of cool colours falling between blue and green. 

BLUE + BLUE GREEN + GREEN

Also called Contrasting colours. 

Complimentary colours are opposite in the colour spectrum or a warm colour will be combined with a cool colour to create some interesting combinations For example yellow and purple, red and green, blue and orange. They are generally found to be visually pleasing to most people. 

The two colours combined will contain all three primary colours, so the colour scheme is complete and well balanced. For example RED is the primary (main) colour GREEN is your secondary colour made from Blue + Yellow = RED + GREEN = BROWN So Brown has all three primary colours in it. RED + GREEN (green is made from YELLOW + BLUE) When you mix Red with Green you will get a perfect neutral colour, as in the above example where you get a warm brown. The two colours jointly contain all three primary colours.

These are extremely eye catching and vibrant, sometimes more so than the triadic scheme. However the limited number of colours in complementary schemes means the colour is easily digested and then discarded by the viewer.

Use contrasting colours as accent colours and avoid setting strong contrasts as background and type colours. 

Generally the eye has difficulty focusing on contrasting colours for any length of time. Think of orange type on a blue background now imagine trying to read a whole page of this on the web or reading red on a black background for any length of time.

With complimentary schemes it is not necessary to use startling or obvious combinations like blue and orange. You can tone contrast colours down to make them a more readable combination. Try light orange (almost cream) with a dark blue background, beige and light blue combine well as does maroon and forest green to create a more pleasing combination. 

This is where one of the complement colours is broken into two colours that are adjacent to it. For example: yellow and violet for one set of colours and red and green as a background colour. 

The double compliment is fun to work with as there is more variety than a simple complimentary colour scheme. Split combinations tend to be less vibrant and eye catching and this can make it difficult to harmonize with other colours.

Triadic schemes are a triad of colours using three opposing colours equally spaced around the colour wheel or by drawing a equilateral triangle between the colours with the points of the triangle being the colours making up the triad.

Red, yellow and blue 

or purple, orange and green 

are all triadic colour schemes. 

Like contrasting colour combinations it is not necessary to use full strength, startling combinations to create effective colour schemes. Using a more subdued value of one or more colour can help create greater harmony.

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