Color - Some Basic Definitions

Color and fabric selection seem to be among the most frequently asked questions relating to quilting. "How do I pick the right fabric for my quilt?" "How do I know which colors go together?" "What about all of those multi-colored print fabrics - how do they fit in?"

This is a series of articles about color and how to make ordinary quilts become extraordinary just by your color selection.

To begin, let's define some terms.

Color - is the general term that applies to the entire subject. Whether you are talking about red, yellow, blue, or any combination of those, you are talking about color. As you read below, you will learn some of the complexities of color, and why it is so confusing to us quilters.

Hue - refers to the name of the colors - "blue" "green" "violet" "yellow-green" etc.

Primary colors - there are three primary colors - red, blue, and yellow. All colors (hues) can be made from these three by simply combining them in differing amounts.

Secondary colors - these are the colors you get when you mix equal amounts of two primary colors. The secondary colors are violet (blue and red), orange (red and yellow), and green (blue and yellow).

Complementary colors - this is a pair of colors that are directly across the color wheel from each other. For example, the blue and orange are complementary colors.

Value - is the lightness or darkness of a particular color.

Warm colors - these are the colors on the red - yellow side of the color wheel.

Cool colors - these are the colors on the blue - green side of the color wheel.

Tint - the color you get when you mix white with a pure color. These are high in value.

Shade - the color when you mix black with a pure color. These have a low value.

Here's a fun color wheel. As you click on the various colors in the wheel, look in the bottom right corner, and you can see what the basic (primary) color is, and what secondary color is mixed with it to produce the result. There is a lot more information there as well.

Happy Quilting!

Penny is a quilter of more than 24 years who seeks to interest new quilters and provide them with the resources necessary to create beautiful quilts.

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