How to think about color like an interior designer

Did you know that design professionals use the color wheel when deciding how to decorate a space? Here are some color theory basics to help you think like a designer when adding color to your home.

The color wheel
The standard color wheel contains 12 colors: three primary colors, three secondary colors and six tertiary colors. Primary colors (red, yellow and blue) combine to form secondary colors (orange, violet and green). Tertiary colors are derived from combinations of primary and secondary colors.

Variations on these base colors are created by using different shades, tints and tones. Tinting means adding white to make a color lighter while shading involves adding black to make it darker. Tone refers to mixing a color with a combination of white and black.

How designers use the color wheel when decorating
Designers use these principles to figure out different ways to use color in a space. Here are three common color schemes.

• Monochromatic: based on one color in various shades, tones and tints.

• Complementary: complementary colors (orange and blue, red and green, yellow and purple) are directly across from each other on the color wheel. In a complementary scheme, one color serves as the dominant hue and the other as an accent.

• Analogous: based on three colors found next to each other on the color wheel. It’s more subtle than using complementary colors but more colorful than a monochromatic interior.

Designers also consider color temperature. In general, warm colors, which contain more red and yellow, are thought of as more vibrant and cozy while cool colors, which have more blue and violet in them, are seen as calm and relaxing.