If you’re trying to make your own handmade cards it can be tricky to know which colours and designs to use. If you’ve never heard of a colour wheel, you might find it useful when picking the right combinations of colours to mix together. A colour wheel can help you pick the perfect colour scheme every time for scrapbooking or cardmaking activities.
There are 3 primary types of colour that make up all other colours:
- Primary colours: red, blue and yellow – these colours make up all the other colours.
- Secondary colours: orange (red + yellow), purple (blue +red) and green (blue+yellow).
- Tertiary colours: red-orange, red-violet, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-violet and blue-green; these are the colours that are made when the primary + secondary colours combine.
There are so many colours, patterns and designs available when it comes to choosing paper for your card making and scrapbooking. For Handmade Wedding Invitations, visit https://www.looneylizardcreations.co.uk/handmade-invitations/wedding-stationery/ Here are some of the different schemes you can try:
Monochromatic scheme
This is when all the colours fall within the same hue of a single colour. For example, you could take yellow and then incorporate golden yellow, mustard yellow or lemon yellow. If you want to use this scheme, just examine the colours closely to make sure you are balancing the darker hues with lighter shades.
Triadic colour scheme
This is the most used colour scheme for scrapbooking and card making as this is the method that involves using three colours that are evenly spaced around the colour wheel, balancing warm and cool shades. It’s always good to let one colour dominate with the others used as highlights. It gives a strong visual contrast while maintaining balance.
Analogous scheme
This is the use of colours that come next to each other on the colour wheel. When using this method, it might be handy to have a colour wheel with you so you can look at it when you’re at the craft store picking the perfect paper, stickers and accessories for your project.
Some tips for making crafting easier:
- Look through magazines or Pinterest
- Take a walk and look at the colours that blend together so perfectly in nature to be inspired for your next scrapbooking or card making night.
- Don’t go overboard on bold patterns. If you’re using a floral or heavy pattern, pick out the main colours used in the main pattern and stick to a more basic design for the background but in the same hue.
- Keep all your scraps of paper, no matter the colour, as you never know when they could become exactly the shade you’re looking for in a future project.
Above all, remember to enjoy what you’re doing. If you’ve started a project but end up not liking the colours you’ve used then play around with it and maybe adjust the tones. Working towards finding the perfect match is half the fun!