About colour palette suggestions
Colour harmonies are combinations that look balanced because of how their hues sit on the colour wheel. Pick a base colour and the tool suggests several.
Common harmonies
- Complementary: the colour opposite on the wheel. Strong contrast and energy.
- Analogous: neighbours on the wheel. Calm and cohesive.
- Triadic: three colours evenly spaced. Lively and balanced.
- Split-complementary: the base plus the two colours either side of its complement. Contrast with less tension.
- Square and monochromatic: four evenly spaced hues, or variations of a single hue.
How to use them
Choose one colour to dominate, a second to support and the third as a small accent. Using all colours at equal strength looks busy.
A worked example
With a base of blue (hue 225), the complementary colour is orange (hue 45), which gives strong contrast. The analogous neighbours are blue-violet and blue-cyan, which feel calm. A triadic set adds colours 120 degrees away, giving a lively but balanced trio.
Putting it into practice
- Use roughly 60% of the dominant colour, 30% of the second and 10% of an accent.
- Desaturate secondary colours so they support the main one.
- Test the combination in a real layout, not just as swatches.
