“You should wear that color”
This hack is a fun one; color theory! As a painter throughout high school and college, color theory is close to my heart, and something I think about when getting ready and deciding on a makeup look. At its core, color theory explains the human perception of color and how colors match-up visually. So how they mix, constrast, compliment,etc. according to the human eye.
First off we need to know the 3 categories all colors are grouped into: primary (blue, red, yellow), secondary (orange, green, purple), and tertiary which is when a secondary and primary color are mixed (blue-green, red-orange, yellow-green). Fun fact: primary colors are used to create every other color, which means they themselves cannot be created using other colors. So if you are thinking about going into painting, in theory (lol) you could just buy red, blue, yellow and maybe a white and black to create all colors you need.
In relation to clothing and choosing eyeshadows, the color wheel can be very helpful. Let’s take a look.
Complimentary colors
Complimentary colors are those that when combined make each other pop. These are across from each other on the color wheel, so red & green, blue & orange, purple & yellow. If you think about it, everyone uses these combinations, whether it is for corporate marketing, sports teams, fast food, clothing, and more! In relation to makeup….here is a little guide to pull from when choosing eye shadow shades(remember, you don’t need to use this, but you may be surprised the difference it makes).
Blue/green eyes: pinks, red, oranges, golds, reddish browns.
Brown/darker shades: brown would be near the orange/yellow in the color wheel, so I recommend shades of blue and purples. A lot of brown eyes have yellow tones, so I would evaluate where you think you would fall and then try out a few different shades/tones.
Hazel eyes: Because hazel tend to have flecks of green, I think a bronze or gold would compliment them well. They can also have yellow and brown, which I think would look beautiful with a deep purple/eggplant color.
Analogous Colors
Analogous colors are those that sit next to each other on the wheel (i.e. blue-green-yellow). These are used often in branding and marketing along with triadic colors because they create a pleasing color scheme that can move the eye in a certain direction, thus helping the consumer take an action. (Think a gradient of red to orange to yellow, where the yellow is a button for consumers to click). In relation to makeup and clothing, you can you analogous colors in many ways. One example is using three colors; one to dominate the look, one to support, and another to accent. For example a red dress, with orange chunky earrings and rings, and a lighter shade orange bag. Obviously this isn’t for everyone, but it is a fun theory to test especially if you look incorporating color into your looks! I personally love the look of an electric blue paired with a powder blue. To each their own.
Triadic Colors
Triadic colors are evenly spaced on the wheel. For example, purple-orange-green. Triadic colors are used in schemes because they can both create a visual contrast and harmony. A kind of in between for complimentary (contrast) and harmony (tertiary).
As you can probably tell, I love talking about color theory, and learned even more while refreshing my memory to write this. If you would me to talk more on this, or have question, drop them below! Color theory has a bigger role in everyday life that we can imagine, from branding and subliminal marketing, invoking emotions, to what we wear and decorate our homes with.