COLOUR

The natural, the religious and cultural, the

political to the purely emotional. In order to design a successful collection, colour must be strongly considered. It is fundamental to feel the collection through its colour(s).

COLOUR THEORY

It is important to understand the basic relationships of colour that can create maximum

results, particularly when it comes to selecting fabrics and placing prints

PRIMARY COLOURS

These are colours that cannot be created by combining other hues.

SECONDARY COLOURS

These are created from 2 combination of primary colours.

TERTIARY COLOURS

These are formed by mixing a primary and secondary colour

COMPLEMENTARY COLOURS

Two colours that are opposite each other on the wheel. Complementary colours offers maximum vibrancy

ANALOGOUS COLOURS

Colours that are next to each other on the wheel.

COLOUR TERMINOLOGY

HUE Another posh word for colour.

SATURATION The purity of the hue, it’s richness, strength and intensity. Bright colours are very saturated.

TONE The lightness or darkness of the hue. It is also referred to as the value of a colour. Dirty colours have more black added to them, pastel colours have more white. Both tone and saturation gives colour its variety. Terms used: Tone down/Tone up. – meaning to lighten or darken the hue

HIGHLIGHT A small proportion of contrasting colour used to enhance and lift the main colours.

TONAL COLOURS A palette of the same colour/hue, but in

different tones.

MONOCHROME one single hue

NATURAL Colours derived from landscapes, sky, earth, water.

PASTELS/TINT Hues toned down with white. Pink is a tint of red.

SHADE Hues darkened with black. Maroon is a shade of red.

What terminology of colour is

Jennifer Hudson’s Jumpsuit?

M O N O C H R O M E M i c h a e l K o r s R e s o r t 2 0 1 3

Emma Stone is wearing a two-piece

number of different pink ____________ ? T O N E S

T h a k o o n 2 0 1 4

COLOURS AND THEIR FREQUENTLY ASSOCIATED MEANINGS

WHITE Purity, surrender, truth, peace, innocence, simplicity, coldness, death, marriage, birth, virginity

BLACK Intelligence, rebellion, mystery, modernity, power, sophistication, formality, elegance, evil, death, slimming quality.

GREY Elegance, conservatism, respect, wisdom, old, boredom, dullness, pollution, neutral, formal, decay, military, education

RED passion, strength, energy, sex, love, romance, speed, danger, anger, wealth, luck, marriage

ORANGE Happiness, energy, balance, heat, enthusiasm, playfulness, warning, optimism, abundance

Yellow Joy, happiness, summer, cowardice, illness, hazards, greed, femininity, friendship

BLUE Water, ocean, peace, unity, calmness, coolness, confidence, conserved, loyalty, depression, sadness, idealism, dependability.

GREEN Nature, fertility, youth, inexperience, environment, wealth, generosity, jealousy, growth, health, calming.

PURPLE Nobility, envy, spirituality, creativity, mystery, wisdom, gaudy, confusion, pride, instability.

COLOURS & SEASONS Colours help sets the ambience of the season that a designer wants to create for it’s

enticing consumers.

The pallete of a season could vary from delivery to delivery, collection to collection.

Colour is closely related to its season, although it may vary according to the designer’s

concept.

SPRING/SUMMER Bright colours such as yellow, green, coral, purple, turquoise. They help set the mood for the coming

season of summer, warmer climates and generally a fun vibe.

Peter Jensen Spring 2014 collection

Mary Katrantzou Spring 2014 collection

FALL/WINTER

A transition period of the season where darker, deeper and richer colours are favoured such as browns, olives, mustard, maroon, grey and navy.

Balenciaga Fall 2014 collection

Polo Ralph Lauren Fall 2014 collection

HOLIDAY

Holiday usually refers to the Christmas period, so festivity colours are in favour for this season. Complementary colours of ruby red and emerald green, jewel tones of sapphire blue, metallic such as silver, gold or bronze, and even pure colours such as champagne and ivory that represents the winter. Holiday collections are mostly done by high-streets.

Rihanna for River Island Holiday 2013 collection

RESORT/CRUISE

This season is launched in the midst of Spring/Summer. As the name suggests, it represents fashion during the high summer holidays. The hues of this season are mainly soft pastels, whites, and bright colours.

Dior 2014 Resort collection

COLOUR

RESEARCH

COLOUR CONTEXTS When reviewing your research and mood board, analyse the colour contexts. The colours extrapolated from your research and mood boards will provide the collection not only with colour references, but also the proportions in which they are used

• Which colours serve as the mood board’s foundation, and which provide accents?

• How are the foundation and accent colours proportionate to one another?

• How many base colours can be extracted?

• How many accent colours are used?

Are they used equally or in varying percentages?

• What moods and emotions do the colours produce and how do they relate to your

theme?

• How can you accentuate this through fabric and silhouette development later on?

• How can the tonal differences of an image provide reference for a design

development?

- such as prints, fabric colours, layering of fabrics, and other dress-making

techniques?

• What textures are present and how can they inform my textile selection?

And what are the proportions of the textures?

.

TO START YOUR COLOUR RESEARCH…

1. REVIEW YOUR CONCEPT BOARD

What colors can you extract from there?

2. CREATE A COLOR PALETTE

How many colors should there be in a collection of 6 pieces? What is the base color

and what is the accent/highlight colors?

3. REVIEW YOUR PRIMARY RESEARCH

Lay out all of your research, determine where the colors you have selected for your

color palette comes from.

4. DRAW, COLOUR, CREATE AN ART USING THOSE COLORS

Once you have determined the source of your colors, Explore different tones by

extracting the colors out.

USE the colors from your color palette to draw, create, collage or paint a picture that

Is inspired by your CONCEPT.

5. SECONDARY RESEARCH

Look at paint color cards and catalogues, Pantone website, Other designer’s collection,

Art work, Paintings etc… which uses the same color palatte as yours.

COLOUR CONSIDERATIONS

To develop colour palettes based in relations in the mood board, there are a number of processes you can follow.

DEFINE THE COLOUR RELATIONSHIP

Defining the colours and tones of your collection helps

set a foundation for all others.

Whether it is pure, authentic, energetic, colour helps you create the mood for your collection. Define your colour references by looking at your point of research, and whether there are any references related to colours in your design influence.

Tata-Naka A/w 2012

CONSIDER THE COLOUR SCALE

A bright yellow may be appropriate in a large

silhouette, such as trench coat, for one

designer, but another may find it appropriate

only in a small accent in a print of lining,

sometimes it isn’t the colour that seems

inappropriate, but the contexts surrounding it.

Gucci Pre-fall 2014

CONSIDER THE CUSTOMER

A colour may look good in your research e.g a photo or a painting, but may not necessarily translate the same way on to the body. Colour that is worn becomes part of the wearer’s personality and physical appearance (aesthetic).

Leutton Postle Spring/Summer 2014

THE ‘MIDDLE’ COLOUR

When a palette of solid color that are unrelated and disjointed come together, it is essential to create a middleman to unify them and create a harmonious colour story. This could be a neutral colour, such as black, white, beige, navy or grey added into the palette as a highlight. Using or adding textures are also a great way to unite two disjointed colours together. Prints, woven or printed stripes. Multi-colored embroideries, jersey knits with various colours and beadings can all serve as an axis to bring unrelated colours together and harmonize the palette.

COLOUR TREND FORECAST

Fashion designers must constantly exercise their sixth sense to know how consumers behavior will evolve and what the customer’s needs will be. Apart from the usual seasonal colours, being aware of the following is crucial: - What season have you picked for your collection? - What were the colours of the previous years’ seasons? To assist designers in their own observation and speculations, fortunately, forecasting services have developed a well-formulated research that examines global changes, often through contexts that will affect fashion such as historical, cultural, societal, political and economic contexts.

SOME OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL TREND-FORECASTING AGENCIES

WORLD GLOBAL STYLE NETWORK

PANTONE INC

COLOUR

MOOD BOARD