Colour has powerful properties. It can enhance and alter our moods, allow us to express ourselves, it can change how we appear, and sometimes even play tricks with our eyes. Throughout history and in different cultures each colour has had it’s own special meaning and significance. These meanings aren’t the same for everyone, you may have your own meaning based on your experiences, or how that colour makes you feel.
The colors you wear influence others first impression of you, it’s a subconscious reaction that most of us don’t even realize. You can change the colors you wear to alter others impressions, but many people prefer to wear the colours that are a genuine and sincere expression of their true self. Your choices may change from day to day, you might really like a colour one day and then find it much less appealing on another. Colours can alter our mood, but our mood can also influence what colours we are attracted to.
How colour works
Here’s a quick overview of how we see colour. Colour is a specific wavelength (or frequency) of electromagnetic radiation (light) from the sun. The suns lightwaves contains every colour in the rainbow (the visible light spectrum). The cone receptors in our eyes detect combinations of red, green and blue light, the eye sends this information to the brain as electro-chemical impulses and is interpreted as colour vision. Colour is determined by whether certain wavelengths in the spectrum are reflected or absorbed by an object, the environment surrounding the object, it’s opacity, and texture also influence colour. Black is the result of all the colours in the light spectrum being absorbed. When all the colours are reflected you see white. The human eye can see most of the light spectrum, except for infrared and ultraviolet.
Below is a collection of common hues and their meanings, browse through them and discover the magic of colour.
The full spectrum of The Magic of Colour Collection
Red – Courage, Passion & Strength
Red is an exciting and stimulating hue. Wearing this hue can mean you are looking to take action and are feeling confident. Traditionally it’s the colour authority, leadership, and living life to it’s fullest. Red provides a sense of protection from fears, anxiety, and lessens feelings of mistrust. The original hue of the pioneering spirit it also the colour of love and desire.
Orange – Optimism, Charisma & Adventure
Flamboyant, youthful and spontaneous orange radiates warmth and encourages social networking and conversation. This colour is a combination of energetic red with the intellectual qualities of yellow. It can free your spirit of limitations, promote physical confidence and restore balance to our physical energies. Orange provides an emotional lift from grief and disappointment.
Yellow – Joy, Intelligence & Vitality
The most highly visible of all the colours in the spectrum yellow is illuminating and cheerful. This colour is associated with thought, ideas and mental challenge. Compared to all other colours yellow is greatest communicator, it inspires original thought and inquisitiveness. Yellow is a doer and provides clarity, improves memory and focus, and aids in decision making.
Light green – Fertility, Growth & Wellness
Renewing and restorative this green is a retreat from stress, it restores depleted energy and gives us a feeling of well being. Green is the colour of the nature, prosperity, and abundance. Friendly and calm this hue encourages group activities, invites good judgement, is highly adaptable, a good listener, and empathetic.
Green – Balance, Harmony & Generosity
The colour of balance, green equalizes the heart and the head. With a strong sense of right and wrong it’s diplomatic and a natural peacemaker. It blends the mental clarity and optimism of yellow with the insight and the compassion of blue. This colour combination creates a hue with a generosity of spirit not found in any other colour. Green is down to earth, self-reliant, and soothing.
Blue – Intuition, Wisdom & Understanding
Rich blue or Indigo is the colour of intuition, perception, and deep concentration. Rich blue is the colour of fairness, organization, and introspection. This colour promotes service to the humanities, the search for greater knowledge, and justice. Indigo doesn’t conform for the sake of conformity, but is a practical visionary who is devoted and idealistic.
Violet (Purple) – Imagination, Spirituality & Creativity
In a rainbow violet has the highest light wavelength or vibration in the colour spectrum. Violet is a pure colour while purple is mix of red and blue, both share the same basic meanings. This hue has the strength of red and the integrity of blue. It represents the future and is the colour of the daydreamer. It is individualistic, inventive, meditative, and encouraging. Violet is a selfless humanitarian who pursues creative outlets for it’s sensitive and artistic nature. Grounded and powerful, purple is a self-assured leader. This majestic colour is ambitious and luxurious – balancing spirituality, thought and activity.
Pink – Nurturing, Thoughtful & Loving
Sympathetic and reassuring pink can calm you of feelings of anger, aggression and resentment. The deeper the pink the closer it is to red, and shares traits such as energy, passion, and liveliness. The colour of romantic love it’s also sweet, innocent, naive and girlish. Pink is caring, tender, understanding and is devoted to family and friends.
Turquoise – Revitalization, Self-sufficiency & Clarity
A combination of blue, yellow, and green, turquoise is a complicated colour. If manifests the peace and tranquility of blue, the uplifting energy and clarity of yellow, plus the balance and growth of green. It is the colour most associated with going on vacation because it alleviates stress and tiredness, and promotes relaxation. This colour represents open communication, it promotes emotional control and balances thoughts, speech and feelings. It is healing, sensitive, creative and supportive.
Light Blue – Sincerity, Reliability & Calmness
Freedom, space and tranquility are characteristic of light blue. Nostalgic, conservative and helpful it makes a loyal friend. Promoting solid one-on-one relationships it’s also the colour of teaching and public speaking. Blue inspires higher levels of ideals, contemplation, spirituality, and intellect. True blue is a giver and not a taker. The colour of self-expression, honesty and peace.
White – Hope, Trust and Protection
A symbol of perfection, confidence and new beginnings. White is the ultimate clean slate, a base to ignite the imagination in many ways. This hue represents trust, equality, fairness, neutrality and impartiality. It provides a feeling of calmness and peace. White is a colour of unity and creates a sense a hope and encouragement.
Silver – Patience, Eloquence, Insight
Silver is glamourous, intuitive and sleek. Cool and distinguished it aids speech and public speaking. This metallic colour draws away negative energy and replaces it with positivity. Silver has a calming and soothing effect, it’s said that it also mirrors the soul.
Gold – Warmth, Self-assurance and Wealth
This warm metallic colour is linked to optimism, cheer, success and prosperity. This is also a colour generosity, compassion and love. At the highest level gold is associated with wisdom, high ideals, and understanding of the self and the soul.
Brown – Loyalty, Friendship & Comfort
Friendly and approachable, brown is dependable, sensual and warm. It signifies comfort, quality, and family. A symbol of the outdoors this earthy colour is natural and wholesome. Dark brown is associated with sophistication and elegance, being less stark than black it’s more casual and practical. Brown promotes strength, stability, and confidence.
Black – Mystery, Elegance & Sophistication
Black is conservative, cosmopolitan and serious. A formal and clandestine hue black exudes sexual energy and power, it’s the colour of intrigue and authority. It can promote success, new beginnings and self-control. Black is unflappable, wearing it can hide and protect you from harm and negativity when you’re away from home.
Did you ever play the shadow game when you were a kid? I played it at night with only one or two lights on – enough to cast large shadows. The only rule was that you absolutely had to stay in the light. This is how it worked, the first person to reach a designated point or area without any part of their body touching or being in a shadow would win. The dark was a dangerous place where scary things would hide, so it wasn’t a place to be. Staying in the light was safe, as long as you were there nothing could harm you.
