CREATING A DYNAMIC COLOR PALETTE
Sometimes when I'm build a pattern I struggle to come up with a color palette that I like and that really helps my design stand out. I just can’t get the colors to work!
Thankfully, I've learned a few tricks that help me get unstuck and create dynamic color palettes. I'm so excited to share them with you!
TRICK #1: TAKE COLORS FROM PHOTOS
I use my own photos, or ones I've pulled from an inspiration board!
Here are the steps:
Find a photograph with colors you love and add it to a new page in Illustrator
Underneath the photo, use the rectangle tool to draw about 10-12 boxes (these boxes will become your swatches)
Select the first box, and then select the eyedropper tool. Click on one of the colors in the photograph to fill the box with that color. You can always click around until you find the exact shade you are looking for.
Go on to the next box, and repeat the steps, until all of the boxes are filled with colors you like. Ideally you want to have a few light colors, and few dark colors, and one or two neutrals to provide contrast.
When you are done, select all of the swatches and click on the new color group icon in the swatches panel (at the bottom, icon is a file folder).
A dialog box will pop-up. Label your color palette and click OK.
Your color palette should now appear in the swatches panel.
Want more?
Read this article, by Jenn at Hello Brio, that explains how to create a color palette using the crystalize effect in Illustrator.
TRICK #2: VISIT WEBSITES WHERE INSPIRING COLOR PALETTES ARE AVAILABLE
Color Collective palettes
I don't have to create a color palette from scratch - I can let others do the work for me!
By far my favorite website for color palettes is Color Collective. Laura Wager, the site curator, has a great eye for color and pulls her color palettes from some beautiful images. I'm always inspired whenever I visit her site.
Want more?
Check-out Colourlovers, a sight where anyone can upload their custom color palettes and share them with the world.
TRICK #3: USE ILLUSTRATOR'S RECOLOR ARTWORK TOOL
I can play around and refine my color palette!
This tool allows you to quickly recolor your artwork without having to go in and recolor each element one at a time. Using this tool, you can see what your floral pattern would look like if the background was now the color of the petals and the petals were the color of the stems. Brilliant! Using this tool you can also:
Manipulate the saturation and brightness.
Reduce the number of colors in your pattern. So if you have 5 colors currently, you can see how your pattern would look if you reduced it to 4 or 3 colors.
See how your pattern would look if you used a completely different color palette.
Warning! The recolor artwork tool can become VERY addictive. You will find yourself trying just one more color combination, then another, then another...
So there you go - my tricks for coming up with beautiful color palettes!
How do you choose color palettes when working on a pattern?