Wydeven Designs: Color Combinations

In conducting my (brief) research for these blogs, I like to look at a variety of opinions and ideas and glean just a few to make my points. I found an article about "working with yellows" in Southern Accent (link) describing the viewpoints of decorator Thomas Jayne that made a lot of sense and covered so many basics. He, agreeing with others I looked at, first makes the definitive point that yellows are tricky and are somewhat difficult to work with. Then, he goes on to describe SO MANY ways that yellow is the ideal background or foreground for many decors. I have used yellow extensively in my home starting with a single paint strip and using three different values of the same yellow color - from deep to pale - in all hallways on most of my first floor and some of the second including one bedroom. I have found that it provides a great basis for other colors and keeps the whole house cheerful looking even in gloomy weather.

Here are some of Jayne's rules about using yellow:

With its versatile nature and sunny-side-up appeal, it’s little wonder that yellow is a perennially popular choice for interiors. “I think yellow is a fundamental color to decoration because it’s the basis of a warm palette,”

Yellows such as pale citron or mellow ocher are usually easier to incorporate than high-voltage tones, which can quickly become overbearing.

You might think of yellow as challenging to pair with other colors, but in reality, it’s incredibly versatile. “It’s a primary color, so you really can’t strike out [adding just about any other color]

Err on the side of excess -- with just a couple of different yellows, you risk a mismatched effect. “You can combine two shades of a color pretty easily, but if you add a third, it gets more difficult,” Jayne says. “When you add a fourth and fifth, it gets easier again.”