How to Pick Colors for Your Project | Podcast Episode #92

Episode Transcript

Brittany:
Hey there and welcome to session number 92 of the BHooked podcast. As always, it’s a real pleasure to have you here today. If you’re new to the show, my name is Brittany and my job here is to inspire and teach you on your journey to turning yarn into anything you want. That could be your hobby or your lifestyle.

Can I be a little honest about this one? I am so pumped about this episode because I like to plan my content with a purpose. And by content, I mean video, podcast episodes, blog posts, and even patterns. I really like to make sure that I’m helping as many people as possible and doing that in such a way that answers common questions. That’s my first priority. If I can solve someone or hopefully many someone’s problems, then I am doing exactly what I set out to do.

Well, one of those common questions I see over and over is in choosing a color palette for your project. And so today I want to share with you seven tips for finding and deciding on a color palette. And that last part, the deciding part, that’s a big one. And that’s personally where I struggle with the most. And I want to share with you how I’m able to overcome sort of that analysis paralysis by just changing my way of thinking and shifting my focus a little bit.

Before we get into it though, this episode was brought to you by Red Heart Yarn. So let’s give them a little fist bump today. One of my favorite yarns that Red Heart has recently released is called hygge. It’s now one of my favorite yarns to work with. When you make a project with it, it feels kind of like you’re working with fluffy silk. That’s really the only comparison that I can come up with. The texture is really hard to compare because it’s so unique. There’s not a lot of yarns out there that look and feel quite like it. So if your project needs to be extra soft, definitely give hygge a try. That’s spelled H-Y-G-G-E, by the way. I love that word. You can find it at many of your local craft stores and, of course, at redheart.com.

Let’s just get right into it, shall we? I want to paint a picture for you. Let’s say you find the perfect project. You’ve been searching for it, maybe on Ravelry or on Pinterest for a long time. You finally decide on that project and you can’t wait to get started. Maybe you love the colors that the pattern recommends or maybe in the photos that you see, but what if that doesn’t match?

Let’s say you’re working on an afghan or you find a blanket that you love and you want to snuggle with it on your couch every single evening. And maybe the colors that are recommended in the pattern just don’t match your living room at all. I think so many of us in this situation, we can’t decide on a palette and so we do absolutely nothing.

Does this sound familiar? Raise your hand if you have ever just didn’t take action because you didn’t know what colors to use. You didn’t start that pattern just because you didn’t know what colors to use. Now you can’t see me here, but I’m over here raising my hand really high because like I said, I suffer from that analysis paralysis and it’s difficult for me to make a decision and to decide on the colors that I’ll choose for a project because I know that I’m going to put a lot of time and effort into this project. I want to get it right.

And for me, that just sort of cripples me a little bit. It makes me worry that maybe I’m not making the right decision or that I’ll get halfway through it and then I won’t like it anymore. Any number of emotions come up and it’s a sad reality.

Now, I like to say the ultimate failure is quitting. And we quit for many reasons, right? We could quit because we don’t have the right tools or we don’t have the right information. And I think that’s what’s at play here. Or we could quit because maybe we just don’t have the motivation or the steam or the passion for that anymore.

And I don’t think that’s the case for many of us when we abandon a project because we can’t take that next step of choosing our palette and ordering our yarn. I think the disconnect there is more in the fact that we don’t have either the tools that we need to try to figure this out, or we don’t have the tools we need to be able to make that decision.

That’s what we’re going to avoid today, quitting on a project because we don’t know how to play in the palette or because we suffer from analysis paralysis.

Now, before I get right into the tips, I want to let you know that you can find everything that we cover here in the show notes page. I will mention a couple of online resources that I would love for you to check out because I think that they’re really going to help you in this figuring out what colors you want to use for your project.

So you can find a recap of the tips that I’ll give you here today, as well as those resources on the show notes page for today’s episode, which is behookedcrochet.com/session092.

Okay, so let’s address the first potential hiccup, and that is that we don’t know how to plan it. Well, we could learn all about color theory, which sounds interesting and is pretty cool, and I know there is a lot to it, but who has time for that? I know I don’t.

I am a passionate learner, but that is one of those things that I just haven’t been able to find and devote the time to learn—something so complex. There are people who go to school for years to discover color theory and everything that goes along with that.

Let’s work smarter and not harder. So color theory is a great thing. If you know about it, you can definitely lean into that knowledge as you’re planning your projects. But for the rest of us here, those of us who aren’t experts in color theory, I wanna share with you seven different tips.

Now, these tips are the things that I use personally, and I don’t always use every single one of them for each project, but I do try to incorporate at least one or two of these in my decision-making process.

So tip number one: the next time you’re at the hardware store, make a beeline for the paint aisle and look through all of those little brochures because they have expertly selected color palettes right there within. Now, of course, you could pull each one of the color chips and the tiles and that sort of thing and mix and match that way, but then you’re left in the same boat of, oh, I’ve got all of these colors to choose from. How on earth do I know what looks good together?

Well, I like to cut corners wherever I can, and if I know that within each one of these brochures is a collection of colors that have been selected and paired together with probably a lot of research behind it, well, that’s what I’m going to choose.

Now the best part about this is that these brochures are completely free. You could start a collection even if you’re more of a tactile person and you like to see it and feel it, but it’s also helpful if you’re able to take one or two of those brochures with you so that you can bring that to the yarn store with you and you can make your comparisons that way. Basically just hold the yarn up to the paint chip that’s in the brochure and find a color that’s closest to it.

So that’s tip number one—visit the paint aisle, and maybe collect some of those palette brochures that they have to offer.

Brittany: 0:00
Just write that down or take a mental note. So next time you’re planning your project, you’ll have something, some inspiration to pull from.

Another industry I like to look at when planning out colors is quilting. And that’s because this industry has such an amazing use of color. You can get so many wonderful ideas from looking at beautiful quilts that some seriously talented people have put a lot of time into.

I love how quilters take different—like completely different—types of fabric and different colors and different patterns and sometimes even textures, and they put it together to make just something completely unique. I personally like to get a lot of inspiration from how those colors are paired together.

I find a lot of times the colors I wouldn’t have thought to put together are used in some of these quilts. And that makes me realize that perhaps I’m not thinking outside the box enough—that I’m sort of stuck in my own head of what I think goes together, and I don’t even explore options where I would say, “Oh man, those colors don’t go together.” But when you actually put them together, they look great.

Pinterest is also a really great resource for collecting and organizing this type of information. You can find photos of fabric, you can find photos of quilts, and save them to your color inspiration board and draw upon that inspiration when the time is right, when you’re looking for a color palette for that next project you wanna make.

Okay, tip number five—phone a friend. I know, I have to giggle a little bit with that one. But seriously, your friends, your family, and your spouse—they are great at spotting trends.

I know my husband is really great at that. He points things out that I don’t even realize because they’re second nature to me. And sometimes all I need is that little call-out that says, “Hey, I’ve noticed that you’re really loving this aqua blue color lately.” And I think about it and I’m like, yeah, you’re absolutely right.

I tend to really love sort of an aqua mint sort of color when it comes to any type of clothing or things that I want to wear myself. So that means that I’m drawn to that color, and I love that color. And I should take note of that, especially when planning out accessories or hats or scarves or things that I want to wear.

And you could have a completely different color. The value in this tip here is just asking somebody, “Hey, what kinds of colors do you think I love? What do you see me wear the most? What do you notice from my house, my office, my car—anywhere you spend a lot of time?” Ask those people around you, “Hey, what trends do you notice here?”

And them being able to bring that to your attention might help you out. It might help solidify the fact that, okay, I tend to gravitate towards warm neutrals maybe. Maybe you love contrasting colors or you love primary colors. Your friends, your family, your spouse—whoever is in your life—will help you bring this to your awareness, and then you can use those for your projects.

Okay, so the next two tips are two of my favorites. They’re both online resources, and I have found so much value in these—it is, it’s crazy.

So the first one is colorpalettes.net. So this is tip number six: go to colorpalettes.net. I’ll have that linked in the show notes. And this is completely free, by the way. It’s an online collection of color palettes that are completely preselected and put together for you. And most often, they’re based around a photo.

So it’s kind of like what we were talking about with tips one and two—finding those palettes that are put together automatically based on a photo.

On this website, you’ll find that these palettes are arranged by warm, cool, neutral, and contrasting colors. There are menu items up at the top. It’s a really user-friendly website. You can click through whichever one you know you like. Again, it’s one of those trends. For me, I said I love cool colors. That’s just what I like. So for me, it seems right that I click on that cool menu item. And then I can browse the color palettes that are within that category.

Another thing I really like about this website—and by the way, they have not sponsored this episode in any way, shape, or form. It’s just a tool that I found to be really helpful and I wanted to mention it here because I think you can find some value in it too.

Well, they show you similar palettes. So let’s say you find a color palette that you love and you think about it, or maybe you say, “Oh, I love this palette, but the yarn that I want to use doesn’t come in this particular color,” and you have to abandon ship and find something new. Well, it has similar palettes. So you can go through and find similar palettes that maybe work with the yarn that you’re using.

Oh, and by the way, this is completely free to use. So that’s colorpalettes.net.

The last tip, tip number seven, is another online resource. Now, this one I only recently discovered, but I just love it so much and have found it so easy to use that I know I’ll use it for future project planning.

And this one’s called the ColorSmart Tool by Bayer. You know Bayer—the paint company? They have an amazing website to help you decorate and paint your house. And that’s how I found it, honestly. I wanted to do some painting and I started using this tool because I really didn’t know how to choose accent wall colors and that sort of thing.

And then I got to thinking, “Huh, I bet I could use this for planning my projects,” because I can pull the paint chips—and I’m using air quotes here—I can pull them together so that they’re side by side.

So then it becomes individual colors that are paired together, rather than a whole big palette of all of the blues that you could ever possibly imagine and then all of the greens that you could ever possibly imagine. You can pick from each color—the blue and the green—and you can put them side by side.

So the ColorSmart tool allows you to choose paint colors technically, but you can use that as a reference when you’re choosing your yarn colors too, which is pretty cool, right?

But the even cooler part is that when you click them—like from the big, huge list of all of the colors that they offer—they’ll go side by side in a list. So you can see your selections right next to each other and not have to bounce from big list to big list and try to say, “Oh, I think these two will go together.” With this tool, you will know if they go together or not.

I will say that there is one yarn company that does this. And when I found this tool, it blew my mind to the point that I actually did a quick video and put it up on my Facebook page.

KPC is a yarn company. And online, when you search for any of their yarns, they have a little button that’s called the mix and match tool. And you’re able to take this same approach where you have the full list of colors or the full little images of what each of the colors look like all in one big list. And then you can pull them side by side so that you can plan and coordinate your projects. This is brilliant.

Okay. Yarn companies, please take note here. We need this tool.

Now, another company that does something similar is Yarnspirations. They have a new color picker tool that’s for the Caron x Pantone yarn that you’ve probably seen at your local Michaels stores. I’ve done a couple of projects with it as well.

This gives you the ability to look at the project—the finished project—because they are offering free patterns for the yarn. So you can see the finished project, and you can select the different braids or the different colorways that you plan to use, and it’ll let you know what the finished project looks like, which is pretty cool. It’s a really easy-to-use tool.

Again, it’s called the color picker, and I’ll have that linked in the show notes too so you can play around with that. It’s really great when you know the project, but it’s not necessarily great if you’re designing. And that’s what I think KPC has done really well.

So again, yarn companies take note. We need this feature.

So those are the seven tips that I use when I’m planning my projects. Let’s recap really quick. And then I want to end on a really important note.

The first tip: visit the paint aisle—maybe collect some of those brochures that have pre-selected palettes in them.

Tip number two: start a color inspiration Pinterest board. And I hope that if you do none of these, you at least do this one. There is a lot of inspiration on Pinterest. I don’t have to convince you of that, but starting a color inspiration board is really good.

Tip number three: look around you. Pay attention to the clothes you wear and your home—the way you decorate and that sort of thing.

Tip number four: look to other textiles or industries. So pay attention to fabrics and quilts and rugs even. You can get a lot of inspiration from different textile industries to plan your colors and put your projects together that way.

Tip number five: phone a friend or just ask them to point out a trend that they see.

Tip number six: go to colorpalettes.net. You can search through a bunch of those preselected color palettes—really similar to like those paint brochures that you would see in your store. But of course, this is all online and completely free too.

And tip number seven: use the ColorSmart tool by Bayer so that you can find specific colors you like, pull them from a big, huge list, and put them side by side so you can see if they go together.

Now, as we wrap things up today, I want to get real. Analysis paralysis is a real thing. It’s something that I face, and it’s something that I know you have probably faced at one point or another. It’s just difficult to be able to make a decision for so many reasons—especially if you have a ton of options.

Now, it’s really great that we have a lot of color options in terms of yarn. I’m thinking Red Heart Super Saver is a great example. There are over 100 different colors, and that’s great because you can make or you can match just about anything with this yarn.

But if you take a step back and say, oh, I have a hundred different color options to choose from. What do I choose? How do I know what to choose? What do I choose—the right thing? What if what I pick or what I decide on doesn’t match? Or what if I don’t like it when it’s done? These are all the things that run through my mind if I let my analysis paralysis get the best of me.

Now, I know this sounds really cliché and I hate even using this phrase, but it’s so true in this situation. And that’s just to go with your gut. You like what you like.

For the longest time, I felt like I had to pick certain palettes or pick certain colors because I was conforming to something else, or I would veer away from what I like because I tried to make something out of a color palette that somebody else liked. And nothing good ever comes out of that. Just confusion comes out of that.

You find yourself in a situation where you feel like you can’t decide because you’re trying to fit into a box. And you have to trust yourself that you’re not just making the right choice when you decide on that color palette—but you’re making the right choice for right now.

That was the pivotal moment for me, when I realized that there wasn’t necessarily a right answer every single time. The correct answer was situational. It depended on the time—mainly—whenever I was creating that project.

So go with your gut. What are you drawn to right now? Using all of these tips or these resources that are at your disposal—completely free—what are you drawn to right now, or at the time that you’re planning that project? That’s the right answer.

I love this quote by a really skilled painter. You would probably know him as Picasso—so he knows his stuff, right? Picasso said, “Colors, like features, follow the changes of emotions.”

Think about that. Colors, like features, follow the change of emotions. When you think about your collection of finished projects, it isn’t just a pile of success or a pile of hundreds or thousands of hours that you put into something. It’s a timeline, right? It’s a timeline for the chapters of our life.

I look back at some of my projects, and I can recall exactly what I was doing when I was making that project. I can recall the time of year it was. I can recall major events that happened around that. Our projects are a timeline.

And so we can use that to help us decide on a color palette. Just let go of the idea that there’s a right choice and a wrong choice. And I know there could be some argument there—if you’re trying to match something, yeah, there is a clear yes or no answer. And there is color theory. And that is a big deal.

But let’s create for ourselves—or for the person that we’re making the item for. What does your gut tell you at the time that you’re making that project? What color palette do you like?

Just decide. And don’t give yourself more than a couple days to think about it. And that’s all. Decide on what you love right now. That’s the right choice.

That’s how you get out of that analysis paralysis mode and you just add to this beautiful collection—this timeline of your life, of these chapters of your life that you’re going through right now.

That’s the beauty of what we do. That’s the beauty of our craft with knitting and crochet. We have these things forever, and each item tells a story. So allow the color selection to be part of that story.

Maybe you’re going through a time in your life right now where things aren’t so great, and maybe you find that you’re drawn to darker colors. That’s all part of the story.

Maybe you’ve had great things happen, you’re really excited, and you’re loving bright, fun colors right now. That’s part of the story.

So lean into some of these tools—some of these tips—that I’ve shared with you today. And I hope, if nothing else, you heard this one simple message: Decide on what you love right now and allow that color to be part of the story.

Now, I would love to get your thoughts on this as well. If I have left out any tip that maybe you use and you want to share it with the community, please do so.

I’m most active on Instagram. You can find me at @bhooked—B-H-O-O-K-E-D. You can also post directly on my Facebook page and share a tip that you use when you’re planning your color projects. That’ll not only help me, but it’ll help the community as well.

Now, let’s once again say a big thank you to Red Heart for sponsoring today’s episode. This was such a fun episode to put together. I’m so grateful for them—that I was able to share this message with you today. I hope it struck a chord with you. And I hope that you’ll lean into Red Heart when you’re planning some of your future projects.

They’re such a wonderful company. They’re so great to work with. They have a great customer service. Their yarn is affordable and it’s so easy to have access to. You can basically find it at any yarn store or any craft store. And of course, you can order directly online.

They have several new yarns to their lineup, including Hygge, which we mentioned at the beginning of the show. Colorscape, which is another one of my absolute favorite new yarns because it’s color changing.

But they also add new colorways to some of your favorites. For example, I love Unforgettable. It’s just one of my favorite yarns. It was one of the first yarns that I ever used by them. And I love it. Every single year, I look forward to seeing the new colorways that come out in that yarn.

So you can find all of this at redheart.com. Search for your favorite yarn. See what new colorways are there. And then, if you want to take it a step further, you can sign up for their email newsletter so you can be alerted when some of these things are happening.

So that’s redheart.com for all of your yarn needs.

Thank you to them for sponsoring the show. And thank you for listening in today.

I hope you enjoyed this message. I hope you’re inspired by it. I hope you plan a beautiful color palette and you’ll share a photo with me on Instagram. Make sure you tag me @bhooked so I can see it.

And next week, I have a real treat for you. I had one of those OMG moments where somebody reached out to me—and to be honest, I was a little starstruck. But it is by far one of the best conversations I have ever had.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I enjoy every guest. I’ve had some amazing guests here on the show—and I think you can vouch for that too. But as I was chatting with this person—and I’m going to keep it a mystery, I’m sorry, I have to—as I was chatting with him, I felt like I was listening to somebody else’s podcast. It was just that good.

So stay tuned for that next week. I know it doesn’t matter if you are a knitter or a crocheter, if you have a business, if you do it for your hobby, if you’re just human—this message is going to be something I need you to hear.

So stay tuned next week for that episode.

Be sure to subscribe to the show if you haven’t done so already. You can do that right there on your podcast player in iTunes and Stitcher. That way, you’ll know when that episode is available.

So until then, my friend, have a wonderful weekend. Get some stitching time in. Create that color inspiration Pinterest board. And share a photo of a color palette you’ve recently put together.

That’s a lot for me to ask, and I’m going to give you a fist bump here because I know you’ll take action on it. And I’m so grateful for that.

Thank you so much, friend. I’ll see you next week. Bye-bye.