Meaning of Colours
the meaning of colours
gold
The colour of success, achievement and triumph. Associated with abundance and prosperity, luxury and quality, prestige and sophistication, value and elegance, the colour psychology of gold implies affluence, material wealth and extravagance. In using the colour gold in business applications, you need to understand the traits, qualities and mood of the colour along with the psychological meaning. Psychologically it is seen as the colour of inner wisdom, quality and wealth, it can induce great feelings of happiness and bliss or alternatively, deep anxiety and fear. It implies generosity of time, money and spirit. It is the colour of victory, hence the use of gold medals for winners.
black
The colour of the hidden, the secretive and the unknown, creating an air of mystery. It keeps things bottled up inside, hidden from the world. Psychologically black means authority, power and control. In many situations it can be intimidating, unfriendly and unapproachable. Alternatively, it can be seen as sophisticated, dignified and serious. Black creates an air of mystery and secrecy. Sometimes people hide behind its unapproachable facade. In very small amounts it can add strength and confidence without becoming overpowering
white
This colour is at its most complete and pure, the colour of perfection, purity, innocence, wholeness and completion. In colour psychology white is the colour of new beginnings, wiping the slate clean, so to speak. It is the blank canvas waiting to be written upon. While white isn’t stimulating to the senses, it opens the way for the creation of anything the mind can conceive. Physiologically, white is calming as it creates simplicity, organisation and efficiency out of chaos. It clears the way forward. White’s basic feature is equality, implying fairness and impartiality, neutrality and independence. It is a reassuring colour which helps to create order and proficiency. White amplifies everything in its way and too much of it can give an impression of sterility, coldness, disinterest and detachment.
silver
Silver is a colour associated with prestige and wealth. It is seen as a sophisticated colour related to female energy, prosperity and modernity. With its reflective qualities it relates to intuition, clairvoyance and mental telepathy. Physiologically, silver is calming and soothing, with a lightness that is more uplifting than grey. Silver is a fluid colour, ever changing, calming, purifying. It is the colour of the moon with its ever-changing moods relating to emotional and sensitive energies – it is compassionate. It has a degree of mystery about it – like the moon itself.
grey
From a colour psychology perspective, grey is the colour of compromise – being neither black nor white, it is the transition between two non-colours. Physiologically, grey can drain you of energy, be depressing or uplifting, depending on how much lightness and white is in the grey. Grey lacks energy; it is neither reassuring nor soothing, neither stimulating nor exciting, neither pleasing nor inviting. It needs to be combined with other colours to give it passion, energy and life.
RED
Very physical colour, passion, appetite and quite masculine. It can also alert to danger and create aggressiveness and anger when particularly used in the wrong applications. Red brings energy to the area you place it. In business, it means action or warning.
ORANGE
It’s energy is fun and extrovert, uninhibited, confident and a risk-taker. It inspires enthusiasm and conversation. Funnily enough orange is the most disliked colour in the western world. Carefully used you can use it in restaurants to stimulate conversation and it is also symbolic of communication.
YELLOW
Use yellow where you want to keep people moving. Most people cannot stay for long where there is a lot of yellow. Fast food outlets use it combined with red to encourage people to eat lots quickly then move on. It also can stand for caution when used with black, so perhaps if you are going on a date, may not be a good combo ?
GREEN
This is the colour of balance and growth. It can mean both self-reliance as a positive and possessiveness as a negative, among many other meanings. It can also give a sense of calm with darker greens associate with wealth and prestige, too much shows greed and selfishness. Physiologically, it balances people’s emotions, creating a sense of calm.
blue
This is the colour of trust and peace. It relates to trust, honesty and dependability, therefore helping to build customer loyalty for your business. Blue indicates confidence, reliability and responsibility. It relates to one-to-one communication rather than mass communication. It inspires wisdom and higher ideals but is also conservative and predictable. Physiologically, blue is calming, reducing tension and fear. It slows the pulse rate and reduces appetite.
PURPLE
The colour of imagination. It is creative and individual or can be seen as immature and impractical. Purple suggests wealth and extravagance, fantasy and the world of dreams. It enhances spiritual pursuits and enlightenment. Physiologically, it heightens people’s sense of beauty and their reaction to more creative ideas. It is often used to denote a high quality or superior product, such as Cadbury’s chocolate or some women’s cosmetics.
turquoise
Psychologically, turquoise represents clarity of thought and communication. It inspires self-expression, encouraging people to tune into their own needs. It calms the emotions and recharges the spirit, invigorating depleted energy levels and inspiring positive thought.
Too much turquoise creates indecision as people swing between the blue energy and the yellow energy that comprises turquoise. Balance it with either some red, pink, magenta or purple.
pink
This colour is associated with compassion, nurturing, love, and romance. It is feminine and youthful in its softer shades, with more passion and energy in its deeper shades. Pink is inspiring, warm and comforting, suggesting hope for the future. It is calming and non-threatening. Physiologically, it calms and reassures our emotional energies, alleviating feelings of anger, aggression, resentment, abandonment and neglect.
BROWN
This colour is associated with strength and solidarity, comfort and earthiness, maturity and reliability. Physiologically, brown gives people either reassurance and comfort or a feeling of dirtiness and suffocation. Brown relates to the acquisition of material possessions which implies security and safety, comfort and homeliness. Many men love brown due to its strength, security and practicality.