Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.

Looking to learn something new?

Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.

Start your free trial

Design

ian izaguirre
ian izaguirre
3,220 Points

How do you gather a list of colors that will look great together, for example like the treehouse color scheme?

I have searched and searched and only get general answers like, "use a color wheel". But that does not solve this mystery for me.

If you would put one of the colors of treehouses website color scheme in a color wheel, you don't get a list of the colors tree house uses. So how does someone find colors that blend well and work together for a website - since it can't be a color wheel application ... If I input another great looking sites color in a color wheel and scroll through the different combinations (mono, tri etc) there is never exact or sometimes even close matches to what that site is using. So how can I learn how to make an awesome color scheme like tree house ?

1 Answer

Michael Lauridsen
Michael Lauridsen
10,321 Points

From my experience, it comes from experience (no pun intended).

The color wheel can be a great help to start off with. Like analogous/monochromatic colors will create a palette that is nice and blends well together, but it may turn out a bit boring in the end because of the lack of contrast. A triadic color scheme in the other end, can turn out a bit overpowering instead because of the high contrast between each color.

But in my opinion you should use the color theory as a guidance. Great design tends to challenge the rules. You should never look at it like it is rules set in stone, would you for example use the same colors for a bank and a daycare? Make the colors symbolize the soul and meaning of the product. Think about the goal.

ian izaguirre
ian izaguirre
3,220 Points

Great Answer, thank you. But to follow up, if it is used as a guide only, what makes someone say this exact hex code is the correct one vs another hex code that is like ever so slightly darker or lighter? How do they settle on the hex code? So if someone where looking for a blue color, how would they settle on the code #46a5e5 ? And How did they know that #46a5e5 was a shade of blue? Since using a color wheel and landing on the blue spectrum can give you a wide variety of blue hex codes.

Michael Lauridsen
Michael Lauridsen
10,321 Points

A hex code represents RGB. You can split up a hex code per double digit, where they respectively represent red green and blue. So #FF0000 would make red, and #00FF00 would make green.

As for settling for a specific hexcode? That's a matter of taste. The hexcode is just a number, to represent the color that you want. The color is up to you as a designer to choose. There's no magic involved.

ian izaguirre
ian izaguirre
3,220 Points

lol thank you, I was expecting a magic formula but guess it does not exist lol