A beginner’s guide to complementary colors. Complementary colors and water-soluble markers from LYRA
HI Everybody! Today I will share my favorite tips and tricks for using complementary colors and how easy it is to bring anything and everything to life. I made a new video where you can see how I build up a painting in layers using water soluble marker, and I also added explanations on how to use complementary colors. I LOVE colors and my favorite part today was to find the colors that make the flower pop.
In my sketchbook, I tend to work in a variety of materials and today I draw with water-soluble markers from LYRA. When you add water to the surface you can paint with it! You dissolve that pigment and soften the edges. That is how you get the beautiful watercolor feel to it. if you have (only) 12 colors you will come a long, long way because when you are mixing them you will get new colors.
I found the LYRA water soluble markers in my bookstore some years ago and thought they might be a fun to experiment with. They are vibrant and have deep rich colors that are just gorgeous. (I use water soluble markers in this blog post how to be creative.)
Kickass facts to know about complementary colors.
- When placed next to each other complementary colors appear brighter.
- Complementary colors are great for shading.
- If you want to make a color less bright you can add some of the complementary color in the paint.
- When two complementary are mixed about 50-50% they produce gray/brownish color.
- The complementary color is the highest color contrast you can get.
- It can be a good idea to try out a complementary color as the highlight color.
For Artists the color wheel is the best tool to understand the colors that we see around us and they are often used on a regular basis as a tool to mix, find, and pick colors.
We can use the color wheel to find harmonies and to get a better understanding for the tricks the colors play on us. There are 12 colors arranged in the shape of a circle in the order of how colors are represented in the light color spectrum, (and similar to rainbows)
Here are some complementary colors
- red and green
- blue and orange
- yellow and purple
So there you have it!
If you want to know more about colors I have a free color course for you Free color course
LYRA markers make it easy to draw straight lines, as well as to fill large areas and they are great for artists, designers, and also perfect for hobby painters.
I hope you found it useful and like to try it out. Did you know that you get a printable digital artwork, and the calendar 2017 and more if you sign up for the free color course Free color course and If you like this, feel free to share with your family and friends on Facebook.
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