The Chromatic circle

The Chromatic Circle:

The Chromatic circle of colours is a theory based on the mixture of colour substances.
For a Makeup Artist, the comprehension of this theory is KEY in order to create simple mixtures.
The better you understand this theory, the better the makeup artist you are.

The centre of this circle is composed of our three "primary colours". These are the purest of colours - pure because they have not gone through any mixes. Blue,  yellow and red. 
(I know i'm repeating myself here but bare with me, this is the important stuff)

Right outside the triangle of the three primary colours you will find the "secondary colours": green, orange and purple. These colours are the result of an equal mix of two primary colours.

Green, which is composed of the blue and the yellow.        
Purple, which is composed of the red and blue.                   
Orange, which is composed of the red and the yellow         

And finally outside the secondary colours of the circle, you will find the "tertiary colours" (yes tertiary is a word, i double checked.)

These colours are the direct result of the mix between (in equal parts again) of one primary colour and one secondary colour.

Turquoise:   mix of blue and green. 
Indigo:         mix of blue and purple.
Plum:           mix of red and purple.
Vermilion:   mix of red and orange.
Copper:       mix of yellow &  orange.
Lime green: mix of yellow and green.



Ok, one more category and then we're done! Phew.

The Complementary Colours:

In the Chromatic Circle the "complementary colours" are pairs of colours that are of opposite hue.
Because they oppose each other, once placed alongside one another,  the contrast will compliment the opposing colour - hence the name "complimentary colour".
Perfect example: the red Christmas ornament which will appear all the more red once placed on the green Christmas tree.

Here's the interesting part, we just said that when they're placed alongside one another they compliment each other but what happens when mixed together? Well guess what, they NEUTRALIZE each other.
Hairdressers (colour technicians rather) use this trick all the time. For example, if you're a red head and you want to go blonde, the colour technician will mix in a little dollop of concentrated green pigment into the hair colour in order to cut the red.

So how can you tell what is a colour's complimenting opposite?
Easy, you just use the logic behind the theory.

If you're thinking "what logic?" then i'm doing a terrible job of explaining - my bad.
(in which case i would suggest looking at the image of the Chromatic Circle to spot the opposing colour.

Here are some examples that will hopefully make it more clear.

Take our secondary colours for instance:
Green is composed of blue and yellow so the colour that hasn't entered its composition is red, therefore making red its complimentary colour.
Purple is composed of blue and red and the colour not engaged in its composition is yellow, thus making yellow its complimentary colour.
Orange, being composed of red and yellow, having blue play no part in its composition, makes blue its complimentary colour.

Capisci? ;)

So knowing what we know, the following will now make total sense.
As a Makeup artist you will obviously come across faces with imperfections.
How will we correct them? By determining the colour of the imperfection and using its complimentary colour to neutralize it.
(How refreshing to actual learn something you will apply in real life @ all the b.s. classes i had to take along the years)

Red pimple/scar: green corrector
Blue circles under the eyes: peachy or orangish corrector
Purple circle under the eyes: yellow or golden corrector ...umm isn't a purple circle a black eye? :s :/
Green circle under they eyes: peachy or pinkish corrector.

Now, how do we highlight a colour. Comment le mettre en valeur?

Blue eyes   :golden or orangish eye shadow hues.
Green eyes : pinkish or mauve eye shadow hues.
Brown eyes: turquoise or blueish eyeshadow hues.

Now that we have the knowledge, it is essential to mix our own colours in order to adapt to each client. Don't forget - the client's hair colour, skin tone, outfit and even personal preference will also influence the choices you make as an artist. So don't be shy, it's your canvas.


Tomorrow i will cover the warm colours vs. the cold colours. Can't wait :/


Blog to you soon,

Sahar

Get to know your colours

Sunlight passing through a prism generating all the existing colours of the sunlight.  

So here's what I've understood of this lesson.

Sunlight passing through a prism of pure crystal separates the colours that the human eye cannot separate on its own.

The sum of these seven colours (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and purple) seen through the human eye is what gives us the impression of white light. 

Umm... so wait a minute - does that mean if it wasn't for our eyes then the world would be rainbow coloured ALL the time? Damn you eyeballs, damn you!


So yea, moving on.

Light is principally composed of three colours: red, yellow and blue.

These dominating colours are referred to as the primary colours. 

All objects that have light reflected upon them, absorb a certain amount of light radiations and diffuse the rest, which is the colour our eyes will perceive:

A red object, will absorb the yellow and blue radiations and diffuse the red, which is why it will appear to us as red. 

A blue object, will absorb the yellow and red radiations and diffuse the blue, making it appear to us as blue. 

A yellow object, (and i'm sure you've figured it out by now, but i'll continue (no, not to annoy you) but for consistency's sake) will absorb the red and blue radiations and diffuse the yellow, which will make it appear to us as purple :D just checking if you were paying attention, you guessed it - as yellow.

So where do the colours white, black and grey fit into all of this? Apparently, they simply, don't.

They're called: the "non colours" due to them not reacting to light in the same way the others do. 

Here's how they DO react:

White: The colour white has the distinction of not absorbing any light radiation.

Instead, this bad boy rejects all the colours, and by doing so, sends off the colour white (the sum of all the colours resulting in white, eyeballs ripping us off, remember?)

Black:  The colour black, being the opposite of white, will do just that - the opposite.

It will absorb all the light and reject none of it. This is where the absence of colour happens.

That's why they say not to wear black in summer. It absorbs all the light hence the heat making it even hotter. A white t-shirt however, will absorb no light, thus no added heat.  

Grey: Wanting to be fair, grey will go in 50/50. Meaning it will take in half the light and reject the other half, making it appear as grey. 

So far, i'm liking the white but it's not gonna make me look any thinner. :/




Colour in the form of light vs. colour in the form of substance.


To resume, simply know this: if you were to mix three beams of colour each reflecting one of the primary colours (red, yellow and blue) it will indeed result as a beam of white but if you did so by using a tangible substance such as paint, it will result in a greyish/brownish/taupe-ish colour, or as my teacher puts it: caca brown. :)




I don't want to overwhelm you with info (read: bore you to death) so "to be continued" tomorrow with the Chromatic Circle. Yay! right? ;)

Blog to you soon, 

Sahar