Pastel colors add warmth, serenity and tranquility to a place/object. Go through the article and check out what pastel colors are and how to use them in different spheres to get the best out of them.

Pastel Colors

Bright, brighter, brightest! No, that isn’t somebody’s mood that is being referred to. It is just the quality that pastel colors seem to possess in abundance. And not only do they possess it, they also spread this quality to everything they touch. It’s what you would call the ‘Golden Touch’. A famous legend about pastel colors comes from the island of Curacao. It is believed that in the early 19th century, a governor therein suffered of migraine headaches and attributed it to the reflection of the bright sun on the white buildings of the place. One thing led to another and an order was issued to paint all structures there with any shade except white and what followed was a multitude of beautiful hues of pastel colors that still adorn the historic buildings. Moral of the story - pastel colors are cool and soothing. They have an aura around them which make them cozy to be within and soothing to look at. Take a look at how pastel colors can add glory to various things around you.
 
What Are Pastel Colors?
Pastel colors are the most basic or raw colors, which are further blended to make more colors. These are not primary colors, rather different shades of them and are classified as 10 basic ones. The most common of them being:
  • Warm red: Permanent red, scarlet, poppy red
  • Cold red: Carmine, crimson, madder red
  • Orange: Mid and permanent orange
  • Cold yellow: Lemon yellow
  • Warm green: Permanent and phthalo green
  • Cold green: Aquamarine, teal
  • Warm blue: French ultramarine, deep ultramarine
  • Cold blue: Cerulean blue, turquoise
  • Warm violet: Red violet
  • Cold violet: Ultramarine violet or blue violet
Using Pastel Colors
 
Clothes
Pastel shades make for super gorgeous looking apparels. These can be both summer and winter shades. A red violet winter jacket on a plain white dress would do wonders for the one who wears and carries it with grace. All over the world, the spring/ summer collections seem to be singularly inspired by nature. But what underlies this inspiration is the plethora of pastel shades available.
 
Paintings
In paintings, pastel colors, when contrasted properly with the rest of the colors, tend to add focus on particular objects and bring out the vibrancy of them. They are a must in any painting to give a natural look to the output. Nature, after all, seems to have a major soft corner and preference for pastel shades. Its preference is manifested in the abundance of these shades everywhere around us.
 
Home Décor
  • The serenity and tranquility of pastels make them ideal for the bedroom. Pairing cool blue with pastel green can give you that desired comfort and relieve your eyes off the day’s fatigue. Both these colors have known calming effects and the overall effect can have you sleeping soundly in no time at all. You can add a dash of neutrals to highlight the serenity of the color choice and give your room a rather crisp look.
  • Pastels do what white does, but with style and panache. Though white makes a room look larger, it also adds an aura of emptiness. While, on the other hand, pastels not only make rooms look larger, but also comfortable and classy.
  • Even your furniture can do great good with these shades. Against the predominant belief that pastels look good only with casual stuff, you can actually liven up the formal stuff also with a coat of pastel color.  Best would be to do up your porch furniture in these shades and have a permanent spring collection right there in your backyard.

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