TECHNIQUES 2 4
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Pantone book, the worldwide reference for colour used in print and graphic design
As the first contact with the customer is often on the phone, how can you match a customer’s colour when you only have a verbal description? When I was working with Saatchi and Saatchi on an advert (years before I had invested in a Pantone book, as they are quite expensive), I used cupboard food items to identify a colour. Yes, I went rummaging through my kitchen cupboards to find the colour.
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Branded companies copyright their colours. For example, Cadbury’s has copyrighted the purple they use, and Virgin Atlantic has copyrighted the red they use. I found this out when teaching, and a student wanted to purchase a certain red material for her hat. An entire bolt of red taffeta fabric had been bought by Virgin for a publicity campaign. The student’s dad happened to know the owner of Virgin Atlantic and managed to get his personal permission for her to have a metre of the same fabric, on the agreement that it would not be used for any publicity purposes. So, beware of colours that are copyrighted. Students have used another way
to match a colour: Gütermann thread colour numbers. As long as they are a numbered colour, the colour reference is consistent worldwide. This is therefore a safe way of matching a colour. So you can use cupboard items simply to identify the hue, then find the nearest tone or tint, and be prepared to adjust at fittings. Hue is a different shade or tone of the same colour.
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Finding colours to match Colour can be shaded by adding layers of organza or netting to lighten or darken the tone. When using this technique I don’t use pure white to tint a colour. I find white too cold and harsh, so I have always used the theatre, TV and film technique of using creams, ivories, dark greys and light greys to tone or tint the colour to match.
When dyeing fabric, colours that can be tricky to match are: • Purple: add more blue or red • Navy: has hues of black or green • Limes: yellow can be toned down by adding a cream or a grey
‘Colour Wheel’ used by artists and graphic designers around the world
Colour wheels are another way to match and mix colours. They include a guide on which colours to use when mixing dyes. They are a useful tool and can cost from £5, depending on how seriously you want to pursue the colour-dyeing skill (you will only need the cheapest one).
Colourful hats by Cynthia Jones-Bryson (Royal Ascot 2026)
• Jade greens: add blue • Black that reads as brown: add red • Deep black: add blue • Black-green: add dark or forest green
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