Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Colour Psychology

Wooo nelly it's about time we had our own blog. What an exciting day in the life of D2C! I'll be jibber-jabberin' about all sorts of design & marketing related subjects, as well as D2C events and news. Hmm...what shall I start with?

Perhaps you'd like to know a little bit about your Supa-Fly Design Narrator. Who is the mysterious person behind the curtain? That would be me, Donna, and I think most of these blogs will contain the various wandering thoughts of lil' ol' me, with a few guest speakers now and again. The regular introduction bits: I'm a graphic designer, have been designing for about 10 years, I'm American, I like chocolate & peanut butter things, I'm a crazy business-minded lady with a knack for coming up with creative (though sometimes crazy) ideas, and I love what I do. There ya have it.

My goal for this blog is to give you something entertaining and genuinely informative to read when you're looking for creative info, tips on design & marketing, or when you're spacing out at work. I'll be giving out tips and tricks to improve your business creatively, and keeping you updated on the happenings of D2C.

Speaking of the happenings of D2C - I want to say a quick congratulations to a few D2C Stationery clients who got hitched this past weekend! Congrats to Janeal & Matt, Sasha & Tim, and Elizabeth & Andrew! I wish you all the best in your marriages - it's great fun! ;-)

For now, I'll leave you with a bit of design info that's useful for everyone:

Colour Psychology
Your choice of colour is more important than you think, especially in business. Certain colours convey certain messages, so here's some basics so you know the best use for what colour where.

Black: Black is many times used as a symbol of mystery, but it is also used as as symbol of power and authority. It is considered to be a prestigious colour, one that is used to signify high-class and formality. Some descriptive words connected to the colour black are strength, sophistication, mystery, elegance, death, and rebellion.

White: White represents innocence, purity, and goodness, but can also represent emptiness or blandness. White is associated with light, safety, purity, space, clean, empty, innocent, mild, bland, sterile.

Red: Red generally evokes strong emotions and is associated with urgency, energy, courage, love, and passion. It can also be considered an angry colour, or a colour that creates excitement, intensity or danger. Red is one of the most intense colours to the human eye, as it raises blood pressure and enhances metabolism.

Orange: Orange is a combination of red and yellow, so on an emotional level, it combines the excitement of red, and the happiness of yellow. Some general representations of orange are enthusiasm, joy, creativity, determination, stimulation, fascination, and heat. Many people think of the tropics or a warm holiday when seeing the colour orange.

Yellow: Yellow is associated with sunshine, cheerfulness, energy, freshness, and intellect. It grabs your attention over other colours (which is why the most common highlighter colour is yellow), but can have a disturbing effect if used too often. Yellow is considered a spontaneous colour, so it should be avoided when you want to convey a feeling of stability.

Green: The first and most prominent association with the colour green is nature. Green is a fresh colour, used to describe harmony, peace, growth, preservation, and fertility. It also conveys a feeling of safety and healing, and is the most restful colour to the human eye. It is also commonly used to represent money.

Blue: Blue is associated with tranquility and stability, and is commonly referred to as a deep and sincere colour. Blue is used to promote cleanliness (because of its association with water), and can also be associated with confidence, wisdom, faith, trust, healing, and knowledge. Blue is a stereotypically masculine colour, and should be avoided when promoting food and cooking, as it suppresses appetite.

Purple: Purple is a combination of red and blue, and combines the qualities of both. It represents a fusion of energy and stability, and is associated with independence, creativity, wisdom, luxury, power, magic, and ambition. Generally thought of as a feminine colour, purple is also preferred by pre-adolescent children (when surveyed, almost 75% of children preferred purple over any other colour).

Pink: Pink is a combination of red and white, and again, combines the qualities of both. Some shades can promote feelings of excitement and passion, while other lighter shades can promote feelings of purity, safety, and calmness. It is also associated with relaxation, femininity, acceptance, contentment, self-worth, and tenderness.