We do not like all colours equally. There are colours we like more than others because we identify with them. The fashion, for instance, is largely responsible for this. We will always prefer colours that make us feel better and happier, colours that make our friends think “how pretty we are” … But, as you know, they are only opinions. Surely you have heard more than once “everyone to their own taste ” and this is an important thing: to know how to separate what you like for yourself and what you like for a design.
As we have discussed many times, when we are designing, we must sideline our taste and design with a good judgement, knowing what we are designing and for whom.
So today, I will discuss the colour I like the least, the one that does not represent me, and I don’t practically use in my day to day, but nevertheless, I use, when necessary, in my designs (you will see why): the orange.
An underrated Colour
Maybe it is considered an underrated colour because of its state between red and yellow, which makes it one of my least favorite colours. Intermediate colours seem more unstable. We believe they are the result of “spoiling” the most stable one, but the truth is that this middle position is the one that represents the true character of a feeling.
In fact, we see far fewer orange colours than actually are around us. We associate sunrise and sunset with red, but they are orange, as well as when we are forging a metal we say that it is red but its colour is orange. The hair of redheads is orange, but we still do not call them “orangeheads.” There are many more orange colours around us than we really appreciate and that is why, this colour is undervalued.
Usually people don’t like the orange colour, especially in the West, because it is the colour of their skin. Colloquially we think our skin is orange, and even the kids at school draw it with this colour, so we use very little the orange to get dressed, because it would be like to be naked ;). It is a colour that does not stand out.
Not everyone can wear the orange colour. It is not like when we are wearing a blue shirt, which we all feel good. It is a “class” colour in fashion, the colour of the frivolous and the original.
The colour of the flavours
Before oranges came to Europe, there was no that colour. Oranges are native to India. The orange tree is superb. It can have flowers and fruits at the same time, and that is why this represents fertility. Since brides wear white at the wedding, they use the orange blossom for crowns and bouquets.
It is also the colour with more aromas and one of the most found in foods: apricots, peaches, salmons, lobsters, prawns, carrots, and sausages … even some cheese. When we eat an “orange meal” we always expect it to taste good.
The inappropriate colour
Orange colour is based on experience: for years it was used for plastics. When the era of plastic started, the manufacturers were proud of this new material, so they decided to put the only colour that had no natural materials: the orange. But problems began to exist, the buyer could not choose between different colours and what was even more important, the dyes used to get the materials orange were very toxic.
In addition, little by little it has increasingly become the colour of danger. The skulls of the toxic substances and safety vests are orange. The prisoners in some prisons wear orange clothing, since this is flashier. All this makes it a very unattractive colour for fashion and luxury.
The fun colour
Red and yellow contrast each other, however, the orange, which is in the midst of both, is a perfect colour for fun because it unites and harmonizes. Blue is the complementary colour of orange, the colour of spirituality, reflection and calm, and therefore the orange represents the contrary qualities.
Think of Bert and Ernie (from Sesame Street.) Which of the two is the one with the orange face? Of course, it is Ernie. Bert, who used to be angry, is yellow.
If we think of something orange, we all will think of flashy things. Orange colour is associated with fun and sociability. It was used in advertising for a long time to attract attention. At first a lot of orange leaflets were distributed. The result of the large amount of publicity was that this orange colour was taken as spam advertising.
In fact, there was a time when manufacturers stopped using orange colour for logos and advertising, because they associated it with the old spam. But now, orange colour has returned to give a fair image and it is once again associated with the different, the new and the social. It regains its old character.
If we think of current oranges brands, all involve a change, a novelty, a distinction from the others. When we talked about the green colour, we said it was a way of life. Well, the orange colour is becoming a feeling.
