Top 5 Fascinating Facts About Color

5. Colors can be frightening

Chromophobia (also known as Chromatophobia) is the rare, persistent, irrational fear of colors. Some people who have this disorder will react strongly to certain shades or tones, while others will try to avoid color altogether. Some signs and symptoms are: nausea, dizziness, shortness of breath, feelings of panic, elevated heart rate and blood pressure, anxiety, light headedness, headache, and trembling. Effective treatment involves methods and techniques that include systematic desensitization and exposure therapy.

4. Yellow makes you hungry

Yellow and orange are not recommended for use in kitchens, as they are known appetite stimulators. With America’s ongoing obesity epidemic, it could possibly be time for Sherwinn Williams to do away with bright citruses that have wrongly adorned kitchen walls for the past five decades. Then again – where would our restaurant owners be without those clever little tricks that keep our waistlines wide, but leave us wanting more? I’m not normally one for conspiracy theories – but perhaps there’s something in it for them if we remain ignorant of yellow’s effects?

3. Color is an imaginary friend

Technically, it’s all in our heads: color does not exist at all. It is something created by our brains as a side-effect, when it desperately tries to make sense of the overwhelming amount of information it receives from the outer world. So, should you ever find yourself in a heated debate over color combinations with someone you are certain has an IQ below your car’s maximum speed or is just simply colorblind, keep in mind that it is a pointless argument and you should drop it immediately. You’re both wrong.

2. Color wheels are the best thing since the wheel

Invented in 1666 by Sir Isaac Newton, the color wheel is by far the best tool to date to help us comprehend the colors that we see. Once we grasp how the color wheel arranges the primary, secondary, and tertiary colors, we can better understand “harmonies”, or how and why certain colors complement one another. The color wheel is a major concept in any color theory class or course, and is crucial for certain careers, such as interior or graphic design.

1. Ground-up-remains-of-mummy goes splendidly with crimson

“Mummy” was once a color in ancient Egypt. Can you guess where the rich brown color received its somewhat macabre name? You guessed it! From the actual ground-up remains of Egyptian mummies, both human and feline. The Pre-Raphaelite painters of the 19th century considered it one of their favorite colors. The authentic pigment was produced all the way up until the early 20th century, when finally the supply of available mummy remains was exhausted. Though no longer containing the remnants of mummified corpses, the color “Mummy Brown” can still be found today.