The U in colour

The next time you find yourself green with envy, feeling in the pink, or sad and blue, take a look at the colours around you.

SCIENTISTS have long known that colours can affect our moods, but now they think the colours we prefer might say something about our personalities as well. Leatrice Eiseman, author of several books on colour including Colour Answer Book, explores how we respond emotionally to colour. She says people tend to gravitate toward certain hues when choosing the colour of rooms, clothes and even mobile phones. Here's what she says your favourite colours say about you:

Red – You have a zest for life. You like to stay on top of things. Key words associated with red are 'winner', ‘achiever', 'intense', 'impulsive', 'active', 'competitive', 'daring', 'aggressive' and 'passionate'.

Blue – Blue is the colour of tranquillity and peace. Although cool and confident, blues can be vulnerable. Blues have a high sense of responsibility and must be careful of perfectionist tendencies.

Green – You are likely to be stable and balanced. You are a joiner of clubs and organisations – especially those that are charitable. You are kind and generous.

Black – Black can represent conflicting attitudes. You may be conventional, conservative and serious or you may think of yourself as rather worldly or sophisticated. Wit, cleverness, personal security, and prestige are very important to you.

Pink – You are talented, charming and warm. You also have drive; however, it's not an overly aggressive, ambitious streak. You are most likely the candles-on-the-table kind of incurable romantic.

o Prefer colour mixtures – If you like lots of different colours, then you are a creative type, one most likely to work professionally with colour. You may have a fragmented personality. You are open and far less rigid than those with very dogmatic likes and dislikes.

Eiseman says the word has gotten out on the significance of colour and that designers now create styles and products specifically to meet people’s colour preference. She says even mobile phones – which have become popular ways for people to accessorise and express themselves – have gotten in on the act. Sprint and Sanyo, for example, now make phones in colours ranging from silver to deep blue and satin red to forest green – one of their phones even comes with changeable colour-accent plates for those who prefer colour mixtures.

Do the colours of a cellphone really matter? According to Eiseman, the answer is yes. She says 60% of our decision to buy a product is based on its colour. – HealthNewsDigest.com

Source: The Star...The U in colour