The color purple is rich, lush, and evocative of Victorian design, but there are a few dos and don’ts of combining shades of purple that will ensure harmony in your finished project.

Red Purple vs Blue Purple

Purple is either red based or blue based, which means it will tend either to the red side of the color spectrum or to the blue (purple is a combination of the two primary colors red and blue). If you’ve ever mixed two shades of purple and they just didn’t look or ‘feel’ right together, it’s likely because you were trying to mix a red based purple with a blue based purple. It doesn’t work.

This is the reason why red based purple and the color red will work together (think of the Red Hat Ladies colors) and why blue based purple will work best with shades of blue and green.

Using Purple in Your Project

If you aren’t sure whether you have a red purple or a blue purple fabric or trim, just compare your fabric or trim to a piece of true red and true blue fabric. If the red looks best, then you have a red based purple; if the blue looks best, then your purple is blue based.

By Florence Dove Google