ShareThisEver wonder why red and green are so popular during the Christmas season? The first reason might be found in nature. Red and green are prominent December colors such as the red poinsettias, which bloom during this month. Evergreen trees are the only color visible in colder states. And the Christmas palm in warmer climates blooms with red berries this time of year.Red and green are also complementary colors meaning that each color brings out the best in the other. Red will look redder next to green than next to any other color. Try starring at a red dot for about 60 seconds. Look away and lo and behold, you'll see a green dot. All complementary colors do that. Try the same experiment with a black dot -- white will be the illusion after the initial long gaze at black. Since they are exact opposites, complementary colors supply what is lacking in each other. I guess opposites attract even in color combinations.When something complements something else, a positive response is achieved creating good humor; hence the festive mood of Christmas is enhanced by the good humor colors of red and green.Then there's the slight rise in blood pressure created when we are surrounded by the color red. The rise in the blood pressure creates heat in the body, which can be a welcome feeling in colder weather. Of course, a day shopping at the mall this time of year will no doubt achieve that same increase in blood pressure.There is one other reason we use red and green to ring in the holidays. Tradition. And since tradition seems to take precedence over all else, these colors fit in perfectly with any other color schemes in the home. Green is welcome as a tree or plant all year while red livens up the visual atmosphere. Put them together and they become a welcome temporary color alternative for the home.Happy holidays and may Santa bring you everything you deserve!(Rosemary Sadez Friedmann, an interior designer in Naples, Fla., is author of "Mystery of Color," available at Barnes & Noble Booksellers and Amazon.com.)
Why red and green look good together
Submitted by administrator on Sun, 12/16/2007 - 11:23
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