Winter Color Palette Ideas for Your Brand Personality
With the temperatures dropping and the days getting shorter, we know that winter will soon be here. That warm, welcoming feeling associated with autumn slowly fades as winter, with all its intensity, is ushered in. What do you envision when you think of winter?
When I think of winter, I think of the mountains and oceans surrounding my home in the Japanese countryside where I was born and raised. I can still feel the sting of the brisk, icy air on my face when I look toward the dark blue-green mountains blanketed with white snow.
When I think of a Winter color palette, I picture this winter scene in my mind, with all its deep colors and contrast.
Compared to autumn, winter is cool, dynamic, and strong. Winter brands are highly focused on details and luxury.
Did you know that you can create a color palette for your brand personality based on the characteristics of winter? To celebrate the winter season, I have put together some Winter color palette samples to help inspire you.
Related:
Autumn Color Palette Ideas for Your Brand Personality
Summer Color Palette Ideas for Your Brand Personality
Spring Color Palette Ideas for Your Brand Personality
What is a winter brand personality?
Every brand has a seasonal personality. If you have a winter brand personality, you are direct, luxurious, and confident. Winter brands are dramatic and highly focused on details. In contrast to the casualness and playfulness of the other seasonal personalities, winter brand personalities are intense, straightforward, and distinctive. If this describes your brand personality, then a Winter color palette is a perfect way to connect with those who share similar qualities.
This brand personality is a good fit for companies in the technology or financial sector, as well as luxury brands.
Following are some adjectives to describe a winter brand personality:
Strong
Visionary
Precise
Dramatic
Ambitious
Distinctive
Luxurious
Opulent
Glamorous
Focused
Straightforward
Confident
If you haven't established your brand personality yet, download a copy of my brand clarity workbook. This workbook will help you discover who you are and create a solid brand foundation. Once you identify your brand personality, you can look for the color palette that best aligns with your brand.
How many brand colors should you have?
Generally, essential color palettes consist of five to six fundamental colors. These colors should include primary, secondary, accent, light neutral, and dark text colors. I sometimes work with different small businesses and organizations to create their marketing collateral. Frequently, they provide me with brand guidelines containing color palettes with a lot of colors. When we receive these large color palettes, we trim them down. We only use a few key colors depending on their brand concepts.
I usually create a minimal color palette. Why? It's easy to use and creates a memorable and impactful brand. Remember, you can always add brand colors as your business grows.
Primary color
Your primary color helps your target audience identify your brand quickly; it’s your brand's main color. Your clients associate your primary color with your brand. The primary color is usually incorporated in your logos, graphics, and signage.
I recommend using no more than two primary colors unless you have a specific reason for doing so. If you use a design with more than two primary colors, your brand identity may look crowded and busy, making it difficult to stand out from the crowd.
Secondary color (accent / complementary colors)
You can use a secondary color alongside your primary color. The secondary color is typically used as an accent color, so it won’t detract from the primary color.
Complementary primary and secondary colors are a powerful way to draw attention to your visuals.
Neutral color
I usually include one neutral color, light gray or beige, but it depends on your brand. Neutral colors are mainly used for backgrounds and footer sections on your website.
Dark color
I usually include one dark text color along with shades of it (using pure black for text on a website can cause eye strain). It's a great idea to have dark gray or some other dark color as the text color. This color is also helpful for borders, dividers, or outline design elements.
Winter color palette ideas
Winter colors are strong, clear, and cool. To highlight the strength of a winter brand personality you could use black and white, saturated bright colors, cool tone colors, or deep colors.
Here are five Winter color palette ideas for your brand personality.
HEX: HEX: #5c4366 | #b9ad5d | #e3e1d5 | #3a303d
HEX: HEX: #02686b | #ecbd44 | #c2cecd | #002323
HEX: #c43428 | #e6aaa8 | #e4e4e4 | #4b3b40
HEX: #927944 | #6c7680 | #d5d9df | #404244
HEX: #354ba0 | #74c0c9 | #e0e1ea | #232f5d
Conclusion
Your brand colors are essential visual elements of your brand identity. To choose the right colors for your brand, you must first establish your brand foundation and identify your brand personality.
Are you a winter personality? If you want to let your clients know that your brand is luxurious, visionary, and confident, a Winter color palette may be the best fit for your brand personality. I hope this post inspired you to consider using your seasonal brand personality as a guide for your color palette selections.
Feel free to save your favorite color palette to Pinterest or share it with your friends who have a winter brand personality.
