Orange peel
Orange, a secondary colour made from a combination of yellow and red, is equidistant from both these primary colours in the colour spectrum.

An attention seeking, aggressive colour, orange is full of lively vitality and energy. While bright, hot and exciting, it is also a symbol of warning at traffic lights. Strong, bright and easy to distinguish from other colours, it is often used to warn of danger or advertise new events. Orange is the colour of fire, and like fire, it can be overbearing emotionally if used in large undiluted amounts.

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Lightened to peach or apricot tones, orange warms and creates a social ambience. Darkened to terracotta or rust it is a versatile decorating colour that works well in both cool and warm colour schemes. It appears sporty and full of fun when coupled as a minor accent with blues and whites. Alongside olive green and charcoal it is sophisticated, in a cool blue/green room invigorating.

Historically, orange was one of the fashionable shades of the Art Deco period, teamed with sizzling lime and cool aqua-blue.

Oranges absorbs a good deal of light and can look gloomy if it is in a situation where the lighting is weak. Orange is a warm, advancing colour and often extra lighting or mirrors will do much to counter balance the enclosed effect that orange tends to have on a room. Tungsten-halogen lights are the best lighting choice as they have a minimal effect on colour, even strong ones like orange.

Beyond these basic rules, your use of orange depends on the mood you wish to create - stimulating, intimate, exciting, unique... with the right combination of colours you can use orange to create all these moods.