The Color Rules!

The rules on the left are good basic guidelines for working with color on the web. However, as we discovered with Typography, once you know the rules, you can experiment with breaking them. Often designers will break color rules because they have a strong purpose in selecting unexpected or incompatible colors. Sometimes the "color is the message." After all, it is the first element a visitor sees.

In the following examples, try to decide whether the designer followed or broke the rules or just didn't know them! Ask yourself what the designer's reason was for using that particular color scheme. Post your comments on our forum (don't forget to include the URLs so we know which site you are referring to)...

http://www.coullon.com/
http://www.americanolean.com/
http://www.heathwaller.com/
http://redcheese.com/
http://www.csuohio.edu/
http://www.artinstitutes.edu/arlington/aboutus.asp
http://www.petsonthego.com/
http://www.clydeskeywest.com/
http://smoothiecast.co.uk/