Color Value in Clothing

The value of a color determines how light it is, therefore value is sometimes referred to as “lightness” (NOT “brightness”). A higher color value in clothing means the color has more white elements, and a lower value means it has more black.

A fully saturated color (hue) has neither added black nor white, which makes it have a neutral value. If you add white to the fully saturated color, you get a tint. Conversely, if you add black you get a shade.

Interestingly, different fully saturated colors can have completely different luminance (brightness). This is a topic best described by physicists, so we’ll leave it at that. Here’s an example of color value for you:

The same hue (yellow) is shaded (left) and tinted (right). Reducing their saturation reveals the shade and tint.

In the example image, dark yellow (on the left) becomes gray when unsaturated, whereas light yellow becomes almost white with a bit of a gray touch to it. The effect the hue “yellow” has on the observer is completely different depending on the value it has.

You can use this knowledge to your advantage when putting together an outfit. How exactly?

We write more about light and dark colors in clothing in this article >