Using Neutrals in Surprising Ways

When most of us hear the word ‘neutral’, we immediately think ‘boring’. They’re ubiquitous; they go with everything; and they don’t seem to have distinct personalities of their own. Why use them when we have entire rainbows of hand-dyed yarns available? But by glossing over neutral shades, we’re actually missing out on a huge array of exciting options for knitting, crochet, weaving, and more. If you’ve ever wanted to take full advantage of the surprising bounty neutrals have to offer, these tips and tricks will help you do just that.

Neutrals Are Colours Too!

We’re often told that neutrals aren’t really colours—they just exist to be paired with ‘real’ colours like magenta and cerulean and emerald. But did you know the neutrals actually exist on the colour wheel? Browns and greys are what happen when pure hues, usually triadic or complementary, are mixed together. Colour is a spectrum, like a gradient with infinite shades between hues. Neutrals exist in the in-between places. The reason we don’t see them show up on colour wheels is that wheels usually only show the pure hues and maybe some analogous shades. But treating them as colours—with value, saturation, and undertones—instantly makes them easier to use and combine. (For more info on hue, check out Tabetha’s article on the SweetGeorgia blog here.)

With that in mind, let’s get practical and apply this to some surprising neutral colour combinations.

Highlighting a Pure Hue

Since neutrals are a blend of other colours, they’re naturally more subtle and low-key. Next to a pure hue, they recede. This might sound like code for ‘uninteresting’, but it’s a powerful tool to heighten the impact of that pure hue. And with the right combination of undertones, that pure hue can actually liven up the neutral shades.

In the example above, I’ve chosen an assortment of neutral shades and paired them with a clear pink. The neutrals all have warm undertones, so the overall effect is cohesive and soothing, similar to an analogous colour palette. But unlike an analogous colour palette, where the delicate pink would have to compete with other shades in the same family, these neutral shades recede and give it the spotlight. This same trick also works with jewel tones and darker neutrals. Be sure to read Tabetha’s article on analogous palettes for more of the theory behind these types of combos.

In A Gradient with Pure Hues

Remember how neutrals exist in the in-betweens on the colour wheel? Use that to your advantage when building gradients! We all love a seamless transition from one colour to another, and neutrals can help to achieve that, especially in a gradient between hues that aren’t in the same colour family.

This example is an orange-to-blue gradient. Many common greys are actually a mixture of blue and orange, which means they can be used as transitional colours. See the slow transition from bright orange and rust to grey and finally dark blue? When buying yarns for this type of gradient, look for neutrals with strong undertones. Rusty browns, greys with a hint of green or purple, and blacks with a hint of blue fit beautifully between brighter shades.

Play With Other Forms of Contrast

If you really want to challenge yourself and up your colour game, limit yourself to only neutrals. It might sound counterintuitive, but eliminating more distinct colours can teach colour theory like nothing else. With less contrast of hue, other forms of contrast, such as value, become even more important. Think of the classic trick for assembling colourwork palettes—photographing your colours in greyscale to check the contrast. Neutral-only palettes use the same principle.

Each of the two neutral palettes above utilizes a different form of contrast. The first uses contrast of temperature. Most of the shades are cool greys, with a pop of warm brown as the focal point. The second uses contrast of value; the pale grey pops against darker greys and deep browns.

Let Those Neutrals Shine!

I hope this has inspired you to take a closer look at neutrals! Next time you pick colours for a project, consider whether giving white, black, grey, or brown a chance would reveal nuances and potential combos you wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. With a little creativity, these ‘boring’ colours don’t have to stay boring—they can open up a whole new world of colour possibilities.

Colourway swatches shown in the blog images above, listed from top to bottom:  

• Cover Image: Birch, Silver, Tumbled Stone, Charcoal, Old Letters
• Ocean Sunset: Camellia, Portobello, Rustic, Mink, Marine
• Snowy Beach: Silver, Slate, Charcoal, Cauldron, Boreal Forest
• Mountainscape: Charcoal, Cauldron, Black Truffle, Brown Sugar, Snowfall