Blue is the main colour that cancels out orange brassiness. If you think back to art class you might remember the colour wheel, where we learnt but colours opposite from each other on the wheel cancel each other out. This is also true with hair.
The key to fixing orange hair is usually to neutralise the orange with its opposite colour – blue.
So, can you guess what the neutralizing color for orange is? You've got it: blue! Since red and yellow make orange, that means blue is the missing primary color. Blue and orange are complements on the color wheel, which means that blue will neutralize an orange hair color.
Just look at Orange, then look at the color on the opposite side … that's the opposite. On a traditional Red-Blue-Yellow color wheel from your painting or art class, Orange is created by mixing Yellow and Red. To create the opposite you just have to consider the one primary color you're missing: Blue.
For lightened brunettes and dark blondes, a blue toner for orange hair—namely, blue shampoo—will be your best friend. As you can probably imagine, blue shampoo contains cobalt-colored pigments that help offset orange and other copper-leaning tones.
Directly opposite on the color wheel, blue tones are a natural fit for orange. These complementary colors look especially stunning when used in saturated shades, such as red-orange and indigo blue.
Orange looks good with nearby colors, such as red and yellow and it teams well with its complementary color blue, as well as violet.
On the wheel, colors on the opposite side from each other cancel each other out. Violet, for example, is opposite of pale yellow. Blue-green is on the opposite side of orange. When opposite colors are blended, they cross-cancel or “neutralize” each other.
Use Purple or Blue Shampoos
It's a simple matter of color theory, relying on the complementary colors of a color wheel to cancel out unwanted tones. 3 "Using a color-correcting purple shampoo will undoubtedly cancel out the overly warm, orange tones and keep that cooler, brighter blonde you desire," says Cunningham.
GREIGE, TAN & WHITE
If you're really unhappy with your orange brick a neutral combination like this will help to neutralize the strong orange colour.
Light blue color correctors, like lavender, can help neutralize unwanted warmth. They're particularly helpful for disguising orange tones and can work well on all skin tones. Deeper blue shades may also be used to cool down overly warm foundation or concealer.
Blue is the best color to cancel out unwanted orange tones in lightened brunette hair. If you're brushed up on color theory, you can probably suss out why. If not, we'll explain. Blue sits directly across from orange on the color wheel (making them complementary colors).
Just as a purple shampoo neutralises brassy tones on blondes, using a blue shampoo on brown hair neutralises orange and red tones for brunettes.
BLUE PRODUCTS
Similar to the super popular purple shampoos for blondes, blue shampoos & masks are perfect for reducing orange tones in your hair. These work because they are opposite on the colour wheel from orange, so when the two are mixed together they cancel eachother out.
As opposites on the color wheel, blue and orange balance each other out beautifully. Deep navy or soft sky blue can calm the warmth of the orange wood, much like a cool breeze on a summer day.
For example, blue can be the complement of both yellow and orange because a wide range of hues, from cyan to blue-violet, are called blue in English.
Super versatile, this hue goes well with warm colors, cool colors, and neutrals. It also looks fantastic with warm neutrals, such as beige, gray, burnt sienna, and sorrel brown. If a neutral palette isn't your thing, shift the look and make burnt orange dramatic by using it to accent black, white, or navy blue.
If you want to temper orange's intensity, pair with white. It can also work well alongside blue, which is its complementary color on the color wheel. The colors that pair well with bright orange include: Blue.
Recommended Colors for Neutralization
For unwanted yellow tones, purple-hued products are recommended. Orange or brassy tones are best neutralized with blue, while red tones find their match in green.
The RGB values for Sherwin Williams SW6884 Obstinate Orange are 219, 87, 46 and the HEX code is #DB572E. The LRV for Sherwin Williams SW6884 Obstinate Orange is 22.00. The LRV stands for Light Reflectance Value and measures the percentage of light that a color reflects.
Brown and orange is yet another one of the bad color combinations that might not be the best to use when working on your designs.
Using top-quality professional hair color, stylists can cover unwanted brassy orange tones by applying a shade of ash blonde to the client's hair. When helping a client whose hair is showing more prominent brassy tones, stylists can get a little extra help from salon-trusted brands.