Archives Banner600

Excerpted from The Beader’s Color Palette (Watson Guptill, June 2008)

CULTURES OF OUR WORLD:
Latin America
by Margie Deeb

Huichol-Bead

 

 

Each Latin country has its bounty of spectacular colors and combinations. From Mexico all the way down to the southernmost tip of South America, the colors vibrate and sing. People paint their homes bright orange and pink. They stripe their blankets with Crayola-like hues, and there’s little backing off - most hues are at full strength! Softened cameo tones can be found, yet even the calmer tones are combined into bold high contrast schemes. Its a world alive with sizzling, festive colors.

 

 


    
©iStockphoto.com/Christina Rodriguez

MargieDeeb_Muse-Bracelet

Suggested Palettes Inspired
by Latin America

 

Blankets

Margie Deeb weaves saturated brights against a field of black to make a Guatemalan blanket inspired bracelet. Brickstitch. Photo by Margie Deeb.

 

 

 

 

Argemtine-doorArgentine Door

green-and-red

Deeply muted mustard and army green make this palette a quite a challenge. If you’re up for it, this would work best in a seed bead woven pattern rather than stringing. Delicas: DB-1530, DB-911, DB-663, DB-218, DB-1312, DB-206,

La Boca.

Green-Pink

La-BocaAs you grow bolder with your choices you become a color sophisticate. And Latin palettes are the ones to cut your teeth on. A window in La Boca, Buenos Aires provides a playful palette. Pull out all the stops with this one and have fun. Add more shades of pink and lemony greens and let go! Delicas: DB-215, DB-914, DB-274

Painted Pottery

Pink-and-Yellow

Painted-PotterPainted Pottery. Inspired by the colors of this pot in a Costa Rican market, I wanted to make this palette applicable to more than pottery. So I sweetened it a bit by making the background lean more toward pink. Go lightly on the yellow and maroon accents or this will become garish. Delicas: DB-684, DB-1490, DB-167, DB-257, DB-160,
DB-1312

About The Author

MargieDeeb_portrait_3Artist, designer, musician, and color expert Margie Deeb is the author of several beading books, including the popular The Beader’s Guide to Color and The Beader’s Color Palette.

She teaches color courses for artists, interior designers, and beaders and her free monthly color column, “Margie’s Muse,” is available on her website. She produces a free graphically enhanced podcast, “Margie Deeb’s Color Celebration,” available on iTunes.

Her articles have appeared in Bead & Button and Beadwork magazines and BeadBugle.Com, and she writes a regular color column in Step-by-Step Beads. She has appeared on the PBS show “Beads, Baubles, and Jewels” speaking about color. Visit Margie’s website for her books, patterns, jewelry, inspiration, and more: www.MargieDeeb.com

 Download a Printable Copy of This Article

Blue Pdf Logoget_adobe_readerPremium Subscribers: Free
(Info on becoming a Premium Subscriber)
Standard Subscribers: $1.00

Page Navigation
BeadBazaar-banner-550
Archives-Table-of-Contents

If you enjoy The BeadBugle.Com newsletter and magazine, there are a few ways to help support us. You can subscribe for $25 per year (find out what this entitles you to), you can purchase beads and beading supplies from BeadBabe.Com, You can purchase the books we review through the links to Amazon.Com and finally you can contribute content to the publication (articles, pictures of you work, projects of your favorite design). Just submit to wjohnson@Beadbugle.com. So even if you can’t afford a subscription, you can help. Thank you for your support. ~ Bill

Google Custom Search

Copyright © BeadBabe Publications - Priceless International, Inc. All Rights Reserved

BeadBugle.com-Logo-small
Page Navigation