Paisley For Testing A Color Palette

Each artist has their own creative process. I always begin with a color palette. That’s just the way my brain works. (However, I know of one artist who considers color as the last step in her process.) I typically create a paisley pattern to test the palette. Being abstract, there is no compulsion to use one color over another for any element, as there might be for a design containing leaves, animals, etc. It’s unlikely that I would make leaves turquoise or a squirrel shocking pink - although that might be interesting!

Here are some examples:

As you can see, although the palettes are each very different from one another, it’s easy to see that the colors in each one work well together. Of course there are any number of ways of testing color palettes, but this is my personal favorite.

Out of curiosity, which these color palettes do you like the best? (Pretend they are numbered 1-7 starting at the upper left.)