Choosing Colors Limit the Number of Colors Limit your color choices to 2 or 3 and use them in a consistent manner across the entire site. Using too many colors makes a page appear cluttered and distracts the eye. There are certain color combinations that should be avoided because they 'virbrate' visually when put together. This helps guide the eye and establish hierarchy of content for your reader. Background Color White or pastel colors are the best choice.
Primary colors are overwhelming to the eye and make on-line reading difficult.
If you decide to use a graphic to 'wallpaper' the background of your site, be careful to choose something subtle. Avoid patterns that are active or that have black or bold primary colors within them as this can make your text unreadable. You can soften the look of a graphic or pattern swatch in Fireworks. Using a complimentary color, you can create information boxes that run along side your content, such as the 'tip' box to the left of this area. This is done by nesting tables within tables.