Patent ID: 7230629

Claim:
A method for providing color coordination to a user comprising: receiving a starting color for which coordinating colors are sought; associating the starting color with a first color in a color database, the first color being the closest matching color in the color database to the starting color; retrieving one or more color palettes associated with the first color, each palette including one or more coordinating colors, the coordinating colors being predetermined based on the first color and a color coordination algorithm; displaying at least one color palette; fine-tuning the first color by accessing a color data structure associated with the first color and retrieving a color specified in the color data structure corresponding to the characteristic being fine-tuned, wherein the one or more color palettes retrieved are associated with the fine-tuned color, and wherein the color data structure includes a unique identifier for the color data structure, a source identifier indicating the source of the corresponding color, a plurality of color metrics defining the corresponding color, a plurality of references to other data structures representing neighboring colors in color space, the neighboring colors having different color characteristics than the corresponding color, and a usage identifier indicating the types of uses for which the corresponding color is appropriate.