Birth Months and Color Palettes Based on Birthstones
While there are no defined birth month color palettes, that doesn’t mean that we can’t take the traditional birthstones and turn them into fantastic palettes. These palettes can be used to design all kinds of projects, from scrapbooks to birthday cards, party favors and much, much more! Included are the basic birth-month colors, as well as an example of how the color can be used to design an eye-pleasing color scheme.
January
January’s birthstone is garnet, so it’s fitting that crimson is the main focus of this palette. This wine-red color is bold and striking and pairs well with other jewel-tones such as forest greens and royal blues, as well as creams and off-whites.
February
Beautiful light purples make up this color scheme, taking after February’s birthstone: Amethyst. These playful purples pair perfectly with butter-cream yellows, soft golds and pale greens. However, this scheme doesn’t play particularly well alongside bolder, brighter colors.
March
Aquamarine’s energizing bright blue color sets the stage for March’s color palette. These colors are reminiscent of a clear blue sky and they play perfectly with bright yellows and rich chocolate browns.
April
Because April’s birthstone is a diamond, and therefore ideally colorless, I’ve designed a monochromatic black-and-white color scheme, as well as a lively pink and purple color scheme based off of April’s flower, the sweet pea. Monochromatic color schemes look striking on their own, while these playful pink and purples work well with spring greens and yellows.
May
Rich deep greens are the color scheme for May, based on the fact that its birthstone is the emerald. These beautiful dark jewel tones play well with other jewel tones like deep purples, reds, and muted golds, as well as with creams and off-whites!
June
June’s birthstone is the ever-elegant pearl, so it’s only naturally fitting that its palette consists of creams and off-whites. This timeless palette combines easily with most deep rich colors, pastels, and earthtones.
July
Bold, dark magentas are at the helm of July’s birth month, taking after it’s birthstone, the ruby. These passionate colors look beautiful against creams and off-whites as well as pale greens.
August
Peridot is a pale green stone that inspired this color palette for August. This playful green plays well with other pale colors such as pale yellow, as well as bold reds, creams, and earthtones.
September
September’s birthstone is the sapphire, so a rich royal blue color scheme fits this month perfectly! These deep blues stand out beautifully against creams, but also play very well with golds.
October
October’s birthstone is opal, an iridescent stone that reflects many colors when held up to the light. For that reason, this palette was designed with pale pastel colors in mind, reminiscent of the glittering surface of opal.
November
Topaz is November’s birthstone; most often depicted as a yellow or golden stone, though it can be blue, green, and even pink. However, this beautiful golden-yellow palette keeps with the traditional yellow topaz. These colors pair well with other harvest colors, such as muted reds, bold oranges, and earthy browns.
December
December’s birthstone is the unique turquoise, so it’s only fitting that the color scheme be designed to match. Turquoise is a superb choice to base a December birth month color palette on, and it plays perfectly with deep, earthy browns, and bold, terracotta and rusty oranges.
Resources
References: Author’s personal experience in graphics design
Image Credit:
All color schemes were designed by Amber Neely.
