8th February 1998

Get ready for action

Sigourney Weaver returns from the dead in "Alien Resurrection"... Richard Gere gets framed for murder in "Red Corner"... Al Pacino is the devil incarnate in "Devil's Advocate." Those are just a few of the star-studded movies lined up for 1998. Here is a preview of the big-screen entertainment Hollywood has in store for you.

Oranges and Lemons

Orange and yellow are warm colours which are closely related to each other. They are bright, cheerful hues which create a stimulating environment; neither is easily overlooked! Use clear, citrus colours to add sparkle to dull rooms, but choose paler tones of primrose and apricot for a less demanding background. Deep, rich shades of burnt orange and gold help create a tranquil atmosphere.

Orange is the colour that's closest to red. It shares many of red's attributes and at its most intense is best used in small quantities. But orange needn't be da-glo bright. Apricot and peach are both examples of pale orange, while coral and flame occur where orange meet red. Ginger is deep orange; a few shades darker, orange becomes brown.

Many colour schemes benefit from a touch of orange in one form or another as it adds warmth, whether the scheme is based on autumn colours, blues and greens, or even black and grey.

Yellow has an ambivalence which comes from its position between orange and green. It can be a difficult colour to co-ordinate so it's often best to use materials from a single range, where the same dyes are used for a variety of items. It's also important to examine yellows in both natural and artificial light in the room where they will be used, to avoid clashes between gold and lemon yellows.

Yellow is held to be one of the three primary colours because it cannot be made by mixing any other hues. (In some systems used by artists and scientists, however, green replaces yellow as the third primary.) Yellow is the lightest of the primary colours and its light-reflecting qualities are increased (though its impact is reduced) as it pales to primrose.

With the addition of green and grey, yellow forms mustard, and with orange and brown turns to gold. Gold is a decorating classic, one of the most popular colours for carpets and furnishings, that adds warmth to any setting.

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