Mustard sets the weight of the palette in optimism and clarity, and Teak is the swatch that breaks rank: a single brown that stops the set reading as one note. Teak and Burnt Orange are close enough in hue and lightness that most people will read them as one colour, which makes them a pair to separate rather than two choices to spend. Mustard is the loudest thing in the set and every swatch beside it is warm too, which gives the palette no way to cool a page down and no colour to rest an eye on.
Teak grounds a palette: stability, reliability, the color of wood, soil, and things built to last.
Mustard an electric, high-visibility yellow: caution and euphoria share the same wavelength here.
Olive reads as optimism and clarity, the fastest color to draw the eye, the hardest to ignore.
Burnt Orange a citrus-bright orange: enthusiasm, playfulness, an unmistakable call to attention.
Warm White a peach or apricot tint, all the friendliness of orange with none of the volume.
The postwar modern home: warm wood, tapered legs, low lines and furniture designed for real life
Explore the full Mid-Century Modern style guideIts decade on the timeline · 1940s