Show us your go-to color palette
Create your own five-color palette using paint, colored pencils, or paper swatches, then design a small postcard showing how those colors work together.
Step-by-step guide to create a five-color palette and design a postcard
Step 1
Gather all the materials and put them on a clean flat workspace.
Step 2
Decide if you will make your colors with paint colored pencils or with paper swatches.
Step 3
Cover the workspace with scrap paper to protect it from spills and pencil marks.
Step 4
Draw five equal boxes on scrap paper about the size of your thumb using the pencil and ruler.
Step 5
Fill each box with one color using paint colored pencils or by gluing small paper swatches into each box.
Step 6
Label each color box with a number or a short name using the pencil.
Step 7
Arrange the five color boxes in different orders and pick the order that looks best to you.
Step 8
Tweak any color you want by mixing a little paint adding more pencil layers or trimming paper until you like them.
Step 9
Cut a postcard sized rectangle from your cardstock about 4 by 6 inches using the ruler and scissors.
Step 10
Lightly sketch a simple postcard design on the card with your pencil.
Step 11
Apply your five chosen colors to the postcard design using paint colored pencils or by gluing on paper swatches.
Step 12
Let the paint or glue dry then gently erase any pencil lines and add small accents with your colors.
Step 13
Share your finished postcard and your five-color palette on DIY.org.
Help!?
What can we use instead of cardstock, paint, or paper swatches if those are hard to find?
Use a stiff cereal-box panel trimmed to 4×6 inches instead of cardstock, markers or crayons instead of paint or colored pencils to fill the five boxes, and magazine or gift-wrap scraps instead of paper swatches.
My glued swatches keep lifting and the paint smears when I rearrange the five color boxes — how can I fix that?
Let paint and glue fully dry on scrap paper, press swatches flat with a clean ruler while the glue sets, and trim edges after drying before arranging the five boxes on your workspace.
How can I adapt this five-color palette postcard activity for different age groups?
For ages 3–5, have an adult pre-draw the five equal boxes and provide pre-cut swatches to glue, ages 6–8 can draw and fill the boxes with crayons or colored pencils, and ages 9+ can mix paint shades, precisely sketch the postcard on cardstock, and add detailed accents.
What are simple ways to enhance or personalize the finished postcard and color palette?
Add texture by layering torn paper swatches, use a metallic or white gel pen for small accents after erasing pencil lines, and seal the postcard before sharing it on DIY.org.
Watch videos on how to create a five-color palette and design a postcard
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Facts about color theory and design for kids
🎨 The traditional artist's color wheel has 12 main hues — primaries, secondaries, and tertiaries.
🧪 Mix two complementary colors (opposite on the wheel) and you'll often get a muted brown or gray.
🖌️ Josef Albers showed that the same color can look totally different depending on the colors around it.
📬 Postcards exploded in popularity in the late 1800s as quick, cheap ways to share pictures and notes.
🎯 Designers often stick to five colors or fewer for a tidy, eye-catching palette — just like your postcard challenge!
How do I guide my child to create a five-color palette and design a postcard?
What materials do I need to make a five-color palette postcard?
What ages is this five-color palette postcard activity suitable for?
What are the benefits of making a five-color palette postcard and variations we can try?
