The color blue is one of trust, honesty and loyalty. It is sincere, reserved and quiet, and doesn’t like to make a fuss or draw attention. Blue hates confrontation, and likes to do things in its own way.

Key words and associations:

• Blue represents both the sky and the sea, and is associated with open spaces, freedom, intuition, imagination, expansiveness, inspiration, and sensitivity.
• Blue also represents meanings of depth, trust, loyalty, sincerity, wisdom, confidence, stability, faith, heaven, and intelligence.
• Basic meanings are truth, communication, peace, calm, spiritually attuned.

From a color psychology perspective, blue is reliable and responsible. This color exhibits an inner security and confidence. You can rely on it to take control and do the right thing in difficult times. Blue has a need for order and direction in its life, including its living and work spaces.

Blue seeks peace and tranquility above everything else, promoting both physical and mental relaxation. The color blue reduces stress, creating a sense of calmness, relaxation and order – we certainly feel a sense of calm if we lie on our backs and look into a bright blue cloudless sky. It slows the metabolism. The paler the blue the more freedom we feel. In the meaning of colors, blue relates to one-to-one communication, especially communication using the voice – speaking the truth through verbal self-expression – it is the teacher, the public speaker.

The color blue is idealistic, enhancing self-expression and our ability to communicate our needs and wants. It inspires higher ideals.

Blue’s wisdom comes from its higher level of intelligence, a spiritual perspective.

Blue is the color of the spirit, devotion and religious study. It enhances contemplation and prayer. On the other hand, blue’s devotion can be to any cause or concept it believes in, including devotion to family or work.

Blue is the helper, the rescuer, the friend in need. Blue’s success is defined by the quality and quantity of its relationships. It is a giver, not a taker. It likes to build strong trusting relationships and becomes deeply hurt if that trust is betrayed.

Blue is conservative and predictable, a safe and non-threatening color, and the most universally liked color of all, probably because it is safe and non-threatening. At the same time blue is persistent and determined to succeed in whichever endeavors it pursues.

Change is difficult for blue. It is inflexible and when faced with a new or different idea, it considers it, analyzes it, thinks it over slowly and then tries to make it fit its own acceptable version of reality.

Blue is nostalgic. It is a color that lives in the past, relating everything in the present and the future to experiences in the past.

Blue establishes calm. It’s the color of the sky and ocean and therefore gives a sense of vastness, as in “the wide blue yonder.”

Blue, the color of the ocean and sky is generally associated with many positive things. Symbols such as trust, loyalty and wisdom are all psychologically associated with blue and other symbols such as faith and heaven are included in this association. Light blue is associated with health, healing, tranquility and softness. Dark blue represents knowledge, power, integrity and seriousness and can be said to be a more depressing color than lighter shades of blue.

Positive and Negative Traits of Blue

Too much blue can create feelings of melancholy, negativity, sadness, self-righteousness, and self-centeredness. Too little blue brings about qualities of suspicion, depression, stubbornness, timidity, and unreliability. Avoid blue in cases of depression or when needing to feel more social.

Positive keywords include:

Loyalty, trust and integrity, tactful, reliability and responsibility, conservatism and perseverance, caring and concern, idealistic and orderly, authority, devotion and contemplation, peaceful and calm.

Negative keywords include:

Being rigid, deceitful and spiteful, self-righteous, superstitious and emotionally unstable, too conservative, predictable and weak, unforgiving, and frigid. It can also indicate manipulation, unfaithfulness and untrustworthiness.

Blue Represents

Blue can be strong and steadfast or light and friendly. Blue is used to symbolize piety and sincerity in heraldry. The color blue in many cultures is significant in religious beliefs, brings peace, or is believed to keep the bad spirits away. In Iran, blue is the color of mourning while in the West the something blue bridal tradition represents love.

• Communication: Blue relates to one-to-one verbal communication and self expression.
• Peace and calm: The color blue induces calm and peace within us, particularly the deeper shades.
• Honesty: Blue is the color of truth.
• Authority: The darker the color blue, the more authority it has.
• Religion: Blue is the color of devotion and religious study.
• Wisdom: Blue enhances the wisdom of the intellect.

The blue color communicates significance, importance, and confidence without creating somber or sinister feelings. This is where the corporate blue power suit and the blue uniforms of police officers and firefighter came from. Considered a highly corporate color, blue is often associated with intelligence, stability, unity, and conservatism.

Effects of Blue

• Conservative: The color blue is a safe color – the most universally liked color of all.
• Predictable: Blue is not impulsive or spontaneous and it doesn’t like to be rushed – blue needs to analyze and think things through, and to work to a plan.
• Orderly: Blue needs to have direction & order- untidiness and unpredictability overwhelms it.
• Rigid: Blue likes familiarity. It doesn’t like change and will stubbornly do things its own way, even if there is a better way.

The color blue has positive affects on the mind and the body. As the color of the spirit, it invokes rest and can cause the body to produce chemicals that are calming and exude feelings of tranquility. Blue helps to slow human metabolism, is cooling in nature, and helps with balance and self-expression. Blue is also an appetite suppressant.

However not all blues are serene and sedate. Electric or brilliant blues become dynamic and dramatic, an engaging color that expresses exhilaration. Also, some shades of blue or the use of too much blue may come across as cold or uncaring, and can dampen spirits.

Shades of Blue

Different shades, tints, and hues of blue have different meanings. For example, dark blue can be seen as elegant, rich, sophisticated, intelligent, and old-fashioned, royal blue can represent superiority, and light blue can mean honesty and trustworthiness.

Note: This post was compiled by Shirley Twofeathers for Color Therapy, you may repost and share without karmic repercussions, but only if you give me credit and a link back to this website. Blessed be.