Welcome back to Pineapple Academy—where we break down design concepts to help Bahamians create iconic brands.

If you’ve ever struggled with choosing colors for your brand, you’re not alone. For many business owners, color doesn’t come naturally. Without a system, it’s easy for branding to feel unbalanced or end up looking more like a fast-food mascot than a premium brand (unless, of course, that’s exactly what you’re going for).

The good news? You don’t need to be a designer to use color well. You just need a recipe.

Why Color Proportion Matters

Color isn’t just about what looks nice—it’s about balance. Too many bold colors competing for attention can make your brand feel chaotic, while too little contrast can make it forgettable. Color proportion helps you stay consistent and visually pleasing across everything from packaging to social media.

The 60/30/10 Rule Explained

One of the most commonly used design principles is the 60/30/10 rule. Designers use this ratio to create harmony and structure in their work.

Here’s how it works:

• 60% – Primary Color
  This is your dominant color. It sets the tone for your brand and is used most often across your designs.
• 30% – Secondary Color
  This color supports your primary color and adds visual interest without overpowering the design.
• 10% – Accent Color
  This is your bold, attention-grabbing color. It’s used sparingly for highlights, buttons, or important details.

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Let's use this "Cool Mint" color palette to add color to the menu

Out of the three colors here, the Light grey will be our primary color, the dark grey our secondary and the green our accent.

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We chose the light grey to be our background which represents the 60%.

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The text will be the Dark Grey which covers about a third of the menu's design space and the Green is used to draw the reader's attention to the Chef's choice, which makes up the remaining 10%.

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Adding Depth

To give your designs another layer or some dimension, you can add more colors to your palette.

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We added two more colors to the palette. The dark grey, which is the color for the description, now shares the 30% with the blue which is the color for the titles. The green, which is the color of the Chef's Specials box, now shares it's 10% with white which is the font title inside the box.

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Menu Transformation

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