What Does Black & Orange Say About Wayland?

Ever wonder what your favorite color says about you? How about the high school's colors?

Wayland High School has been proudly black and orange for years. But what do those colors say about the school (and all the places those colors show up around town)?

According to Kate Smith, a color expert with Sensational Color Pro, colors can say a lot about a person, product, or company. Using Smith's pyschology of colors theory, Wayland Patch applies it to the Warriors' choice of colors for the high school, youth sports and, well, just about everything!

Wayland: Black and Orange

Orange— Known as a warm color, orange is "controversial," according to Smith. You love it or hate it, but no matter what, it "radiates warmth and energy." Orange lovers are "fun-loving, talkative, fickle, and trendy."

The color orange has a wide berth of meanings around the world. In Ireland, it's associated with the Protestants. In China and Japan, it symbolizes "happiness and love." And the Native Americans believe orange was akin to "kinship."

Black— On the other hand, black is "authoritative and powerful," says Smith. It always evokes strong emotions, partly because the lack of color represents a void or emptiness.

The color black can make us feel "inconspicuous" and also represent both "potential and possibility." In other cultures, black has several meanings: Chinese believe black is associated with water, north and winter; it is also the universal symbol for mourning. But it's not all doom and gloom with black. It also represents "sophistication and power."

The conclusion: Wayland is clearly in charge, according to its colors. We are powerful, authoritative and controversial, but we also have a strong community kinship. We're fun, trendy and sophisticated.

What do you think, Wayland? Do our city's colors really show our true colors? Tell us in the comments!

Saturday's Super Bowl game against the Sharon Eagles got us thinking about what Sharon's colors mean. They're maroon and gold (or red and yellow for color analysis purposes) ... Well, red is "inherently exciting" and "increases enthusiasm." (It also can increase your blood pressure because it stimulates energy.) In other cultures, red is associated with gods or deities, or the "privileged class." As for yellow, "shades of golden yellow carry the promise of a positive future." It instills "optimism and energy."

The conclusion: Sharon thinks it's exciting, enthusiastic and energetic.

Too bad happy thoughts don't win football games!

To learn more about color symbolism and the psychology of color, click here!