[FAQ] What colors should I buy? (From Reddit)

[Former_Member]

Hey, thanks for accepting me into the team, nice to see other beads spriters out there!

I've recently come across a couple of helpful guides in regards to Perler, Hama, and Nabbi beads, and I thought I'd share them to fellow enthusiasts.

I hope you'll allow this here, and if you want, I'll copy/paste some other guides to here as well.

Thanks!

-------
From: http://www.reddit.com/r/beadsprites/comments/fbdkb/faq_what_colors_should_i_buy/
-------

This is a work-in-progress, and your opinions/contributions are appreciated.

So you've decided to buy individual colors instead of mixed jars! You've made the right decision, my friend. Here's a barebone palette of 32 colors to get you started. You'll almost certainly want more colors than this, but this is a good place to start.

Note: Many of these colors are biased toward video game sprites. Your palette may differ significantly depending on what kinds of images you're trying to make.

Note 2: This list mostly applies to American Redditors, or anyone in a region where Perler beads are easier to get than Hama/Nabbi. If you live in a European country, your experience may vary.

---------------
Essential Colors
---------------
1. [Any Brand] Black
This is fairly self-explanatory. Lots and lots of sprites have black outlines or black shadows, and most brands' "Black" are about the same. Buy lots of this color!

2. [Any Brand] White
Same deal. A very common color, used in pretty much everything. Every brand is about the same. Buy a little more of this color, but not as much as black.

Extra Credit: (none)
---------------
Flesh Tones
---------------
3. [Perler] Peach
This is usually the primary flesh tone for white characters, highlighted by Hama Flesh below. I tend to buy lots of this; SNES RPG characters (FF6, etc.) use it pretty quickly.

4. [Hama] Flesh
This is a little darker than Perler Peach, and is great for slightly darker-skinned characters or highlights in Peach-skinned characters. In my opinion, if you get only one Hama color, this is it.

Extra Credit: Perler Cream, Nabbi Ivory, Nabbi Sand
---------------
Browns
---------------
5. [Perler] Tan
The go-to color for, well, tan. Can be used as a very dark skin tone, lots of landscape-type sprites, and for shading in brown-heavy images.

6. [Perler] Light Brown
It's not very light compared to tan, but Light Brown is a great mocha color that some landscape items (Mario blocks, I'm looking at you) can use up quickly.

7. [Perler] Brown
Not used as often as many other colors, but hard to replace when you really need it.

Extra Credit: Hama Light Brown, Hama Transparent Brown, Perler Rust, Hama Reddish Brown
---------------
Blues
---------------
8. [Perler] Pastel Blue
A lovely light blue color. I'm intentionally not including Perler Toothpaste in the essentials because this color is so much more versatile.

9. [Perler] Light Blue
Though it's labeled "light blue", I generally consider this the default "blue" color. A nice, smooth blue.

10. [Perler] Periwinkle
A slightly darker blue than Perler Light Blue, and definitely a more muted tone. Great for shading.

11. [Perler] Dark Blue
Just what the name implies. The end of the line for shading blues.

Extra Credit: Perler Toothpaste, Hama Turquoise, Perler Turquoise, Any Brand Transparent Blue
---------------
Greens
---------------
12. [Perler] Pastel Green
A very useful color. There are lots of greens around this end of the spectrum, but I like this one the best. Great for greens that aren't all in your face.

13. [Perler] Light Green
Kind of like Perler Light Blue, this is a great "green" default. A smooth, kind of muted green.

14. [Perler] Green
This looks nice and green-y, but when it's melted it's more of a dark green, especially compared to the other greens. This is usually the darkest green you ever need, with some exceptions.

Extra Credit: Hama Pastel Green, Hama Fluorescent Green, Any Brand Transparent Green, Nabbi Dark Green
---------------
Yellows/Oranges
---------------
15. [Perler] Pastel Yellow
Often, Perler Yellow is a little too much, and this is a great substitute. In sprites that call for just a little bit of yellow, I often use this over "real" Yellow.

16. [Perler] Yellow
I've had lots of problems with this particular color ironing poorly, but you just can't beat the tone -- Hama and Nabbi yellows are a little more orange-y. The purest bright yellow.

17. [Hama] Transparent Yellow
It may seem strange to count this as essential, but there's no other way that I've found to get "dark yellow". Be warned that transparent colors are very different from opaque ones when ironed.

18. [Perler] Cheddar
See also: "light orange". Great for shading.

19. [Perler] Butterscotch
See also: "orange". Perler Orange irons out to be much darker than it looks, making this a great orange substitute.

20. [Perler] Orange
See also: "dark orange". Some sprites absolutely demand this color, but otherwise, Butterscotch is usually a better orange.

Extra Credit: Nabbi Light Yellow, Hama Teddy Bear
---------------
Pinks/Reds
---------------
21. [Perler] Light Pink
Just like the name implies. A brighter pink than Perler Peach, but more pastel than Perler Pink.

22. [Perler] Pink
The necessity of this color is debatable, but the transition between Light Pink and Bubblegum is kinda rough otherwise. Not as bright of a pink as Bubblegum.

23. [Perler] Bubblegum
This is more of a "pink" than Perler Pink. A nice, deep pink.

24. [Perler] Red
Much like Perler Yellow, I've had some issues with this ironing cleanly, but it's a hard color to replace. A bright, fire truck red.

25. [Hama] Dark Red
This actually isn't TOO much darker than Perler Red, but the small shade change makes a big difference. A much deeper and richer red than Perler Red. If you have to get one or the other, I would recommend this one.

Extra Credit: Hama Pink, Hama Claret, Perler Raspberry, Hama Burgundy

Dishonorable Mentions: Perler Blush, Perler Hot Coral, Perler Magenta -- I don't think I've ever used these
---------------
Purples
---------------
26. [Perler] Blueberry Creme
A nice, though kind of bluish, light purple. I think this might be similar to Nabbi Lilac?

27. [Perler] Pastel Lavender
The definition of "light purple". A great color.

28. [Any Brand] Purple
Most of the brands' purples are about the same. I personally have Perler Purple to maximize the number of beads from the same brand, but I think they're interchangeable.

29. [Perler] Glitter Purple
Gasp! A glitter color? Unfortunately, there's no better way to get a really dark purple color than with these guys. The glitter generally doesn't show up after ironing. If you don't think you're going to do anything that involves dark purples, you can skip this.

Extra Credit: Nabbi Lavender, Perler Plum
---------------
Grays
---------------
30. [Nabbi] Light Gray
OH MY GOD YES. This color is the second coming of Bead Jesus for North American spriters, who have never had a good light gray option before. You'll be shading grays a lot, and this is the perfect transition between white and Perler Gray. No more shall we be under the weird-looking shackles of Perler Clear!

31. [Perler] Gray
Your basic gray. Bland, but functional.

32. [Perler] Dark Gray
We went without this color for a long time, but it's a much better solution than Hama Transparent Black. Sometimes hard to tell from regular black, but necessary for shading.

Extra Credit: Perler Clear, Hama Transparent Black
---------------
Appendix
---------------
Glow in the dark beads come in green (Perler/Hama), purple (Perler), blue (Hama), and red (Hama).

Metallic beads are generally unpopular because they iron out to be kind of ugly, but are available from several brands in copper, silver, and gold.

As mentioned, this is a very Perler-centric list, and if you live somewhere other than the US, you can find functional equivalents for most of the Perler colors in both Hama and Nabbi.

[Former_Member]

Personally, I just bought one of every color from each brand, other than the pearl, metallic, glow in the dark etc. I know that isn't always practical because of money, but it is the best way to know the exact difference between the beads.

Thank you for posting this guide! It is awesome.

[Former_Member]

I started with just buying with what I thought I needed, then branched onto more simple colors as needed.

However, trying to move onto anything SNES-era, the shading becomes a mission, and I find myself having to postpone many projects.

I know I just missed a 20% off entire purchase coupon from eksuccessbrands, and am waiting on another to purchase pretty much every shade, save metallics, glows, etc.

Glad you like it, thanks for the reply!

[Former_Member]

Very good guide! I have yet to read the whole thing, but it looks pretty interesting so far!

[Former_Member]

That's very helpful!

[Former_Member]

I always buy a lot of black beads. I have also used quite a few red and pink beads in the past as well, in many different shades. I love to use multiple colors on a project to give the item depth.

[Former_Member]

With the stuff I make, I can't get enough black, brown, light brown, cranberry, rust, dark grey, and light grey beads. Everything else I buy as needed.