Whether you’re going to use pinstripe tape on your ride or have a pro do it for you, most people want it to look classy and cool. The overall design is the most important element for a successful strip job. This is followed by the color of your choice. Here are 7 tips to help you choose the right pinstripe tape color.
- Choose your favorite color! Sounds obvious right? However, some people will choose a color that their friend or vinyl expert likes rather than the color they really want. Maybe the color you choose doesn’t look as good as others, but if you like it, that’s all that matters.
- If you’re using more than one color of pinstripe tape, choose your primary and secondary colors. Let one color have the biggest impact, while the other or colors play a supporting role. This way the colors don’t conflict with each other and they help to complement each other. For example, dark green and dark brown are good colors, but they are both very strong colors and will attract attention. In most cases, dark brown with tan or beige will be a better choice; or dark green with medium green.
- In general, I’ve found that metallics and dark cars can look really good, but metallics don’t stay the same over time on dark cars. For some reason, the metallic pinstripe color goes bad in two or three years. Try to avoid this if you can.
- Complementary colors often look great together. Blue and orange are free, as are red and green, purple and yellow.
- Consider using pinstripe tape roughly the same color as your vehicle but a lighter or darker color. For example, a dark blue stripe on a medium or light blue car looks very nice. Dark green pinstripes on a light or medium green car look sweet.
- If you’re looking for a color that really stands out and makes a statement, look for high contrast and bold lines and shapes. In contrast, in addition to color, some pinstripe tapes stand out, while others appear more subtle. How do you get contrast? Dark and light. Dark on light or light on dark.
- If possible, try to get a pinstripe color chart and stick it next to your car in the sun. On the sunny side, not the shady side. Take a few steps back from the vehicle and squint to see what comes up. Sometimes using an elimination process is a better way to choose colors. Instead of choosing colors, you start eliminating the ones you don’t like to find the right one for your ride.
I hope these seven tips help you add some stripes to your ride the next time you choose a color. The nice thing about pinstripe tape is that you can take it off if you don’t like it, and you can always add more if you think your car needs it.