Multicolor particles were prepared by incorporating two dyes, one fluorescent (fluorescein isothiocyanate) and one phosphorescent (tris(1,10-phenanathroline) ruthenium ion), into the silica matrix. Colors of the particles can be easily tuned by either varying the doping ratios of the two dyes or changing the excitation wavelength while fixing the ratios. The multicolor character of the particles is less sensitive to the location of the two dyes in the silica, since the luminescence of the particles is independent of Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET).