How to Mix Colors

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When it comes to mixing colors, a lot depends on the medium you’re using. The rules for mixing pigments of paint colors are different from those for mixing colors of light. Fortunately, by learning the primary and secondary colors for each medium and understanding how they act when mixed together (whether they’re additive or subtractive), you can know how to mix colors appropriately in any situation.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Combining Primary and Secondary Colors

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  1. There are 3 primary pigment colors: red, blue, and yellow. These colors can’t be “made” by mixing other paint colors. However, they can be mixed together to form the 3 secondary pigment colors: red and blue make violet, blue and yellow make green, and red and yellow make orange. [1]
    • Note that when you mix the primary colors of paint together, the secondary colors they produce aren’t very bright or vibrant. That’s because these newly combined pigments subtract more and reflect less light from the color spectrum, giving you secondary colors that are dark and muddy rather than vibrant and bright.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    There are 6 intermediate paint colors that can be created through the various possible combinations of primary and secondary pigments. These are yellow-orange (yellow mixed with orange), red-orange (red mixed with orange), violet-red (red mixed with violet), blue-violet (blue mixed with violet), green-blue (blue mixed with green), and yellow-green (green mixed with yellow). [2]
    • These intermediate colors are located between the primary and secondary colors on the color paint wheel.
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  3. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    In addition to primary, secondary, and intermediate pigments, there are also 3 tertiary paint colors that are produced when 2 secondary paint colors are mixed together. These are brown (green mixed with orange), brick (orange mixed with violet), and slate (violet mixed with green). [3]
    • These colors are not usually included on paint color wheels, but they are still viable colors that can be produced by mixing other colors together.
  4. Paint colors are subtractive, which means that the pigment absorbs some parts of the light spectrum and reflects others, resulting in the color that we perceive in paint pigment. This means that adding different pigments together tends to make your paint darker, because it’s absorbing more and more light. It’s thus impossible to mix paint pigments together to make white paint. [4]
    • If you want to use white paint for your painting project, you’ll have to purchase it instead of mixing it.
  5. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Combine all of the primary colors to make brown paint . Brown paint can be made by mixing equal portions of all 3 of the primary colors together. It can also be made by combining any 2 complements. [5]
    • If the brown you are making is leaning too much toward a particular color, neutralize it by adding a little of the color opposite it.
  6. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Mix brown paint with blue paint to make black paint . The simplest way to make black paint is to mix the brown paint you just made with blue paint until it produces the tone of black you’re going for. You can also make black by mixing the 3 primary colors together but simultaneously adding a greater proportion of blue into the mix. [6]
    • Make sure you don’t add any white or any color that has white in it, like opaque yellow or opaque yellow-green, as this will make your black more like a shade of gray.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Creating Shades, Tints, and Tones

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  1. Tints are are simply lighter versions of a color’s original hue. To make a color lighter and create a tint, add white paint to it. The more white paint you add to a pigment, the lighter the tint will be. [7]
    • For example, adding white paint to red paint creates pink, which is a lighter version of red.
    • If you add too much white paint to a pigment and create a tint that is too light, you can add more of the original hue to the mix to darken the pigment again.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Darker versions of a color’s original hue are called shades. These are created by adding black paint to a pigment. How dark the shade is depends on how much black paint you add to the original hue; the more black paint you add, the darker the shade. [8]
    • Some artists prefer to add the color's complement, which is its opposite color on an accurate CMY/RGB color wheel. For example, green can be used to darken magenta, and magenta to darken green, because they are across from each other on the color wheel.
    • Add black paint, or a complement, a little at a time so you don't overdo it. If your shade comes out too dark, you can lighten it by adding a little of the original paint color to the mix.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Tones are produced by adding both black and white to a color and will appear less intense and less saturated than the original hue. By varying the relative amounts of black and white that you add to your mix, you can obtain whatever lightness and saturation you are looking for. [9]
    • For example, add both white and black to yellow to make light olive green. The black will darken yellow, turning it into olive green, and the white will lighten that olive green. Different light olive greens can be mixed by controlling how much of each is added.
    • For an unsaturated color like brown (dark orange), you can adjust the hue the same way as you would for bright orange: by adding small amounts of nearby colors on the color wheel, such as magenta, yellow, red, or orange. These will brighten your brown as well as change the hue.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Mixing Paint Colors on a Palette

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  1. Add the amount of paint you expect to use for your mixing or slightly less. The dollops should be roughly equal in size if you plan to use equal proportions of each color and should have plenty of space in between them. If you plan to mix a greater proportion of one color with smaller proportions of other colors, the sizes of the dollops should reflect these proportions. [10]
    • For example, if you wanted to mix brown paint, you would want to have equally sized portions of blue, yellow, and red paint. However, if you wanted to mix black paint, you’d want to have a larger dollop of blue paint on the palette.
    • It’s probably better to have too little paint on your palette than too much, since you can always add more.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    With your palette knife, scoop up a small portion of 1 paint color and place it in the center of the palette or another blank area. Gently tap the knife against the palette if the paint doesn’t come off easily. [11]
    • Palette knives are ideal tools for mixing paints together on a palette. Not only do they do a much more thorough job of mixing your colors, but they also extend the lifespan of your normal painting brush, since you’re not using it for the task of paint mixing.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    This will prevent colors from mixing with your original dollops as you scoop them with the palette knife. Use any old rag or cloth that you don’t mind getting paint on to remove the first dollop’s paint from the knife. [12]
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Use the clean palette knife to scoop up a small piece of a second paint color and gently place it right next to or on top of the paint in the center of the palette. The sizes of the small scoops will depend on what proportions of each color you plan to mix. [13]
    • For example, if you plan to mix equal portions of the two colors, the amount of paint that you scoop up from each dollop should be the same.
  5. If you plan to mix more than 2 colors together, repeat the process of cleaning the palette knife and scooping paint to the center of the palette until you’ve added all your additional colors to the mix. [14]
  6. Watermark wikiHow to Mix Colors
    Once you’ve finished assembling your paint colors together, it’s time to mix them. Move the palette knife in a circular motion to stir the paint together, making sure to bring the various scoops of paint into contact with each other. Add a small amount of pressure as necessary by pressing down on the knife. [15]
    • Once the colors have blended into a new color, they’ve been mixed!
    • If the color didn’t quite come out they way you wanted it to, simply clean your palette knife and add more paint to the mix until you’re satisfied with the color of the mixture.
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Community Q&A

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  • Question
    What colors do I need to mix to get teal blue?
    Community Answer
    Mix blue with a little bit of green. Add more green if desired until you get the shade you want. If you want to lighten it, add a little white. If you want to dull the color, add a little black.
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  • Question
    I would like to know how to mix a color to get a smooth leather color.
    Community Answer
    Natural brown leather colour can be mixed with complementary colours (colours opposite each other in the colour wheel) where one of the colours is shiny, for example: gold+purple=leather-like brown.
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  • Question
    What colors do I mix to get yellow?
    Rey Starchaser
    Top Answerer
    Since yellow is a primary color, there are no colors you can mix to make it.
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      Tips

      • Any given color can be said to have 3 dimensions: hue, saturation, and lightness.
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      • Always consider hue, saturation, and lightness when considering color. Hue refers to a color’s position on the color wheel; saturation is what gives you rich, bright colors, like those in the rainbow or on the color wheel; and lightness indicates how close a color is to white or black, regardless of the color itself.
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      • Mixing a gold color can come with some extra challenges and options to consider.
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      References

      1. ↑ http://www.housepaintingtutorials.com/paint-color-mixing-chart.html
      2. ↑ http://www.housepaintingtutorials.com/paint-color-mixing-chart.html
      3. ↑ http://www.housepaintingtutorials.com/paint-color-mixing-chart.html
      4. ↑ http://www.webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/1BA.html
      5. ↑ https://www.craftsy.com/art/article/mixing-primary-colors/
      6. ↑ https://www.craftsy.com/art/article/mixing-primary-colors/
      7. ↑ https://www.enchantedlearning.com/art/Colormixing.shtml
      8. ↑ https://www.enchantedlearning.com/art/Colormixing.shtml
      9. ↑ https://www.craftsy.com/art/article/hues-tints-tones-and-shades/
      1. ↑ https://www.craftsy.com/art/article/how-to-mix-brown-paint/
      2. ↑ http://helloartsy.com/palette-knife/
      3. ↑ http://helloartsy.com/palette-knife/
      4. ↑ http://helloartsy.com/palette-knife/
      5. ↑ http://helloartsy.com/palette-knife/
      6. ↑ http://helloartsy.com/palette-knife/

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      The best way to mix colors depends on what color you're trying to make. If you want to make secondary colors, like violet, green, or orange, mix red, blue, and yellow in various ratios. For example, to make violet, mix red and blue, and to make green, mix blue and yellow. To make the color lighter, add a drop of white to make a "tint." To make a color darker, add a small amount of black to make a "shade." Experiment by mixing primary and secondary colors to produce even more pigments! For more color-mixing tips, like how to mix paint on a palette, scroll down!

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