Color mixing might seem like magic—but behind every perfect shade lies a bit of science, a splash of intuition, and a whole lot of practice. Whether you’re a beginner picking up your first brush or a seasoned artist refining your palette, understanding how colors interact is one of the most powerful tools in your creative toolkit.
In this article, we’ll break down 7 essential facts about color mixing that every artist should know. From why black isn’t always your best friend, to how understanding pigment properties can level up your paintings—these insights will help you mix with confidence and create colors that truly sing.
7 Essential Facts about Color Mixing
- Every Artist should know -
1. Black Isn’t Always the Best for Darkening Colors
Most black pigments are very strong and often made with carbon-based materials, which can desaturate or even flatten colors.
Instead of using black to darken a hue (which often leads to dull, lifeless mixtures), artists use darker versions of related colors or complementary hues.
For example, darkening green with Prussian Blue maintains vibrancy because Prussian Blue is a deep, transparent pigment that mixes well with yellow-based greens.
Pigment Tip:
Try using burnt umber, dioxazine purple, or ultramarine blue for darkening—each gives different moods without killing the color.
2. Understanding Warm vs. Cool Primaries Is Key to Clean Mixing
Primary colors have warm or cool biases. A red can lean toward blue (cool) or toward yellow (warm), and that subtle difference dramatically affects color mixing results.
For example, mixing a cool red like Alizarin Crimson with a cool blue like Phthalo Blue produces a vivid purple. But if you use a warm red like Cadmium Red, you'll likely get a muddy or brownish result instead—because it contains yellow undertones that neutralize the blue.
Pigment Tip: Understanding pigment bias helps you predict rather than guess how your colors will interact. Always test your primary colors before painting.
Warm vs. Cool Primaries – Why It Changes Everything
When people say “primary colors,” they usually mean red, yellow, and blue (RYB). But in pigment reality, there is no such thing as a “pure” red, yellow, or blue — every pigment leans slightly warm or cool depending on its chemical composition.
Mixing color is all about what pigments “contain” in terms of underlying bias. For instance:
- Cadmium Yellow (warm) leans toward red → great for oranges.
- Lemon Yellow (cool) leans toward blue → great for greens.
- Ultramarine Blue (warm) leans toward red → mixes beautiful purples.
- Cerulean Blue (cool) leans toward green → mixes soft greens, not purples.
If you want clean, vibrant secondary colors, pair cool primaries:
- Cool yellow (Lemon Yellow) + Cool blue (Phthalo or Cerulean) = Bright green.
- Cool red (Quinacridone Rose) + Cool blue (Phthalo Blue) = Intense violet.
Using warm primaries will result in muted secondaries — which isn’t bad! Sometimes that’s exactly what you want for natural tones.
Pigment Tip:
Make a Color Bias Chart
Take your red, yellow, and blue pigments and mix them with each other in pairs. You’ll immediately see how their undertones affect the resulting hues — and it’ll help you build a more intuitive palette
3. mixing complementary colors to create Neutrals
Mixing complementary colors doesn’t just produce "mud"—it creates a beautiful range of neutrals that are perfect for natural tones, shadows, and subtle transitions. Complementary colors are located opposite each other on the color wheel, such as:
- Red and Green
- Blue and Orange
- Yellow and Violet
When you mix these opposites, you neutralize both colors, resulting in muted tones that can add depth and richness to your artwork. This is particularly useful when you need a color that isn’t too intense, like in the case of shadows, skin tones, or earthy landscapes.
Color Wheel by Johannes Itten
Examples of Complementary Color Mixing:
1. Red + Green = Result = Muted Brown or Olive
Red and green are complementary. When mixed, they neutralize each other, creating a subdued, earthy brown or olive tone.
This can be useful for creating realistic shadows in nature or for mixing skin tones without resorting to flat neutrals like gray or black.
2. Blue + Orange Result = Warm Brown or Slate Gray
Blue and orange are complementary colors as well. Mixing them creates a warm brown or deep gray
— a perfect tone for backgrounds or more complex neutrals that add depth to your painting. You might use this for creating shadow areas or earth tones in a landscape painting.
3. Yellow + Violet = Result = Muted Brown or Dark Olive
Yellow and violet are opposites on the color wheel, and mixing them creates a dull brown or dark greenish-gray. This is particularly useful for shadow areas in portraits or neutral greens in nature scenes.
Pigment Tip:
When mixing complementary colors, start with small amounts of the second color. A little goes a long way, and it’s easy to over-neutralize the mixture. You can always add more of the original color if needed to get the right balance.
4. Know your pigments - build your own color palette for every brand
Every pigment behaves differently, and even within the same color family, there can be significant variation in how a pigment looks and interacts with others. Therefore, it's essential for every artist to get to know their pigments thoroughly — especially if you're using multiple brands. Understanding the true nature of your pigments will help you achieve the desired color mix and avoid surprises in your artwork.
One of the best practices is to create a color palette for each brand you use. Many brands offer similar color names (e.g., "Cadmium Red" or "Ultramarine Blue"), but the pigments and formulas may vary, leading to different hues, transparency, or vibrancy. By testing and swatching each color, you can build your own reference that tells you exactly how each color will look in your specific medium and on your preferred paper or canvas.
Knowing how a pigment behaves when mixed with others (does it become muddy, vibrant, or dull?) will improve your ability to mix clean, harmonious colors without unpleasant surprises.
Picture source: zig-clean color
Create a pigment reference sheet for each brand you use. Include swatches of each color, its pigment number, and your observations (e.g., transparency, staining, mixing behavior, etc.). This allows you to have a quick, visual guide when choosing colors for your artwork and helps you better understand how different pigments interact.
tone.
Transparency and Staining:
Some pigments are more transparent or staining than others, and knowing this can help you plan how they will mix with other colors. For instance, some pigments will leave their mark strongly, even when diluted with water (common in watercolors), while others may be more subtle.
Consistency:
Different brands may have slight variations in the color you expect. Having your own palette and reference guide will ensure you always know exactly what to expect.
5. Less Is More: Avoid Overmixing
One of the most common mistakes in color mixing - especially for beginners - is combining too many different pigments. Each additional pigment in a mix reduces the vibrancy of the result. That’s because every pigment has a slight bias (warm/cool, red/yellow/blue leanings), and if too many are layered together, they start canceling each other out, pulling the mix towards a neutral grey-brown.
Think of it like this:
More pigments = more noise = less clarity.
Mixing colors isn't just about combining paints — it's about knowing when to stop. Every time you add a new pigment to a mix, you slightly reduce its clarity and vibrancy. Even mixing a pre-mixed color again with another can cause it to lose intensity.
It takes practice and awareness to know how far you can push a color. That's why professional artists often plan their palette ahead and keep their mixes simple and intentional.
Pigment Tip:
Sometimes you’re chasing a specific hue, adding a little of this and a little of that, but somehow it just keeps getting worse. The mix turns dull, muddy, or lifeless — and you’re frustrated. When that happens, the best thing you can do is:
Stop. Clean your palette. And mix it fresh.
6. Test Colors on White Before You Apply Them
It’s easy to get lost in the process of mixing colors, especially when you’re striving for a specific hue. However, colors often look different on your palette than they do on the final surface, whether it’s paper, canvas, or another medium. A color that appears vibrant on the palette may end up darker, duller, or less intense once applied.
The secret lies in a simple testing method:
Always apply a small swatch of color on a white piece of paper next to your artwork.
This helps you see exactly how the color will look after it dries and whether it truly fits with your artwork.
Why This Tip Works:
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True Perception on White: White reflects light, allowing colors to appear as they truly are. On darker or colored surfaces, a color can be influenced by the underlying tone, but on white, you see it in its purest form.
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Avoiding Surprises: There’s nothing worse than continuing to work with a color only to realize later that it doesn’t work on your painting after several layers have been applied.
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Better Control: Seeing the test color on a white sheet allows you to instantly recognize if it’s too intense or needs adjusting before you proceed.
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Drying Effects: Remember, many colors—especially in watercolor or acrylics—can change their intensity as they dry. Testing on white lets you observe the final drying effect and make necessary adjustments.
7. Use excisting Color Mixing Recipes
While experimenting and finding your own perfect mixes is essential, there's a wealth of knowledge already available from other artists and creators. Platforms like YouTube, Pinterest, and Instagram are goldmines for color mixing tutorials and recipes. By using these shared color recipes, you can speed up your learning process and expand your palette without having to reinvent the wheel each time.
Instead of mixing randomly and wasting materials trying to get the right shade, color recipes give you a shortcut. You can jump straight into painting with more confidence, knowing the recipe has already worked for someone else. Many recipes are tested and refined by experienced artists.
Use this board as your go-to tool when you're stuck, need a specific tone, or just want to explore new mixing ideas. Feel free to adapt and experiment with the recipes you find — that's how your personal palette will grow.
Happy mixing!
Final Thoughts: Mastery Comes with Practice
Color mixing is both a science and an art — a balance between understanding how pigments behave and trusting your intuition. These 7 essentials are here to give you a strong foundation, whether you're just starting out or refining your skills.
Remember, the more you observe, experiment, and document, the more confident and intentional your color choices will become. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, remix, or get inspired by others. Every mix teaches you something.
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