Mixing Watercolors

Paint sample challenge!
Mixing colors can be frustrating for beginners. Trying to create a color you see can be like making up a recipe for cookies after biting into one. Where do you even start? You have a dozen or so “ingredients” in your palette, and like cooking, learning how to combine them takes time and practice.

This exercise is a great way to practice. Go to a hardware store and grab some free sample cards of colors you find interesting. The ones you can’t immediately name (such as “greenish grayish beige”) are more challenging than the ones you can (such as “orange”). Take them home and try to duplicate them!

If a color is too intense, take a dry, or thirsty brush, and absorb some of the excess until it’s what you want. Your colors will probably dry a little lighter than they appear when wet. Don’t be afraid to mix your colors a bit darker. Watercolors are transparent. You don’t have to mix a complex color from scratch to correct it. If it needs a little blue, just paint blue over the top of it.

Being able to match colors doesn’t make you an artist, of course, but it is a great skill to have. If you’re able to mix the color you see or imagine, then you can do anything you want with it.