So yesterday I was at college for week 2 of the new course. And it was all about colour mixing. I actually heard and felt the room sigh when we all realised what it was about, however, I was excited because it’s something I really want to get into.
I have listened to many artists (Kellee Wynne springs to mind, I have even bought the course and not started it yet!) talk about the importance and benefits of knowing how to mix your own colours, using just the primaries. I have done it as part of a watercolour course a couple of years ago. Never really tried acrylic and definitely not with oils!
One thing I found out that I really didn’t know, was to use boiled water not tap water for cleaning the brushes etc, and to spritz the container with mist before and after loading with paint. The reason to use boiled water is to reduce the introduction of bacteria that will turn the paints and make them unusable and smelly!
So we spent the day, squeezing tubes and mixing a palette of 24 different colours, all made using just lemon yellow, pthalo blue, carmine red and white.
Let me tell you, the day was both fun, exciting and… Not going to lie… Tedious!
Yes, you heard me right tedious. What a boring thing to do for so many hours. HOWEVER I now have 24 colours mixed and ready to use in my homework, and for next week’s class.
I have learnt so much. I absolutely and So very happy to have done this!
We were given a base recipe to follow. I.e. “mostly” white, “some” blue, “some” red. “bit” of yellow. Squeeze the paints onto the palette, and go ahead and just mix until you have the colour you are aiming for, then also make enough to match the swatches and fill the pot.
The outcome is 24 pots of paint, all varying shades tones and hues, ready to use. And I have the knowledge of how to do this again. But more importantly, I can think, oh I like that colour I wonder what I need to make it, let me try this combination.
My biggest takeaway from today – DO IT – just do the colour mixing, you will learn so much about the reasons colours look the way they do, the way colours are made up, and how much you can add to get a shade of colour you want, and when it goes wrong what you can do to “fix” it to get back on track!
Disclaimer:
All opinions expressed here are my own.
I paid for any products discussed.
I received no payment and I am not affiliated in any way with any brand mentioned herein.
