However, mixing cyan with magenta creates a more blue color than violet.
How to Make Pink? (and Purple) Colour Mixing with Acrylics
But why does your colour mixing look wrong? or your pink looks salmon and not hot pink?
A quick look at the undertone of a few red paints can show you how mixing the perfect pink can easily elude you.
Cadmium won’t allow you to make a hot pink; this video will show you how.
This is not due to a lack of mixing ability, just the wrong red paint colour for the desired result.
Mixing a bright purple?
The right choice of red will influence your ability to make a bright purple, and Part 2 of this video (at the end of this post) will show you how easily purple can go muted and grey rather than bright and vibrant.
This is due to the ‘muting down‘ effect of complementary colours.
It’s all to do with the colour bias of the pigment hidden in paints…
How to mix paint paint – video transcript
Morning class, I’m Will Kemp from Will Kemp Art School, and today I’m going to show you how to mix the perfect pink with the perfect pigments.
Then, I’m also going to show you how to make the perfect purple using those reds..okay, let’s get started!
So here we’ve got a selection of reds you’ll most usually come across:
- Cadmium Red Light
- Alizarin Crimson
- Permanent Alizarin Crimson
- Quinacridone Red
Pro tip: In artist quality, the Cadmium Red is very expensive. It’s a Seris 9 because the raw ingredients of Cadmium are very expensive. You can read about the differences between student vs artist quality paints.
Let’s lay them out and look at what happens in their raw state and then when we add white.
So here we’ve got the Cadmium Red Light, Permanent Alizarin Crimson, Alizarin Crimson, Quinacridone Red (I also add Cadmium Red Medium)
This is the lighter one (Cadmium Red Light). It goes slightly more orange than the plain Cadmium Red.
You see how this (Cadmium Red Light) goes very, very salmon colour when you start to add white to it rather than a bright, vibrant pinky pink.
This is a Cadmium Red Medium.
With this Alizarin Crimson Permanent, you don’t expect it to go this pink, having such a dark mass tone.
Compared to this red (Cadmium Red Light), you think, “oh this is going to go a really really bright pink” but suddenly this one has gone a lot pinker.
This one (Alizarin Crimson) starts to go more towards purple, especially if you look at it in comparison to that cadmium red.
Okay, look at this bad boy.
This is super bright pink (Quinacridone Red)
So you can easily start to see how when you add white to a colour, it always brings out the pinkness or always goes towards blue.
Because the Cadmium Red has an orange bias, when you add the white, which will go towards blue, it kind of tones it down a bit.
This is a lot more muted, whereas, in this one, the quinacridone is really quite clean still.
So to try and get a bright purple, you’ve just got to look at these with white and see okay, which is the closest one. This one is going to make a really bright purple.
So let’s have a look when we mix them with a blue.
Understanding the Basics of Color Mixing:
Table of Contents
Before we delve into making violet, it’s important to understand the basics of color mixing. Colors are created by combining different amounts of primary colors, which are red, blue, and yellow. Secondary colors, which are green, orange, and purple, are made by mixing equal parts of two primary colors. When mixing colors, start with a small amount of paint or pigment and add more as needed to achieve the desired shade.
Mixing Blue and Red Paints:
The most straight forward way to make violet is by mixing blue and red paint. Start by placing a small amount of blue paint on your palette and adding an equal amount of red paint. Mix the two colors thoroughly with a paintbrush until you achieve the desired shade of violet. If you want a darker violet, add more blue paint, and for a lighter violet, add more red paint.
You can also make violet by mixing secondary colors. For example, mixing blue and green creates a blue-green hue, which can then be mixed with red to create violet. Alternatively, mix yellow and blue to create a greenish-blue color, which can then be mixed with red to create violet.
Layering Colored Pencils:
If you’re using colored pencils, you can make violet by layering different shades of blue and red on top of each other. Start by coloring a layer of blue, then add a layer of red on top. Keep layering the colors until you achieve the desired shade of violet. This method is great for creating subtle, nuanced hues of violet.
Food coloring can also be used to make violet. Start by mixing a few drops of blue food coloring with white icing or frosting until you have achieved a pale blue shade. Then, add a small amount of red food coloring until you reach the desired shade of violet. This method is perfect for creating colorful desserts or decorations.
Mixing Violet With Different Mediums
Whether a professional artist or DIY enthusiast, you could use the knowledge of colors that make violet in various mediums.
Some common mediums are acrylic, watercolor, gouache, and more.
All these art mediums tend to apply the same mixing techniques, albeit with minor variations.
Here is a look at how you can mix violet with different mediums.
1. How to make violet color with acrylic paint
When using acrylic paint, make violet by mixing quinacridone acrylic paint and ultramarine blue and paint in a 2: 1 ratio.
Mixing two parts quinacridone acrylic paint and one part ultramarine blue paint should create a rich, bright-colored acrylic mix.
While you can work with it as it is, the color will look better with a bit of white added.
So add a hint of titanium white acrylic paint to adjust the value, giving it a slightly lighter shade.
All acrylic paint products should be artist-grade to guarantee the best results.
2. How to make violet color with watercolors
Mixing violet with watercolors is precisely like using acrylic paints. Combine two parts quinacridone magenta and one part ultramarine blue and thin the resulting mixture with water.
Once done, the magenta and blue watercolors should be replaced with a bright violet watercolor.
How Do You Make Light Violet Color?
Like many colors, you can add a hint of white to your violet color to lighten it or black to deepen the color.
In this case, mix magenta and ultramarine blue, as discussed, to create violet.
Then add some titanium white pigment to adjust the value, making the color lighter.
Violet Color Vs. Indigo Color
Both violet and indigo are real spectral colors in the visible light spectrum. However, they are not identical despite their close similarities.
Indigo is a color corresponding to a band of single wavelengths between 440-460 nanometers.
On the other hand, violet is a spectral color whose frequency comprises wavelengths from 400 to 440 nanometers.
Violet is the last visible color of the light spectrum. It is a vivid blue-purple color whose hex code is #8F00FF.
Indigo is the color immediately next to violet in the visible light spectrum. It is halfway between blue and violet, with the hex code #4B0082. But is indigo a shade of blue? Dig up.
Both colors look very similar to the naked eye, and one can easily be mistaken for the other. For instance, cobalt violet and indigo look almost identical to the naked eye. (Here is a detailed guide on how to make indigo color).
