Black paint is one of the most used colors in the world. Whether you need it for an art or DIY project, black paint is something we will all use at some point.
But, what if you have no black paint on hand but you need it today?
Rather than making a trip to the store and spending your hard-earned dollars on new paint, you may have the right color paints at home to make your own black paint.
Although all black may look the same, this isn’t true. Ask any artist and they will tell you that there are different shades.
Therefore, it’s important to make sure you make the right shade of black paint for your project.
You can learn how to make black paint by matching equal amounts of different colors with each other.
Read on as we guide you through the steps for making your very own black paint with just a few color combinations. Let’s get back to black!
How To Make Black Paint Guide?
Method One
Step One
The first method we will be looking at involves the colors blue, red, and yellow. Although black is the darkest color, you can make degrees of it with other colors.
When it comes to using blue, red, and yellow, there are exact shades that you can use to determine how black your paint will be.
Moreover, the type of paint will also have an impact. Choose between oil, acrylic, or watercolor paint.
If you use Rose Madder Genuine, Cobalt Blue, or Aureolin, you will achieve a soft black color. For a bolder black, combine Winsor Yellow, Winsor Blue, and Permanent Crimson.
All that being said, any blue, red, and yellow from a basic paint set will work well. For blues and red, Cyan and Magenta are two common types to use.
Step Two
Once you have your colors ready, place equal amounts onto a palette. For the best results, put all the colors on the palette one at a time, before mixing them together.
Place the paints around half an inch apart from each other. If you want to achieve basic black paint, simply use equal parts of each color.
For a slightly different shade of black, use slightly more of one or two of the colors.
Make sure you use a different brush for each color. Therefore, you won’t mix the paints other than on the palette.
Step Three
Now, it’s time to mix the paint. You can start this by using a paintbrush or an old toothbrush.
Start mixing the paints together, but if you find the paint is not mixing easily, you can use a metal scraping tool, such as a palette knife, to combine the colors.
You should mix for about 15 seconds, mixing the paints around. It may take longer, though.
Continue mixing until you end up with one color and there are no leftover patches of other colors remaining.
Swirl the paint brush gently, but do not press too hard. If you push with too much force, you could damage the bristle of the brush.
Step Four
If you are not happy with the black color, you can adjust the hue and value of it.
If you want it to be slightly lighter, you can add a little dab of white paint into the mix. Or, if you want it to look more like the night sky, try adding a little more blue.
If you have the time and paint to spare, try experimenting. Add some green or brown to the black paint, or some more yellow.
You may end up with the perfect black color you need for your project.
Although mixing paint by hand may not always give you an exact black color, it will usually have more character than pure black paint.
Method Two
Another method to try is to just mix two paints together. Some color combinations you can try are:
- Red and green
- Blue and orange, or burnt sienna
- Purple and yellow, or green
- Blue and brown
Whatever color combination you use, the process is the same. For this article, we are going to look at how to make black paint with just red and green paint.
Step One
By mixing paints that are opposite to each other on the color wheel, you can yield a darker tone, such as black.
Depending on how black you want your black to be, red and green can be used, particularly Naphthol red and Phthalo green.
All you need to do is add two equal amounts of these paints on a palette and start mixing with a paintbrush.
Gently swirl the colors together until a dark color forms. If the black isn’t quite right, add a bit more of one of the colors. Blue can make it darker.
How Do You Make Black Paint Darker?
It may sound ridiculous, but sometimes, black paint is not dark enough.
When mixing paint colors to make black, this is quite a common problem. Making black paint look lighter is quite easy.
You just mix some lighter shades, such as white, to the black (though this can make it more gray than black), or for warmer shades, you just mix in some softer oranges and yellow.
If you use white, only use very small amounts to avoid bringing out other colors in the mix and making it look grayer.
To make your black paint darker, it usually depends on the method you used. If you mixed primary colors, you can try using darker shades of blue and red to create a deeper shade.
If you used red and green, you can try adding green to make the paint look darker. And, if you used blue and orange, adding a darker blue can create a deeper shade of black.
Stick with darker hues to make your black paint darker, such as burned umber or Prussian blue.
In Summary
From red and green to brown and blue, there are different ways of making black paint.
The best method depends on your project. Just be prepared to experiment to find the precise shade for your needs.
Hi, my name is Joel Adams and I like to think of myself as a professional DIYer. Whatever odd jobs a person needs to be done around the house, I’m their guy.
I’m talking shelves, making sideboards and tables, painting feature walls… the list is neverending!
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