Amy’s Watercolor Palette Tube Watercolors, January 2016 Artist palette colors constantly change; it’s a never-ending quest for an ideal color. The list an artist gives you today will not match his palette a year from now due to frequent substitution. We’re also suckers for new paints with new traits. Additionally, when an artist changes their subject matter, say moving from landscapes to portraits, that can radically alter their color needs. No two artists work from the same palette. While I can tell you what I use, your ideal palette will dier from mine based upon your taste, preferences, and your subject matter. This list is simply my current paints. IT IS NOT A BUYING GUIDE FOR BEGINNERS; you need to experiment to nd the set of colors that’s right for you. I’ve divided my colors into three groups: 1. “∞” are essential blending colors which rarely leave my palette. These are good beginner colors. 2. “≈” are convenience colors. If I find myself frequently mixing the same color, eventually I’ll search for the same color in a tube. It takes a while to notice your need for a convenience color and an even longer time to find a paint that matches your mix. 3. “◊” are novelty colors or special effect paints. No one really needs these colors but everyone should own a few paints that make your heart sing! Earth: ◊ Pearlescent Shimmer Strictly for fun, this adds a fun shimmer when used as a glaze. Daniel Smith ∞ Bu Titanium I mix with this warm beige instead of white for all my opaque Daniel Smith pastels. Excellent neutral background with slight sediment. ∞ Hansa Yellow Light An easy to use mixing yellow. Daniel Smith ∞ New Gamboge I use N.Gamboge as my mixing yellow about 90% of the time. The Daniel Smith Daniel Smith version is less muddy than other Gamboges. ∞ Quinacridone Rust I use this as a Sepia, a warm brown. Mixed with French Ultramarine to make my Neutral Tint gray. Mixed with New Gamboge makes a M. Graham fun Quinacridone Nickle Azo Gold color. ∞ Raw Umber My cool brown, a murky brown the color of used coee grounds. Daniel Smith read more at www.vanillaarts.com/ink-water Red to Violet: ∞ Pyrrol Scarlet This is my current warm red. I’m always switching warm reds because I’ve never fallen in love with one. Combines with New Gamboge to make very stable Daniel Smith oranges. ∞ Quinacridone Red This is my current cool red. I think it’s worth it to have a warm and a cool for better mixing purposes. The swatch here has granulation medium in it. From M. Graham the tube, it’s more consistent. ≈ Rose Madder Is this an essential color? No. I once received a free tube and decided to use it up. Then I ended up using it in many orals and I purchased another tube. So now Mijello Mission it’s just always there, a reliable shading red that doesn’t ever cause me problems. ∞ Quinacridone Rose This is my mixing magenta and the base of hand mixed skin tones. Makes Daniel Smith salmon and tangerine colors that break apart slightly. I have a love/hate relationship with Opera Pink. Undiluted, it’s orescent and ◊ Opera Pink straight from Hell. But in micro amounts dropped onto ooded areas, it’s the Daniel Smith prettiest pink ower color. One tube will last me 1,000 years because I really do mean “micro” amounts. ≈ Quinacridone Violet My warm violet. It could be easily mixed but this one is very convenient. M. Graham ≈ Carbazole Violet My cool violet. A harder color to mix and this has a really nice sediment. Daniel Smith ◊ Rose of Ultramarine I only use this on orals and backgrounds Diluted, it separates into a pink Daniel Smith with blue sediment. It also forms a nice dark pink boundary edge. ◊ Moonglow Good on orals. A shadowy mix of Indigo with warm violet sediment. Daniel Smith Skin: ≈ Jaune Brilliant #1 Mijello Mission I’m picky about Caucasian skin tones and tube “skin tone” paints never look right to me. Hand mixing skin is a beastly job and I waste a lot of paint trying to make slight color adjustments. It took me years to nd these “Jaune Brilliant” colors. I never use them straight from the tube but they’re a good base ≈ Jaune Brilliant #2 for healthy looking skin. Mijello Mission ◊ Potter’s Pink This color is an aquired taste-- it’s a dead pink. It’s very sedimentary, so if you’re a fan of transparent color, this won’t be your cup of tea. I’ve played with this Daniel Smith color on orals for years but only recently added it to my skin group. ∞ indicates essential/mixing color ≈ indicates convenience color ◊ indicates novelty Neutrals: ∞ Payne’s Gray Payne’s is my primary mixing gray, used to deaden colors. I do not use black paint M. Graham in my watercolors nor do I recommend that beginners purchase black paint. ◊ Kyanite Genuine Shown highly diluted. My playful shadow color- has a beautiful creep. Yes, it looks a lot like Payne’s but Kyanite has a natural glitter in it which makes it Daniel Smith inappropriate as a deadening color. ≈ Neutral Tint Payne’s Gray can look very blue when used as a stand-alone gray. This mix of French Ultramarine and Quinacridone Rust is a far more neutral gray. Oddly, Hand Mixed I almost never use this as a neutral tinting gray. Will separate if puddled. Blues & Greens: ◊ Cobalt Teal This is an opaque aqua that leans towards blue. It makes a wonderful crackle and when highly diluted, it’s a great sky color. It also interacts with MG’s Prussian M. Graham Blue in interesting ways! Not necessary but tons of fun. This is a transparent greenish aqua with light sediment. It behaves better ≈ Amazonite Genuine than MG’s Cobalt Teal and it’s one of the few colors I’ll use straight out of Daniel Smith the tube. ◊ Scheveningen Green Deep Beautiful as a tinge on the tips of leaves and green folliage. Old Holland ∞ Sap Green Lake My favorite sap green. All purpose and useful. Old Holland ◊ Serpentine Genuine This is a denite novelty green. It breaks down into a Chartreuse with Daniel Smith pinkish-taupe and sap green sediment. Fun to add to folliage ◊ Cascade Green Another novelty green and hard to describe. It breaks down into a Turquoise with pine green sediment, hints of indigo sediment. Another Daniel Smith fun foliage addition. ∞ French Ultramarine A workhorse mixing blue. I’m always switching brands trying to nd an Daniel Smith Ultramarine that can capture my heart. So far, no luck. ∞ Prussian Blue I use this the way I use Magic Indigo colored pencils. It’s a color I can’t live M. Graham without. ∞ indicates essential/mixing color ≈ indicates convenience color read more at www.vanillaarts.com/ink-water ◊ indicates novelty.