How to Mix a Custom Paint Color

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I am a frugal fiend, but I also love doing DIY projects around my house. These aren’t always cheap so I have found numerous ways to save money at them. One of the best ways to save lots of dough on DIY projects is learn about paint. Paint transforms everything, but did you know you can transform your paint? You can make it into chalk paint (as livelovediy.com explains), you can use additives to make it thinner, thicker, reduce brush strokes, etc, and most importantly, you can mix your own colors!

 

I used to think to myself this fact was common sense, but as I see many people shelling out hundreds to buy custom paint, I realize the artist in me is taking this knowledge for granted. Take a look at this circle of beauty. It is the color wheel. Any paint you have leftover, get for free from a recycling facility, or are given from your grandma can be made into another color with this guide. Let me give you a rundown.

color wheel

THE BASICS OF COLOR MIXING
Say you have carnival red. Very few things look good in bright red, so there’s usually a lot of it free to go around. But what if you are looking for a deep purple paint color? Well luckily, you only need to find blue to make purple out of red. Red + Blue = Deep Purple. Yellow + Blue = Dark Green. Red + Yellow = Burnt Orange. See a pattern? The color wheel shows you any color can be mixed from the two colors on either side of it in the circle. Want lime green? Mix a lot of bright yellow with a little teal.
Adding black to the color creates a shade of the hue:
color mixing chart
Adding white to the color creates a tint of the hue:
7372913_origAdding gray to the color creates a tone of the hue:
6312739_orig

All of this is sort of an art, and it will take practice. But I am just throwing out the information that YOU can make that perfect paint color. You don’t need to search every store to find it. You’ll also notice the size of the color corresponds to how much paint to mix. Generally, weak colors are white, yellow, and pastel colors (tints) because they are formed from a white base. Generally, strong colors are black, red, and bold colors (shades) because they are formed from a black base. If it’s a strong color, you only mix in a little to get a result. If it’s a weak color, you need to mix in a lot.
5865624

The other piece of advice is that bright colors yield bright colors. You cannot mix two bold colors and expect them to change hues. Look at the color wheel again:
color wheel
Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow are the colors you want to mix if you are looking for a bright color. Mixing traditional blue and yellow will not give you a true green. It will yield a dark green. Cyan, magenta, and yellow are the true primary colors. This is explained more in depth on wikiHow.
RULES OF MIXING PAINT
So now that you know the basics of color mixing, let’s learn the rules of mixing paint:
1. You cannot mix latex with oil paint.

These paints are made of two different bases (latex is water based and oil is oil based). They will not combine, the oil paint will pull away from the latex like when you pour oil into a glass of water.
2. You can mix finishes.A matte finish and gloss finish will make a semi-gloss. Two mattes will stay matte.

3. You can mix brands.
I usually make sure at least one of the brands I mix in has qualities I need. I mixed a teal for my bathroom that the bright blue I mixed with lime green said it was moisture resistant.

4. You should test colors first before you dive in.
Take an old ice cream pail and mix equal parts to find your color. For example, one part red, three parts white to make pink. Then you will know approximately how much paint to mix into your existing color to get the hue you want.

5. Mix, mix, mix.

You know those machines that vigorously shake your paint when you order the color in the store? You have to be that machine. Use a paint stick and mix until your wrists cramp, then mix some more.

 

So, I talk about getting free paint at my local household hazard waste recycling facility, and now you know how I can make that paint into any color I please! If you need help figuring out how to create a specific color you have in mind, please contact me.

I hope you enjoyed this post and learned how to mix a custom paint color! Check out my adventures in painting furniture, wood trim, canvas, and murals. Please pin and share!
How to mix a custom paint color

Published by Melissa Woods

My name is Melissa Woods, homemaker and parent. I am an amateur handy-woman and avid DIY-er. I am an adept painter and deft crafter. I am a finance enthusiast and frugal to the core.

4 Replies to “How to Mix a Custom Paint Color”

  1. Hi there. I have a greyish colonial blue paint that I would love to turn in to some sort of teal or turqoise color. I’ve tried mixing a bright blue with it – fail…a lime green with it- fail….and a yellow with it….fail. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!

    Reply

    1. Christina, I’m sure this is not what you want to hear, but I would say it will be difficult to create turquoise out of grey blue. This is because you’re starting with the wrong base. A grey base is in the tone family and a turquoise’s base should be in the bold family. Learn more about color families here: https://www.welcome-to-the-woods.com/how-to-create-flow-in-home-design/. For turquoise, you need blue + lime green, or bright sky blue + green. Perhaps you can visit your local household hazardous waste facility and look for brighter, bolder colors to mix together there?

      Reply

  2. I loved reading this! Thank you. I am about to paint my den a very light sea foam green. Sorta turquoise but more green than blue. What I want to do is find the complimentary color to that and paint my kitchen walls. What I’ve come up with is coral, but hubby ain’t having that. Any thoughts? Also wondered what you thought about color paint on the cabinets?

    Reply

    1. It’s funny you are asking this because my mother painted her kitchen cabinets a sea foam green a few years ago! Her kitchen walls she painted a turquoise so it was more of a monochromatic color scheme. I thought that looked nice. If you are looking for color schemes, you should read my article about how to create flow in home design. That will help you pick colors that look cohesive across multiple rooms of your house.

      Thanks for the comment!
      Melissa

      Reply

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