OIL PAINTING

Cheat Sheets
AUTHOR BOB DAVIES
 CHOOSING AN OIL PALE T TE

K i d n e y S h a p e d Pa l e t t e
• Light we i g ht wi t h t he t humb ho l e al l owi ng i t to b e h el d c o m fo r t a b l y w i t h n o n - p a i n t i n g h a n d.
• R ound e d sha p e a l l ows co l o ur s to b e se t o ut a ro un d edge w i t h c en t re res er ved fo r m i xi n g.
• Usua l l y mad e o f wo o d b ut c an a l so b e mad e o f me l a m i n e o r a c r y l i c.
• Wo o d e n c o l o ur i s b e st fo r j ud gi ng co l o ur s a p p l i e d to a to n ed gro u n d / c a nv a s.
• Wh i te p al e t te i s b e st fo r j ud gi ng c o l o ur s a p p l i e d to a w h i te gro u n d / c a nv a s.

O b lo n g Pa l e t t e
• M o re sp a ce e f f i ci e nt a nd b e t te r sui te d to f i t t i ng i n a p o r t a b l e ea s el o r p a i n t b ox.
• Can b e o f any ma te r i al i nc l ud i ng wo o d e n b o ard, p l a s t i c o r gl a s s.
• Cor ne re d e d g e s a re cumb e r so me whe n mov i ng a ro u n d a n ea s el - t h i s i s w hy ov a l p a l et tes a re
m ore t r ad i t i o nal.
• K idne y and o b l o ng p a l e t te s re q ui re p ai nt to b e s c r a p ed aw ay b et ween p a i n t i n gs / s es s i o n s -
plent y o f f cl o t hs and r ag s are re q ui re d to mai nt a i n a u s a b l e m i xa b l e s u r f a c e.

T e a r O f f Pa l e t t E
• Come s as a p ad o f te a r- o f f wa x p a p e r she e t s wi t h s t i f f b a c k b o a rd
• Ava i l a b l e wi t h t humb ho l e so c an b e he l d l i k e a t r a di t i o n a l p a l et te.
• M uc h cl e a ne r a nd q ui ck e r t han t r a d i t i o na l p al e t te s.

Dipper
• A si ng l e o r d o ub l e d i p p e r (ak a a p a l e t te cup ) i s usef u l to h o l d s m a l l a m o u n t s o f p a i n t m edi u m /
solve nt .
• Can b e c l i p p e d o n to t he e d g e o f p a l e t te fo r e asy a c c es s.

2 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 M i x ing G r e E N S
cerulean PRI M ARY co b a lt ULTRA M ARINE PTHALO
blue BLUE blue blue BLUE

LE M ON
YELLO W

PRI M ARY
YELLO W

C AD M UI M
YELLO W
M EDIU M

YELLO W
O C HRE

RA W
SIENNA

H ere are 5 comm on blues a nd 5 co mmo n ye l l ows mi xe d, i n mo st case s i n ro u gh l y eq u a l q u a n t i t i es to p ro du c e

2 5 green s. Th e lef t h alf of e a ch gre e n i s a st ro ng mi x o f t he t wo c o l o ur s.

Th e r ight h alf is a ligh ter mi x wi t h a p p rox i ma te l y 5 0 % t i t a ni um whi te a d d ed to c rea te a t i n t .

Simply adjustin g the ratios o f b l ue, ye l l ow and whi te wi l l gi ve yo u l i te r a l l y h u n dreds m o re green s.

3 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 M i x ing G R E Y S
cerulean co b a lt PRI M ARY ULTRA M ARINE PTHALO
blue blue blue blue BLUE

C AD M IU M
RED
LIGHT

BURNT
SIENNA

BURNT
U M BER

RA W
U M BER

RED
OXIDE

H ere are 5 blues and 5 co mmo n re d s/ b rowns mi xe d i n ro ug hl y e q ual q u a n t i t i es to p ro du c e 25 gre y s. Th e

l e f t h alf of each gre y is a st ro ng mi x o f t he t wo c o l o ur s. The r i g ht ha l f i s a l i gh ter m i x w i t h a p p roxi m a tel y
5 0% titanium wh ite added to cre a te a t i nt . Ad j ust i ng t he r a t i o s o f b l ue, reds / b row n s a n d w h i te w i l l gi ve yo u
l iterally hundreds m ore gre y s.

4 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 M i x ing S K I N C O L O U R S
Alizarin CRimson cadmium red
U lt r a m a r i n e b lu e cadmium yellow
yellow ochre pthalo blue
t i ta n i u m w h i t e t i ta n i u m w h i t e

Ju st by usin g three pr imar y co l o ur s a nd whi te, ma ny d i f fe re nt sha d e s and t i n t s o f s k i n c o l o u r c a n b e c rea ted.

On th is page, t wo sets of thre e p r i ma r i e s have b e e n use d to cre a te e i g ht d if feren t s k i n to n es. Wi t h t h e a ddi t i o n

of titan ium white th ese ca n b e l i g hte ne d to cre a te p o te nt i al l y an i nf i ni te n u m b er o f v a r i a t i o n s.

Th e propor tion s of th e pr imar y co l o ur s have b e e n a d j uste d i n e a ch o ne to p rov i de a b i a s tow a rds red, b l u e o r

ye llow. Each colour swatch shows ro ug hl y t he p ro p o r t i o ns o f e ac h p r i mar y u s ed fo r ea c h to n e b efo re w h i te i s
added.

5 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 M i x ing S K I N C O L O U R S

raw alizarin
sienna crimson
+ +
Raw u lt r a m a r i n e u lt r a m a r i n e u lt r a m a r i n e cadmium burnt
sienna blue blue blue red sienna
+ + + + + +
burnt burnt burnt burnt cerulean yellow
sienna sienna sienna umber blue ochre

H ere are some fur ther var i at i o ns usi ng c o mmo n co l o ur s a nd a re use d by m a ny to p p o r t r a i t p a i n ter s.
Th ese 6 mixes, plus the on e s o n t he p re v i o us p ag e, can cre a te t he v a st ma jo r i t y o f s k i n to n es yo u’ l l e ver n eed.

6 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 COLOR BIAS OF PRIMARIES

All pr ima r y c o lo u r pai nt s ( red s, b l u es and yel l ow s) have a ‘ leani ng’ or ‘ bias’
towa rd s o n e o f th e ot her t wo p r i mar i es. For ex am ple, A lizar i n Cr im son is a red
with a blu e bi a s, wh e reas Cad mi u m R ed i s a red w i th a yellow bias. YELLOWS WITH YELLOWS WITH A
A BLUE BIAS RED BIAS
K n owing th e bi a s o f t he col ou r s i n you r p al et te w i ll help you m ix the secondar y
a n d ter ti a r y c o l o u r s you w ant . I t w i l l al s o hel p you avoi d m i x i ng m uddy and dull
Aureole C a d m i u m Ye l l o w M e d i u m
co lo ur s C a d m i u m Ye l l o w D e e p
Azo
Lemon Chrome
I f yo u wa n t a v i br a n t p u r p l e for ex amp l e, m i x a re d w ith a blue bi as and blue Cadmium Lemon Indian
with a re d bi a s. Th a t w ay you are onl y m i x i ng t wo o f the pr i m ar ies ( red and blue) . C a d m i u m Ye l l o w Pa l e Naples
H a n s a Ye l l o w L i g h t New Gamboge
I f yo u w a n t a d u l l pu r p l e, t hen m i x a red w i t h a b l ue bias and a blue w i th a yellow Transparent Raw Sienna
bia s. Now yo u a re m ix i ng al l t hree p r i mar i es ( red + blue + yellow ) . M i x i ng all Bismuth Ye l l o w O c h re
th ree p r i m a r i e s re s u l t s i n a m ore neu t r al tone. Pe r m a n e n t Ye l l o w M e d i u m
Mars
Quinacridone Gold
NB: The l i st s here t ho u g h e x te n s ive, a re n o t e xh a u s t i ve, a s ma nu fa ct u rers i nt rod u ce
or delet e co l o ur s o n a co n tin u o u s b a s is.

BLUES WITH A BLUES WITH A REDS WITH A REDS WITH A

RED BIAS YELLOW BIAS BLUE BIAS YELLOW BIAS

Cobalt Cerulean Permanent Rose Cadmium

Cyanine Pthalo Alizarin Crimson Winsor
French Ultramarine Antwerp Magenta Vermillion
Ultramarine Intense, Monastial Quinacridone Rose Perelyne
Pay n e’s G re y Manganese Rose Madder Permanent
Indanthrene, Indigo Turquoise Crimson Lake Light
Cyan Opera Rose Indian
Rembrandt Scarlet Lake Venetian
Pthalo Carmine Pyrrole
Prussian English Red Oxide
Paris
Peacock
7 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 TR ANSPARENT &
OPAQUE COLOURS
KEY
Al l paint col ou rs, regardless of th e medium use d, have v a r y i ng d e gre e s o f t r a nsp are nc y.
K n owing how transparen t or opaq ue a co l o ur i s c an he l p yo u whe n p ai nt i ng l aye r s o r T = Transparent
g l a ze s. ST = S e m i - T r a n s p a r e n t
S = Semi-Opaque
B e a r in mind th ough th at some colou r s may b e cl asse d a s t r ansp a re nt by o ne
O = Opaque
m a n ufac tu re r and sem i- opaq ue by anothe r a nd yo u c an c he c k t hi s o n t he si d e o f t he
pa i n t tu be or the man ufac turer ’s website.

Th e l is ts he re are colours th at are gen era l l y co nsi d e re d t r ansp a re nt , se mi t r a nsp are nt ,

opa q ue or s e mi o paq ue across th e m ajor i t y o f b r and s.

REDS BLUES YELLOWS

Alizarin Crimson T Cobalt Blue ST Ye l l o w O c h re SO

Light Red O Cerulean O Raw Sienna T
Cadmium Red O French Ultramarine T Gold Ochre O
Rose Madder T Indigo T Quinacridone Gold T
Bright Red SO Prussian Blue T New Gamboge T
Perylene Red ST Indanthrone Blue T B i s m u t h Ye l l o w O
Opera Rose T P t h a l o B l u e (Grn Shde) T Aureolin T
Venetian Red O Royal Blue O C a d m i u m Ye l l o w O
Pyrrol Red ST Antwerp Blue T C a d m i u m Ye l l o w Pa l e O
Permanent Rose T Manganese Blue T Le m o n Ye l l o w T
Quinacridone Red T Anthraquinone Blue SO N a p l e s Ye l l o w O
Indian Red O I n d i a n Ye l l o w T
Permanent Magenta T H a n s a Ye l l o w L i g h t T
Permanent Rose T
French Vermillion O

8 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 COLOUR TR ANSPARENC Y CHAR T

t i ta n i u m cadmium raw burnt cadmium alizarin u lt r a m a r i n e

white yellow sienna sienna red crimson blue
(2) (2)

red lemon yellow burnt cadmium cadmium cerulean pthalo

oxide yellow ochre sienna red red blue blue
(1) (1) light

The transparen c y of a colou r can e asi l y b e te ste d by cre a t i ng a char t suc h a s t h i s.

On white paper, canvas or b o ard, p a i nt a b l a ck st r i p e d own t he ce nt re, a b o u t 1/ 2” ( 1c m ) w i de. Th e p rec i s e

width isn’t cr itical. I f you d o n’t have b l ac k , yo u c an cre a te o ne wi t h a st ro n g m i x o f a b l u e a n d a b row n . Let
the str ipe dr y, th en paint a st re ak o f e ac h o f yo ur co l o ur s ac ro ss t he st r i p e a s s h ow n . U s e t h e p a i n t s t r a i gh t
ou t of the tube, un diluted.

Onc e th e pain t h as dr ied, t ho se t ha t are t r ansp a re nt wi l l b e b a re l y v i si b l e o n t h e b l a c k s t r i p e, s u c h a s h ere

with ultramar ine blue and al i z a r i n c r i mso n. O t he r s l i k e ye l l ow o chre and c er u l ea n b l u e w i l l a l m o s t o b l i ter a te
the black str ipe, indicatin g t he y a re muc h mo re o p aq ue.

9 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 ho w to make a pe r sonalise d
colou r cha r t
cerulean co b a lt pthalo primary u lt r a m a r i n e cadmium alizarin red burnt permanent
blue blue blue blue blue red crimson oxide sienna mag e n ta

cadmium
yellow

yellow
ochre

raw
sienna

lemon
yellow

raw
umber

burnt
umber

dioxazine
purple

hookers
green

viridian

ivory
b l a ck

Too many leisure ar tists wo r r y ab o ut hav i ng t he ‘r i g ht ’ co l o ur s, o r t he s a m e o n es t h e y s ee b ei n g u s ed by

Ar tTutor in struc tors.

I t ’s far better (an d cheaper ! ) to use t he o ne s yo u have a l re a d y - a t l e ast fo r n ow. Th i s w ay yo u w i l l l ea r n to

e x p loit the colours at your d i sp o sa l a nd i t wi l l a l l ow yo u to g o o ut a nd sel ec t n e w c o l o u r s o n l y i f i t b ec o m es
re a lly obvious th at you need t he m.

For this exercise you are go i ng to g a t he r a l l o f yo ur e x i st i ng co l o ur s a nd m i x a ny t wo o f t h em . Th e res u l t s o f

s om e m ixes may sur pr ise yo u and o p e n up yo ur e ye s to p o ssi b i l i t i e s yo u d i dn’t rea l i s e were t h ere. I t ’s a ver y
therapeutic exercise as well.

10 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 STEp 1

I n the char t on the pre vious page I’ve used 20 colours I had at my disposal. You may have less and different ones and
that ’s fine. G ather them together now.

That char t was produced on a sheet of acr ylic paper about 22” x 16” (40cm x 28cm or A2 size). The first thing to do is to
draw a ser ies of boxes in pencil about 2cm x 1cm. The ac tual size sin’t cr itical as long as all the boxes fit on the sheet!

Because I used 20 colours, I dre w 10 boxes along the top and 10 boxes down the side. I f you have 15 colours, you could
do 8 along the top and 7 down the side, for example. Once you have your boxes drawn, paint a colour in the top row
and in lef t hand column as I have done here. This char t is reproduced at a bigger size than the one pre viously, so only
the first five boxes across the top and five from top to bottom are in vie w. I t doesn’t matter which colours go where, just
place a unique colour in each box.

I filled in half of each box with pure colour and the other half mixed with roughly 50% titanium white, to create a tint.

11 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 STEp 2

I n th e top lef t h and empt y b ox , mi x t he co l o ur d i re c t l y ab ove i t a nd to t he l ef t o f i t . M i x t h em i n ro u gh l y eq u a l

qu an tities. You can see th at I’ ve al re ad y f i l l e d i n se ve r a l b oxe s wi t h c ad m i u m red m i xed w i t h yel l ow o c h re,
bu r n t sien na and ultramar ine b l ue, i n t hi s c ase.

Pain t th e lef t h and side of t he b ox a st ro ng c o l o ur and a d d a b o ut 5 0 % wh i te to yo u r m i x to c rea te a t i n t o n

the r ight han d side. Th is wi l l show yo u how t he c o l o ur c hang e s a cro ss d i f feren t s t ren gt h s, w h i c h c a n c h a n ge
it quite a lot.

R e peat th is for each of the b oxe s unt i l yo u have a f ul l c har t si mi l a r to t he o n e s h ow n o n Pa ge 10.

12 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 limite d palette
suggestions

L i m i ting you r pa lette can really im prove

you r oil painting. Not on ly does it help to
i m p rove col ou r har mony it also mak es the L i m ited L i m ited
d e c i s ion mak ing process easier - and tha t
h e l p s you s tay in the flow.
p alette 1 p alette 2

Th e se t wo pal e ttes are n icely balan ced wit h

a c ombination of cool an d war m pr im ar ies. Ultramarine Blue (warm) Pthalo Blue
Yo u c an mix al mo st any colour you wan t
f ro m the s e l imited selec tions and it wi l l Pthalo Blue (cool) Cobalt Blue
s ave you a l ot of m one y on exotic paint s
t h a t you rare l y use af ter you’ ve bought Cadmium Red (warm) Permanent Rose
t h e m.
Alizarin Crimson (cool) Light Red

Ye l l o w O c h re ( w a r m ) H a n s a Ye l l o w

Le m o n Ye l l o w ( c o o l ) Raw Sienna

Plus (optional): Plus (optional):

Burnt Sienna or Burnt Umber

Light Red
Ultramarine Blue
Paynes Grey or
Indigo Raw Umber

Cerulean Blue Viridian

New Gamboge or
C a d m i u m Ye l l o w

13 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 b r ush / K N I F E
ma r ks
Tr ad i t i o nal l y, o i l p ai nte r s have use d b r i s t l e b r u s h es, m a de f ro m c o u r s e a n i m a l h a i r
suc h as ho g o r ho r se ha i r. O ve r re cen t yea r s, s y n t h et i c a l ter n a t i ves h ave b een
d e ve l o p e d - whi c h a re so f te r t ha n b r i s t l e b r u s h es b u t f i r m er t h a n b r u s h es u s ed fo r
SYNTHETIC wa te rco l o ur fo r e x a mp l e.
FILBERT
S y nt he t i c b r ushe s al l ow t he ar t i st to c rea te rel a t i vel y s m o o t h l ayer s. B r i s t l e b r u s h es
can b e use d to cre a te mo re te x t ure and l eave b r u s h m a r k s i n t h e p a i n t . Co m p a re t h e
b r ush mar ks o f t he t wo t y p e s o f f i l b e r t b r u s h o n t h e l ef t .

Pa l e t t e K n i f e V s Pa i n t i n g K n i f e
A p a l e t te k ni fe i s use d fo r mi x i ng co l o u r s o n a p a l et te. I t h a s a f l a t a n d s t r a i gh t
b l ad e, wi t h ro und e d e d g e s and a wo o den h a n dl e. U n l i k e a p a i n t i n g k n i fe, t h ere i s n o
‘‘e l b ow ’ o r b e nt ar m i n t he b l a d e - p a l et te k n i ves a re a l w ay s f l a t .

Pai nt i ng k ni ve s gi ve t he a r t i st t he ab i l it y to s p rea d p a i n t t h i c k l y i n a n i m p a s to s t y l e
HORSEHAIR and a n e nt i re p ai nt i ng c an b e cre a te d w i t h p a i n t i n g k n i ves a l o n e. Th e y a re av a i l a b l e
FILBERT wi t h me t a l o r p l ast i c b l ad e s a nd i n a v a r i et y o f s h a p es a n d s i zes ( t y p i c a l l y p ea r
shap e d and t r i a ng ul ar shap e d ). M o st p a i n t i n g k n i ves h ave a c r a n k ed a r m o r el b ow
i n t he ne ck . Thi s he l p s to k e e p t he k nu c k l es aw ay f ro m t h e p a i n t i n g s u r f a c e.

Pai n ti n g PALET TE
K n i v es KniFE

14 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 b r ush / K N I F E
ma r ks

F L AT B R U S H FAN BRUSH
I d e al for cre a tin g straight edges an d p ro mi ne nt te x t ure s I t s uni q ue sha p e can b e p res s ed o n to t h e c a nv a s s o
w ith the hog version . Great thin line s can b e ac hi e ve d t he b r i st l e s cre a te c u r ved m a r k s ei t h er u pw a rds o r
w he n the ch isel edge is exploited i n t he sy nt he t i c d ownward s, e sp e c i all y w i t h t h e h o gs h a i r ver s i o n s.
v ar ie tie s. Pe r fe c t fo r f i r t re e s!

Wo o d gr ai n te x t ure i s a l s o a s t r a i gh t fo r w a rd p ro c es s. I n
sy nt he t i c v a r i e t i e s t he h a i r s ten d to c l u m p to get h er s o
no t as e asy to re p l i cate t h es e tex t u res.

15 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 b r ush / K N I F E
ma r ks

FILBERT BRUSH R I GG E R B R U S H
A re al al l -ro un der, with good con t ro l o f ma ny p ai nt Pro d uc e s a t hi n, f re eh a n d l i n e w i t h t h e l o n g t i p.
s trok e s. M any ar tists fin d th e filber t t he i r d e f aul t b r ush O r i gi nal l y d e v i se d fo r p a i n t i n g ro p es a n d s h i p’s
for mos t wo r k . r i g gi ng, he nce i t s na m e. D o n’t over l o o k i t s a b i l i t y to
b e ‘scr ub b e d ’ si d e way s o r f l i c k ed u pw a rds, to c rea te
e xce l l e nt ro ck te x t ures a n d f i s s u res, s m a l l b u s h es a n d
gr asse s e tc.

16 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 b r ush / K N I F E
ma r ks

ROUND BRUSH KNIFE

Anothe r e xcellen t general pur pose b r ush, cap a b l e o f Pai nt i ng k ni ve s a re ma de i n a v a r i et y o f s h a p es - p er fec t
cre ating a v a r iet y of mar k s. fo r he av y, i mp asto crea t i o n s. At t h ei r b es t fo r l o o s e
wo r k , a s can b e se e n h ere t h e y c a n c rea te p l ea s i n g
Can e as il y produce a thin an d thic k l i ne i n t he sa me 3 D p ar t i al l y mi xe d co l o u r s o r b e s c r a p ed o u t t h i n l y to
s trok e by al ter ing th e pressure put o n i t and a s wi t h t he e x p l o i t t he te x t ure o f t h e p a i n t s u r f a c e.
fl owe r he ad sh own , can give a love l y p e t al shap e by
‘s tamping’ the len gth of the brush on t he p a i nt sur f a ce. I n t he mo unt a i n e x am p l e a t h i c k , da r k b a s e c o a t h a s
b e e n a l l owe d to d r y a n d t h en t h i n n er l ayer s o f l i gh ter
co l o ur s sc r ap e d ove r t h e to p i n a h i t a n d m i s s ef fec t to
gi ve a p l e a si ng e f fe c t o f s n ow i n s u n l i gh t a n d s h a dow.

17 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 limite d b r ush
& K N I F E set
RT D ER AR
L BE E RT O UN GG PE
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Sy HO WI WI LO No L I
I
PA OP
2” Sy 8” 8” 8” 8” WI
1/ 1” 3/ 3/ 3/ 5/ 1” OR DR

This is a ver y basic star ter se t , whi c h c an e a si l y b e ad j uste d, d e p e nd i ng u p o n w h et h er yo u p refer a ddi t i o n a l

hogsh air brushes or m ore o f t he sy nt he t i c v ar i e t y.

NB: D on’t rely exclusively o n t he numb e r i ng o f b r ushe s a s a n i nd i cat i o n o f s i ze a s ea c h m a n u f a c t u rer w i l l a p p l y

d ifferen t standards. S o a No. 8 R o und i n o ne r a ng e co ul d b e t he same a s a N o. 5 R o u n d i n a n o t h er.

W h ere ver possible, ch eck si ze s yo ur se l f i n a n ar t sto re o r, whe re t hi s i sn’t p o s s i b l e, s ee i f t h e web s i te p rov i des
infor m ation as to th e ac tua l si ze o f t he b r ush he ad ; e. g. . 1 / 2 ” ac ro ss t he m et a l fer r u l e o r 3/ 4” f ro m t h e en d
of th e fer rule to the tip of t he b r ush, e tc. The ab ove have al l b e e n gi ve n a gen er a l i n di c a t i o n o f s i ze fo r t h i s
re a son, rather than the numb e r b e i ng q uo te d.

18 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 limite d b r ush
& K N I F E set
AR ER ND RT
PE U L BE
E I GG
R RO FI
IF H. .
K N NG H.
T NT n th lat
I NG ” L O Y N S Y y . F lat
T 4 1
S
R E
S
th . F
IN 3/ . E NG D n
PA OP No L I N LO WI Sy n th
R R / 8” / 8” / 2” Sy
D O 5 3 1 1”

I n th is group, I’ ve elimin ate d t he Ho g b r ushe s fo r a n e ve n mo re b asi c st a r ter s et . Th e H o g b r u s h es c o u l d b e

ad ded later or you may pre fe r to st a r t wi t h t he Ho g e q ui v al e nt s o f t he S y n t h et i c s I’ ve l i s ted.

I’l l leave you to choose your b r ushe s and e nj oy f i nd i ng o ut wha t e f fe c t s yo u c a n a c h i e ve. B u t do h ave a do o dl e!
This is n e ver tim e wasted. I t a l l ows yo u to und e r st and how yo ur b r ushe s p er fo r m a n d w h a t m a r k s c a n b e
ach ie ved, before you spen d mo ne y o n ne w o ne s a nd g e t to o n yo ur ne x t m i n o r m a s ter p i ec e.

19 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 OIL MEDIUMS

Tr a d i t ional l y, a mix of lin seed oil and tu r p e nt i ne ha s b e e n use d to t hi n o i l p ai nt s a nd

h e l p it fl ow more easily wh en pain tin g. Tur p e nt i ne (k nown a s a so l ve nt ) i s a l so use d to
c l e a n bru s he s and the palette.

A l o t of ar tis ts find th e odour of tur pentine unp l e a sant and i t must b e ha nd l e d wi t h care.
Tr a d i t ional l ins e e d oil ex ten ds the dr yin g t i me o f t he p a i nt (whi c h i s al re ad y sl ow to d r y ),
s o i t can be come imprac tical for m any lei sure a r t i st s. As a re sul t , many o t he r me d i ums
fo r o il painting are n ow available, each wi t h sp e ci f i c p ro p e r t i e s, a nd t hi s c an b e ve r y
c on f us ing for the n e wcom er.

AL K YD GEL

LI Q UIN

20 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 OIL MEDIUMS

I f you are ne w to oil pain tin g we recomm e nd usi ng j ust t hre e p ro d uc t s to g e t st a r te d :

L ow O dour T hi n n ers or Z est - I t ( S ol v e n t )

Th i s h as a mu ch ligh ter and less offen sive sme l l t han t ur p e nt i ne. I t can a l so b e mi xe d
w i t h a l ittl e pain t to provide a ver y th in, r unny l i q ui d, whi ch i s i d e al fo r sk e tchi ng t he
i n i t i a l ou tl ine s of th e pic ture. Th is sk etch wi l l d r y q ui c k l y.

Al te r n ative, more environ men tally fr ien d l y, so l ve nt s now e x i st and o ne o f t he mo st

LINSEED OIL
popu l ar is Ze s t-I t Oil Pain t D ilutant an d Br ush C l e ane r. Thi s i s c o mp l e te l y no n-tox i c and
m a d e from citru s fruit acids.

D ryi n g L i n seed O il ( Mediu m )

Th i s ad d s trans paren c y, lustre and gloss to t he p a i nt and al so i mp rove s t he f l ow. The

d r yi ng ve rs ion of lin seed oil, along with al k yd me d i um o r L i q ui n (se e b e l ow) sp e e d s up
d r yi ng time s. M ixed with just a little pain t , i t a l so cre a te s a c l e a r g l a ze whe n re q ui re d.

A lkyd Mediu m or L i q ui n ( Mediu m )

Th e se t wo me d iu ms, available in either a l i q ui d o r g e l -l i k e co nsi ste nc y re d uc e t he d r y i ng LO W ODOUR

t i m e of paint by at least h alf. A pre - mixed b o t t l e o f o f d r y i ng l i nse e d o i l and e i t he r al k yd THINNERS
m e d i um or L iqu in is ver y useful to k eep to ha nd fo r a l l o f yo ur o i l p a i nt i ng s. As a ro ug h
g u i d e u s e a ratio about th ree q uar ters lin se e d o i l a nd o ne q ua r te r a l l y me d i um o r L i q ui n.

DRYING LINSEED OIL

21 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 FAT O V E R L E A N P R I N C I P L E

The te r m ’ f at ove r l e an’ i s uni q ue to o i l p a i n t s a n d c o n f u s es m a ny a s p i r i n g o i l p a i n ter s.

I t re l a te s to t he o i l co nte nt o f t he p ai nt l ayer a n d n o t ju s t to p u t t i n g t h i c k o r f a t ter l ayer s

ove r t hi nne r o ne s, as yo u mi g ht t hi nk .

I n si mp l e te r ms, ‘ f at te r ’ l aye r s o f p a i nt (i . e. th o s e w i t h a h i gh er o i l c o n ten t ) s h o u l d b e p u t

o n to p o f ‘ l e ane r ’ l aye r s (t ho se wi t h l e ss o r n o a dded o i l ) a n d gen er a l l y s p ea k i n g, n o t t h e
o t he r way ro und.

The re a re t wo ma i n re a so ns fo r t he ‘ f a t ove r l ea n’ p r i n c i p l e: -

1. L aye r s of p ai nt w i t h l i t t l e or n o oi l a d d ed (l ea n ) ten d to b e b e q u i c ker d r y i n g

an d l e s s fl exi b l e. I f t h ey are p ai nte d o n to p o f o i l i er (f at ) l ayers, w h i c h d r y m o re
s l ow l y, t h ey coul d crack . Th e top l aye r o f p a i nt i s d r y, w h i l e t h e l ayers u n d ern eat h
are s t i l l we t an d m ovi n g ab out.
2. O i l - r i ch col our s te n d to dr y w i t h a s h een , w h i c h m a kes i t m o re d i f f i c u l t fo r l ea n er
l aye r s to adh e re to t h e m .

The p o r t r ai t he re gi ve s a g o o d i d e a o f wha t c o u l d h a p p en i n ex t rem e c i rc u m s t a n c es. I f

yo u e ve r l o o k cl o se l y a t o l d p a i nt i ng s i n g a l l er i es, yo u w i l l f i n d m a ny i n s t a n c es o f p a i n t
cr ac k i ng a nd d amagi ng t he sur f a ce.

* Ph o to c o u r te s y o f k el l ep i cs / p i x ab ay. com

22 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 FAT O V E R L E A N C H A R T

Th i s c har t s hows a t ypical situation whe re se ve r a l p ai nt l aye r s si t o n to p o f e a ch o t h er, c o r rec t l y a p p l i ed. N o te t h e i n c rea s i n g
pro p or tions of oil m edium (th e oran ge a re as) as e a ch l aye r i s a d d e d. I n t hi s case, we have a s s u m ed t h i s i s a m i x o f dr y i n g l i n s eed o i l
a n d al k yd me d iu m or Liq uin , an d a touch o f l ow o d o ur t hi nne r s.

Th e f irs t thin l ayer of pain t, with no oil me d i um a nd l o t s o f so l ve nt , wo ul d b e re g a rd e d a s t h e ‘ l ea n es t ’ l ayer. Th i s wo u l d t y p i c a l l y b e

t h e ou tl ine s k e tch.

As e a ch l aye r is a dded, a high er propor tio n o f o i l me d i um (t he f a t ) i s ad d e d to t he p a i nt to en s u re t h a t l ayer dr i es a l i t t l e m o re s l ow l y

t h a n the one be neath.

S om e col ou rs w il l dr y q uick er than others, d ue to t he p ro p e r t i e s o f t he p i gme nt . Fo r e x am p l e, ea r t h c o l o u r s s u c h a s u m b er s a n d o c h res

w i l l d r y qu ick l y, as will cobalts, whereas mo st re d s, q ui nac r i d o ne s a nd cad mi um co l o ur s w i l l t a k e m o re t i m e. D o n’t wo r r y a b o u t t h i s
- j u st s tick to the gen eral rule of thumb o f ad d i ng mo re o i l to
s u bs e qu e nt l aye rs.
1. Pr imed c a nv a s o r bo a rd
OIL PAINT 2. Out line sk etc h w it h t hinned pa int
Pai n ti n g ‘ A lla Pri m a ’ 3. B lo c k ing -in-layer
AL K YD / LINSEED OIL M IX 4. Opt io na l t hic k er impa sto layer
5. D et a iled layer(s)
W h e n ve r y thick , im pasto layers of oil pa i nt are use d, t he y t a k e 6. Opt io na l g la zing layer
m u c h l ong e r to dr y th orough ly. Howe ver, i f yo u p ai nt ‘a l l a p r i ma’ SOL V ENT
( a d d i n g l aye rs on top of each other wh il e t he y a re st i l l we t , i n
a s i n gl e s e s s ion) th en you don’t need to wo r r y ab o ut cr ac k i ng. PAINT SURFA C E , e g : C AN V AS
Yo u are e ffe c tively pain tin g one layer, whi ch sho ul d d r y a t a
c on si s te nt rate.
6
5

3
2
1

23 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 PAINT SURFACES

O i l p ainting s can be produced on a wide v a r i e t y o f sur f a ce s. The b e st k nown i s st re tc h ed c a nv a s over a wo o den f r a m e. H owe ver,
c a nv as pane l s g l ued to a heav y card base a re mo re e co no mi c al a nd wi d e l y av a i l ab l e i n a v a r i et y o f s i zes.

Wood pane l s too are popular - chipboard, p l y, maso ni te (ha rd b o a rd ) o r M DF - o r e ve n t h i c k c a rd a re a l l s u i t a b l e, o n c e p r i m ed ( s ee

n e x t S e c tion).

Th e o il paint ne eds a toothed base to adhe re to, so no n-p o ro us sur f a ce s such as a cr y l i c, gl a s s, m et a l o r p o rc el a i n , fo r exa m p l e, a re
g e n e r al l y not re comm ended. Howe ver, it may b e p o ssi b l e to p re p are t he se wi t h a p r i me r t h a t etc h es i t s el f i n to t h e s u r f a c e a n d t h u s
prov i d e s a ’k e y ’ or ‘ tooth’ for th e paint.

Fo r t he ne wcomer to oils th ough , it ’s pro b a b l y b e st to st i ck to o ne o f t he mo re t r a d i t i o n a l s u r f a c es m en t i o n ed a t t h e b egi n n i n g o f

t h i s S e c tion.

24 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 P A I N T ing & P r epa r ation

M o st o i l p a i nt i ng sur f a ce s ne e d p r i mi ng. Th i s i s u s u a l l y do n e w i t h ges s o, w h i c h wo r k s

e q ual l y we l l fo r b o t h ac r y l i cs and o i l s. O ne o r t wo c o a t s a re u s u a l l y s u f f i c i en t .

Pr i mi ng a p ai nt sur f a ce, whe t he r canv a s, wo o d p a n el etc. s ea l s t h e f i b res a n d p re ven t s

t he p a i nt f ro m so a k i ng i n a nd d i sa p p e a r i ng. Th e f i b res o f a n u n p r i m ed c a nv a s c o u l d b e
d a ma g e d e ve nt ual l y by t he so l ve nt s/ o i l s i n t h e p a i n t m i x.

M o st c anv a s b o ard s and p re -st re tc he d canv a s p a n el s c o m e rea dy p r i m ed, s o yo u o n l y

ne e d to d e ci d e i f yo u want a whi te sur f a ce o r t i n t i t w i t h di l u te a c r y l i c o r o i l p a i n t , b efo re
st ar t i ng o n t he p ai nt i ng i t se l f.

I nci d e nt al l y, yo u can’t p a i nt wi t h a cr y l i c p a i n t o n to p o f a n o i l p a i n t l ayer a s t h e o i l y

sur f ac e wi l l p re ve nt t he a cr y l i c p a i nt f ro m a dh er i n g p ro p er l y. I n a ddi t i o n , t h e o i l p a i n t
und e r-l aye r wi l l d r y sl owl y, whi l e t he a cr y l i c s o n to p wo u l d dr y m u c h q u i c k er, p ro b a b l y
cr ac k i ng.

Howe ve r, i t ’s p e r fe c t l y p o ssi b l e to b l o c k in yo u r b a s i c i m a ge u s i n g a c r y l i c s a n d t h en ,
o nce t ho ro ug hl y d r y a f te r a fe w ho ur s, to c o m p l ete t h e wo r k i n o i l s.

M a ny a r t i st s o p e r ate t hi s way to save t i me. I t wo r k s b ec a u s e t h e o i l p a i n t s t i l l h a s t h e

to o t h o f t he c anv a s to c l i ng to, a s t he a cr y l i c p a i n t a n d ges s o p r i m er w i l l h ave s et t l ed
q ui te d e e p l y i nto t he f i b re s.

25 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 VARNISHING

M a ny ar tis ts l ik e to var n ish th eir oil pain t i ng s up o n c o mp l e t i o n. Var ni shi ng c an cre a te a n

e ve n s he e n on a pain tin g, wh ere var ious p a tc he s have b e c o me d ul l e r a nd t he p ai nt ha s
s u n k fu r the r into the sur face. I t can also e nr i ch co l o ur s, e sp e c i al l y d a r k e r o ne s.

Al t h ou g h g l os s var nish is popular, you c an b uy a mat te o r sa t i n v a r ni sh fo r a d i f fe re nt

e f fe c t.

Di r t and d u s t from the atmosph ere settle s o n a p ai nt i ng ove r t he ye ar s. Thi s wi l l si t o n

t h e v ar nis h l aye r rather than the pain t, whi ch c an b e re move d and re -ap p l i e d, b r i ngi ng
t h e painting back to its or igin al lustre.

A p p lyi n g Var n ish

W h e n appl ying var n ish , use a wide brush and ho r i zo nt a l b r ush st ro k e s. Use b ac k a nd
fo r t h s trok e s that over lap slightly, to avo i d r i d g e s and t i d e ma r ks, whi c h wi l l b e d i f f i c ul t
to h i d e u nl e s s yo u rem ove all th e var nish and st ar t ag ai n. * Ph oto cour tesy of M ik e/p exels.com

Avo i d the te mpta tion to go over an area o nce yo u’ ve v a r ni she d i t as t he p ar t i al l y d r i e d

c oa t w il l d rag and become unsightly. I f yo u’ ve mi sse d a sma l l a re a , l e t t ha t c o at d r y and
g o ove r it ag ain, th is tim e var nishin g from to p to b o t to m, to cove r t he a re a yo u mi sse d.

26 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 VARNISHING

Fo r mos t oil paintings, var nishin g sh ould no t b e co nsi d e re d fo r at l e ast si x mo nt hs a f te r

c om p l e tion, or t welve mon th s if heav y imp asto l aye r s have b e e n use d.

To p ro te c t the painting in th is per iod, or if yo u ne e d to e x hi b i t i t sho r t l y a f te r co mp l e t i o n,

u s e re -tou ching var n ish . This gives an effe c t i ve te mp o r a r y p ro te c t i o n, a n e ve n g l o ss and
c a n be painte d over if you n eed to mak e a me nd me nt s to t he p i c t ure. I t can b e re move d
w i t h s ol ve nt be fo re applyin g a more lon g l ast i ng v ar ni sh l a te r o n

U se t he s pray version of retouch ing var ni sh as t hi s wi l l d ro p g e nt l y and e ve nl y o nto

t h e pic tu re, thu s avoiding any r isk of drag gi ng a ny no t- q ui te - d r y p a i nt wi t h a b r ushe d
v a r n i s h.

V a r n i s h EFFE C TS

Gloss Varnish Retouching

Varnish

S at i n Va r n i s h

Mat t e Va r n i s h

O r i g i n a l O i l Pa i n t Gloss Varnish

27 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS
 colou r mi x ing te r ms
p ri m ary There are three pr im ar y colour s w hich cannot be created by mixin g ot h er colours.
colours The y are: red, blue and yellow

seco n dary S eco ndar y colour s are m i xed from t wo of the pr im ar i es.
colours The y are green ( blue + yellow ) , or ange ( red + yellow ) , pur ple (red + b lue)

tertiary
The si x colour s created by m ix ing a pr i m ar y w ith a secondar y i.e. b lue + green to create a b lue - green or t urquoise
colours

Col o ur s opposi te each other on the colour w heel. For ex am pl e, oran g e is op p osite b lue on t h e colour wh eel an d so
b eco m e each other s’ com plem entar y colour. Com plem entar y colours are said to en h an ce each ot h er wh en p laced
co m p le m e n tary nex t to each other. W hen m ixed w ith each other the y have the op p osite ef fec t , creat in g a d ull, n eut ral ton e.
colours
Complem entar y colour s include: O r ange and blue, Yellow and p ur p le, Green an d red

Thi s i s the br i ghtest, m ost v i v i d ver si on of a pr i m ar y, secondar y or ter t iar y colour. S o red for examp le, wit h n o ot h er
hue col o ur m i x w i th it and undiluted i s a hue. Pai nting only w ith h ues would result in a ver y b r ig h t an d g ar ish p ain t in g.

ti n t Ad d ing w hi te to a colour to lighten i t, creates a tint of that colour.

Ad d ing black to a colour to dar k en it, creates a shade of that colour. I n acr ylic p ain t in g, ad d in g a colour ’s comp lemen t ar y
to i t has a sim ilar effec t ( i . e. adding pur ple to yellow has a similar ef fec t as ad d in g b lack to t h e yellow). You could
shade al s o m ix a black colour by m i x i ng the three pr im ar y colour s to g et h er an d t h en ad d t h at b lack mix to an ot h er colour
( s p ar ingly ) to create a shade.

Ad d ing back and w hite to a colour, creates a tone of that colo ur. Obviously b lack an d wh ite mak e gre y an d so a ton e
i s gre yer ver sion of a colour. These are also refer red to as pastel colours, or n eut ral colours. You’ll use ton es a lot in
to n e you r painti ngs because the bulk of any subj ec t m atter i s m ade f rom t h em. You can t h en use sh ad es for sh ad ow areas,
t i nt s for hi ghlight areas and a touch of br ight hues w here you really wan t t h e colour to z in g.

Thi s is the lightness or dar k ness of a colour. W hile i t m ight seem obvious t h at b lue h as a d ar k er value t h an yellow, a
VALUE ver y light blue m ight be li ghter than a dar k yellow. The best way to jud g e t h e values in a p h otograp h or p ain t in g is to
mak e it back and w hite. Thi s w i ll m ak e it obv i ous w hich colou rs are d ar k er an d lig h ter t h an ot h ers.

28 C o l o u r M i x i n g C h e a t s h e e t s f o r OILS