Color Mixing Guide

Interactive color mixing reference for paint, resin pigment, and fabric dye — using the traditional RYB color model crafters use.

Pick Two Colors — See What They Make

Color A

Color B

Result

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Note: This uses a simplified RYB-blended model for paint/pigment mixing. Digital (RGB/hex) mixing and physical pigment mixing differ — treat results as a guide, not an exact match.

RYB Color Wheel

Primary colors (red, yellow, blue) → Secondary (orange, green, violet) → Tertiary in between. Complementary colors sit opposite each other.

Common Color Recipes

Paint / Resin Pigment

Color to make	Mix	Notes
Orange	Red + Yellow	More yellow = yellow-orange; more red = red-orange
Violet / Purple	Red + Blue	More blue = blue-violet; warm red → red-violet
Green	Yellow + Blue	More yellow = yellow-green; more blue = blue-green
Brown	Red + Yellow + Blue (all 3 primaries)	Adjust ratios for warm/cool brown; add white to lighten
Tan / Skin base	White + Orange + tiny Yellow	Add tiny Red for warmer skin; tiny Brown for deeper tones
Peach	White + Orange (mostly white)	Start with white and add orange a tiny bit at a time
Lavender	White + Violet	Use cool violet; add more white for paler shades
Mint	White + Green + tiny Blue	Keep green dominant; blue cools the tone
Gray	White + Black	Add tiny Blue for cool gray; tiny Yellow/Brown for warm gray
Rust / Sienna	Red + Yellow + Black (small)	Burnt sienna: more red and brown than yellow

Fabric Dye

Color to make	Mix	Notes
Purple	Red + Blue dye	Fiber-reactive dyes mix directly; cool reds give truer purple
Orange	Red + Yellow dye	Works best with fiber-reactive dyes; test on fiber first
Forest Green	Yellow + Blue + small Black	Black deepens and dulls — add very sparingly
Muted / Dusty tones	Any bright + small complementary color	Adding the complementary color neutralizes/grays the tone

Warm vs Cool Colors

Warm Colors

Red, orange, yellow, yellow-green, red-violet. Warm colors appear to advance (come forward) in a composition. They create energy, excitement, and warmth. In paint mixing, warm reds lean toward orange or yellow (e.g., Cadmium Red). When mixing purples, using a warm red produces a red-violet rather than a true violet.

Cool Colors

Blue, blue-green, blue-violet, violet. Cool colors recede visually and suggest calm, depth, and distance. Cool reds lean toward blue (e.g., Alizarin Crimson). Using a cool red to mix purple gives a cleaner, truer violet. All greens mixed from yellow and blue are cooler than pure yellow but can lean warm (yellow-green) or cool (blue-green).

RYB vs RGB vs CMYK

The RYB color model (Red, Yellow, Blue) is the traditional artist's color wheel taught in schools and used for paint, pigment, and dye mixing. It is not mathematically precise like RGB (additive, used for screens) or CMYK (subtractive, used for printing). In RYB, mixing all three primaries makes brown/black. In RGB, mixing all three makes white. In CMYK, the primaries are Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow. For crafting with physical media, RYB gives the most intuitive and practical guidance.

Mixing Tips for Crafters

Always start with the lighter color and add the darker color gradually — a little dark paint goes much further than expected. Keep a white palette or mix on scrap fabric before committing. For resin, use gel or paste pigments rather than liquid for better color control and to avoid affecting the resin-to-hardener ratio. For fabric dye, always pre-wet the fabric and follow the manufacturer's soda ash fixative instructions for fiber-reactive dyes on cotton.

Neutralizing Colors

To neutralize or mute a color (make it less saturated/brighter), add a small amount of its complementary color — the color directly opposite on the color wheel. Red is neutralized by green, blue by orange, yellow by violet. This is how earth tones, skin tones, and muted palette colors are made from primaries without using black, which can muddy and dull the mix unpleasantly.