Hi Denise. You have really found your niche. No one out there does color like you do and i have to say with all sincerity.. You just get better and better with every video. You are going to be absolutely huge! Remember you heard it here :)
I agree with Katherine 100%. When I discovered Denise and her amazing channel there was NOTHING else like her or her information around. (Still not!) The knowledge you impart sounds like you've been painting for decades and now adding your love for animals to the mix? My two favorite things!! Your patrons and fans couldn't be more proud!!! xoxo
Thank you for this color mixing series! I'm learning how to mix blacks thanks to this video. One of my favorite two tone mixes is Burnt Umber and Anthraquinone Blue. Makes a very nice, dark, almost inky black that I just love for hair and things.
10:06 "The one on the right..." 10:12 "While the one on the right..." Huh. But thanks for the different mix demonstrations! I like the mix of bright orange with deep blue, as well as how the Jane's Gray is mixed. Will try this next time on my own.
I often mix the sludge on my palette with whatever I feel could make it a black, if I need it XD Also, I really enjoyed W&N's chromium black (from the twilight collection) because it's a warm color and it made black and white studies less flat :) Again, great video! :)
Thank you for making this video! I've always struggled with mixing blacks and this helped me understand it a little better. I look forward to your new series!
The first assignment in my intro to watercolor class was to paint b&w objects with only cool and warm primaries. Once I realized how I could mix blacks and trained my eye to see the colors in shadows I felt a ton more adept in watercolor and in painting in general. I almost always mix my blacks now and will only buy black if it's in a set already ^_^ Great info as always :D
That's a great exercise! I avoid acquiring blacks if I can at all help it, and more recently am REALLY trying to stay away from sets ivory black, as its made from animal bones. Obviously not as terrible as actual ivory, but I'd still love to cut back on animal products in my supplies where possible. I guess I just assumed that it was made from something else these days, but that doesn't seem to be the case, although I'd love to hear otherwise :) Anyhoo, side tangent haha.
Haha yeah, I haven't started looking more into how my art supplies are made (in regards to animal products) but feel lucky that I prefer synthetic brushes. I'm really interested in learning more. I felt like mixing blacks was the best first assignment for everyone since it's quite tricky as a beginner but feels so good once you've mastered it ^_^
I feel sick knowing i have paint or anything else made from animals! I bought a gift set that came with a sable brush, unbeknownst to me and it made me cry. I refuse to use it. Please let us know if there are other colors. i will not purchase sets with ivory black either and will write the companies to lets them know why!
In Liquid Color Denise, thank you so much for sharing so much information with me. I personally am an ethical vegetarian, so its important for me to know source info as well. It sounds like we are very much on the same page, which I'm grateful for as I respect you so much. Bless you kiddo :)
Katherine Sullivan I'm glad it's helpful! I tried to be a vegetarian when I was younger but was sick all the time as I didn't get enough protein. I'd probably better at it now but I do notice I have a rough time if I go a day without eating animal protein. Most of my protein comes from eggs though which I ONLY buy humane and pasture raised (not free range) where I know the hens have open pasture to graze in. I'm a HUGE advocate of these eggs and have been for years. Unfortunately meat gets more tricky as I'm an artist that can't afford rent most months, so Whole Foods quality organic humane meat is out of the question financially. Still, I do what I can, usually only buying one pack of organic chicken a week, and almost never eating pork since they are by far one of the poorest treated livestock. We all do what we can :)
This has been very informative for me. Just starting in watercolour with a basic kit. I didn't envisage using the three primary colours to make black, even though it is logical. Thank you a again.
I was surprised when you included the neutral tint in your wildlife palette, I was excited when after I asked for a tube of the Neutral tint from DaVinci they did offer me a half pan to complete my wildlife palette, when I asked them because I had already purchased all the colors previously before your palette was premiered. I just noticed the date on this video and I commend you again on your knowledge and I just continue to be impressed with your ability to convey this to your viewers, Myself included! Thanks again Denise, your a real GEM!
AHHHHHHHHH!!! That was like getting a shoutout from a movie star on their red carpet movie premiere! Reporters: "Denise! Denise! What are you mixing?" Denise: "I am using Orange because Tiffany won't be quiet about me not liking it as one of my favorites!!"
Denise, I just re-visited this wonderful video because I needed help mixing a black. I'm laughing because as I was looking down at my paint, I heard you call my name again and forgot I got an oh- so -special shout out. It's just like the first time! hahaha! Happy and surprised! (Not sure how well this speaks of my memory or intelligence?) I am trying to do the spots on a ladybug!
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge on mixing colors! I am still fairly new to watercolors (and a new subscriber!), so this video was extremely helpful! I didn't realize there were so many different combinations. Watercolor is an amazing medium!
I'm a massive fan of M. Graham paints and you can easily attain a gorgeous black by mixing Phthalocyanine Blue with Cadmium Red. It's one of my go-to blacks!
Its so hard to find any videos on just Ivory black comparisons. In my search I found your video which is very helpful , so useful to know you can mix your own black should you need to, thank you for taking the time to do this video.
Wow! Thank you for the video! I like the way you mixing blacks, very useful. For me it's very problematic to mix black, but i think I'll practice after you showed how to do that!
It was fun b e f o r e you said neutral tint I said it. Since the browns I've been using it more. At the end of a project I luv to mix the leftover paint, it's amazing what you can get. Thanks for the series, they r great to refer back to.
loved the video. I never payd attention to what colors I use to make black. I just mix whatever I have on my palette. The only thing I use black tube paint for is to doodle on my walls.
Big 'high five' for how well you put together this video. Your careful pre-planning really comes across. I would find it soooo helpful if you could consider labeling the 'recipe page' pigment swatches on the paper, I desperately need quick reference pages to print (or screenshot) for future reference from your series. Time pressure doesn't allow me to go back and forth in the commentary to label them myself, and you include so much rich info it can hard to keep up. I find myself thinking 'oooo perylene violet, that'd would've been fab in my last painting for the red shadows!' only to find I've missed the next mix recipe! Frankly, if you ever find a way to replicate your pigment mixing recipes as a resource (all together), I'd pay quite a bit for it! A liquid color 'shortcut' booklet? Not that watercolour has any real shortcuts, right? Cheers from Melbourne Australia.
Thank you for the kind words Roslyn :) Recap blogs for the Color Mixing perks for my patrons on Patreon (at the $5 pledge level). I do need to get these last two color mixing videos posted still, but they'll be there by this weekend. The patrons also recently unlocked the Color Spotlights companion posts (from before) so I am working on those posts for those as well, which are available for ALL patrons :) I will keep the mixing chart/booklet in mind if I can find the time! I'd be happy to put together a digital file for etsy if there was enough interest.
My favorite black is a bit unusual, it's Phtalo Blue Red Shade mixed with Transparent Brown by Schmincke (PBr41). It's mixes a perfectly neutral and beautifully deep black that still has a lot of dimension. It's highly staining though so when I want a softer alternative I usually go for the good old Jane's Grey.
Thanks so much for all the support on this original run of Color Mixing videos. To see a more updated version with lots of new information, please check out my Skillshare class called Watercolor Mixing Based on Pigment Properties! This link will give you two months free to try it out if you're new to the platform: skl.sh/2BSNKgV Update #2 (January 2021): Another new Skillshare class is up and it's all about painting black animals. Here's a link if you're interested! skl.sh/2NGEHGn
Thanks Valerie! And yay! I really love this maroon too. I'm trying to decide if I like it or the perylene violet more and which to refill my palette with once I run out.
I have Schminckes version of perylene violet so I'm not sure if it's 100% the same as Daniel Smith or other brands, but the DS Naphth and Sch Pery Violet are nearly identical. I posted a picture on instagram for ya if you want to check it out.
Since I realized Prussian Blue is not light-fast, I was looking for a non-critical role for my D.S. tube of it. I tried mixing blacks with it, with every likely candidate on my palette - orange-thru-red spectrum. Yielded a lot of variations from dull greens, dull browns, thru dull mauves, and a few non-dense greys. Just before giving up I spotted one colour I hadn't tried, an earth tone that I got cheap on sale: 'Light Red' from Shinhan's PWC line. (N.B.: Their 'Professional' line is actually student quality; look for 'PWC' for artists' quality.) Light Red (PR101) is actually a deep, ruddy burnt sienna-ish hue. Bingo! A pretty dark, dense black from this + Prussian Blue!
Hi Denise! Another great video! Thank you. Have you tried the Cerulean/ Halloween Orange mix? I also like the Reddish Black/ Junebug mix as well. You can get a nice deep black.
I have loved mixing ultramarine blue and burnt umber (Maimeri b. u., which is very cool). It makes a silvery gray, which I've used for lake water under cloudy Irish skies. As a black it should also be cooler than Ivory Black, which to me has sickly greenish - yellow undertones not to my preference. BTW, your videos are excellent - - highly informative. I've learned a lot from them. 😺
Also avoid using black as the plaque... use a dark blue or red or green to darken my colors even when using oil colors. but i use white in both. in watercolor i use a gouche for my whites...
Boy! You came up with some combos I've never seen before. Can't wait to try them. If the next series is conservation, I suggest the issue that came up back in my home state of Ohio; private ownership of big cats. Remember the guy from Zenia, OH who collected them and then let them loose after fighting with his wife? Then the cowardly bastard killed himself and left everyone else to deal with the chaos. Authorities had no choice but to kill most of them. Tranquilizers weren't working & it was getting dark. After all that, Ohio's state representatives refused to outright ban owning them. So this could happen again. It's still legal in far too many states if you ask me. Big cats make bad pets! I blame the 80s movie Scareface for making owning one seem badass to a generation of knuckleheads.
bastet469 that issue certainly breaks my heart. I am planning on doing an episode with a jaguar, although the main topic is different for that one, but I'll see if I can mention it. I'll also have one on the pet trade focusing on large parrots but I'll also make sure to mention other species as well. It probably makes more sense in the latter. I don't understand why people think it's okay to keep big cats like that, and in that one horrific case, why one man felt he could make that decision for all of those animals. Thank you for the suggestion, and for watching the video all the way though :)
The cheezy traveling "animal exibits" that frequent small town fair grounds are the worst in my book. You know, the "Play with a tiger cub and take a photo for $50" operations. Most of them pretend to be affiliated with conservation organizations or to be one themselves! I wouldn't wanna be them in the afterlife because I'm pretty sure they're 'goin south', as my grandma says. Lol 👹👹👹👹😈😈😈
Absolutely. A good rule of thumb is to never pay for photo ops with wildlife, unless you are specifically at an accredited organization's fundraiser specially for a special event with highly trained and qualified staff and animals. I knew someone in college who was a manager at a... hmm, to put it delicately, a not very tasteful club where men (and I suppose perhaps some women) go to get their jollies? and he was then hired with ZERO wildlife experience or education at a "wildlife rescue" that was crazy shady. Inside a couple of days/weeks he was directly handling the big cats. No. Thank. You.
In Liquid Color Like anyone really needs a photo op with a wild animal to begin with. It's like we're becoming a society of unbridled id. What's next? Ice Cream Sundaes for breakfast?🍧🍨🍧🍨
I have some watercolors I bought in a set some years ago and the whole time I painted with the set I only used the black a couple of times, and I don't think I ever used the Chinese white. If I want an area to be a true, solid black, I'd rather just use India ink so that it doesn't lift if I paint over it.
Hi Denise, thank you so much for this video. I am sad to say I am still struggling severely on getting black even with your mixes. Whenever I mix Indanthrene blue and quin burnt orange I ALWAYS get green.... please tell me what I’m doing wrong 😢 I have your da Vinci palette and the only combos that I’m even sort of happy with are perylene green + perylene maroon and perylene green + red rose deep. Thanks so much for your input. 😊
As I was watching one of your previous videos (making colour swatches) you mentioned you teach elementary school children. I will be teaching kindergarten and I want to teach them art not readymade cookie cutter art. Would you have any suggestions of good books or other resources I can consult? Thanks in advance for your help. Btw, I love your channel. It's informative and always thorough and clearly presented. Keep it up.
Iade Nicole congratulations on your new teaching job :) Teachers Pay Teachers and Deep Space Sparkle are what a lot of people use. I teach with a small art company in which we write our own so I don't have direct experience either either site but I hear they're good tools!
Cisco it depends on your base colors. If you use a light yellow, blue, and red it wouldn't get dark enough to be black. Then there are also semantics in that sure you could call my black mixtures really, really dark grey instead.
Hello! I know this is a really old video but I didn't want to comment something irrelevant on one of your newer videos, as my question is similar to this video's topic. I am planning to get a set of three primary watercolors from Daniel Smith. Quinacridone Red, Nickel Azo Yellow, and Cobalt Blue, a Jane Blundell triad. The only thing that this palette lacks is the ability to mix very dark values, and so I was thinking I could add a dark valued pigment to make up for this. Do you have any recommendations? I was thinking Perylene Green because it is natural and makes colors inky yet still vibrant. I am vegan so I cannot use any colors with animal components, and would definitely prefer a completely light fast pigment. Maybe this isn't even a possibility, but if you think this could work then I would highly appreciate a response.
Hi Minty, Just avoid PBk9 and if you really want to be safe PBk6 (most are okay but some are made using beeswax) and you should be good to go if you stick with an otherwise vegan brand. Perylene green is always a good choice and should mix well with your Quin Red for a quick black. Even phthalo green would do the same, and give you a little more versatility for lighter green tones. I hope it goes well!
Some question... do you know somebody in germany or austria? Than you can swap daniel smith, mgraham or davinci colors with schminke colors and both partys have colors they cant buy with less money for lesser money 😅 hmm dont know for the shipping price... but in austria where i live the m.graham or davinci are nowhere to buy... only online. But the schminke is in every artstore you can find and really affordable so i tought about this swap thing... sorry for my bad english 😅
I like using black when I need it so I don't need to use up my other colors to mix black. Black is usually part of the sets and I don't want to waste it. But I use it wisely and I simply mix a little color to it when I need it. A little red, a little blue, violet, green, whatever shade I need and it doesn't look flat or dull. There are blacks in nature. The night sky is black, coal is black, soot is black, obsidian is black, the hair of some people is extremely dark, blueish black. Imo, it's not true that there would be no real black color in nature. We make the color black from pigments from nature. 😂
