Make these color grids the mindfulness way, staying focused and listening to your favorite music
Making a Color Mixing Grid (or Chart) is a great reference tool for learning more about your watercolors and how they can be mixed. For my example, we’re making a color mixing chart with six colors of the Vintage Pastel from Prima Confections Watercolor Pans.
This is when you really witness the magic of color mixing: with 6 colors, you can get 36 colors.
What I love most about these color mixing charts is having an organised sheet of colours your palette is capable of and you can check on, every time you need.
Believe me, it will become very helpful when you have to figure it out if you have a particular color to make your painting!
(Of course you can buy all the colors you need in your art shop, but prepare you wallet.)
Supplies:
Besides the obvious watercolor supplies, you will need a pencil and a ruber.
watercolour paints
sketchbook
Brush (size 4 or 6)
ruler
pencil H
eraser
water
old tissue
Grid:
Instinct Method: You just don`t draw anything and just start painting same sizes squares at the same distance (more or less as you are calculating distances by instinct). You don`t want to be perfect. Just learn.
Cardboard Template Method: Just copy the squares, filling in the holes.
(If you want to get one cardboard template like mine for your color mixing grid, contact me.)
You Can Draw Method: Using our example of six colors, use your pencil and ruler to draw a 6x6 grid of 36 squares. I recommend squares with 2,5 x 2,5 cm and your grid spacing be at least 0,5 x 0,5 cm. I like to leave a small space between grids to keep the colors separated.
You want to have a nicer looking chart as you’ll be keeping them for a long period.
Painting your Color Grid:
Make this step the midfulness way, keeping the focus and listening to your favourite music.
This takes a while and demands some concentration, so prepare yourself in advance. I take between 30 to 45 minutes to paint a chart of 36 colors and I`m making one for each watercolor pans box I have. If you want, you can see me painting my MozArt Neon Komorebi Watercolour Paint Set, on my youtube video.
Paint in order from top to bottom; left to right;
Write the colors` name in your chart;
In the diagonal line, you will paint the pure swatches of each color;
The colors mixed on the top of the diagonal line will be lighter (more water, less saturated);
The colors mixed at the bottom of the diagonal line will be darker (less water, more saturated);
Where the squares intersect are the colors to mix.
Examples:
Color 1 + Color 2 = 3a (less water, more saturated);
Color 1 + Color 2 = 3b (more water, less saturated);
Color 2 + Color 6 = 4a (less water, more saturated);
Color 2 + Color 6 = 4b (more water, less saturated).
I often use the colors that are left in my ceramic palettes to paint some relaxed abstract shapes, in small pieces of paper (postcard size). Later, I draw or paint my florals on them.
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