How to Mix Pink Paint

A color palette without pink is incomplete. Although you can purchase pre-mixed pink paint, mixing your own is straightforward and gives you the freedom to create a shade that perfectly suits your project. Begin with your preferred red and then add white or dilute the red. You'll be able to create a range of beautiful pink tones.

Choose a Red Color. Most standard reds can be used to create pink. Each red will yield a different shade of pink, so feel free to experiment until you find the one you like best. Common red hues share similar traits, so pick from the following options:

• Cadmium reds (light, medium, and deep) will give you a warm, orange-toned pink.
• Pink made from Scarlet Lake red will be vibrant and bright.
• Alizarin Crimson gives a brilliant pink, often with a touch of blue and purple.
• Rose Madder red is transparent, perfect for creating a soft, delicate pink.
• Naphthol red also produces a bright, transparent pink.
• Quinacridone red pairs well with blue or gray to create a cool-toned pink. Mixed with white, it gives a lively, fresh pink.
• Earth reds (including Indian and Venetian reds) are ideal for natural, earthy pink shades.

Choose a White Color. To mix pink from acrylic paints, oil paints, or other typical opaque paints, you'll need to blend your chosen red with white. However, not all whites are the same. For the best results when mixing pink, select a matte white (like Titanium white). Transparent whites (such as Zinc white) will only lighten the red and won't create the ideal pink tone.

Add Red to the White Paint. Pour some white and red paint onto your palette. Start by adding just a small amount of red to the white and mix it well. Keep adding a bit more red until you achieve the pink shade that fits your project.

• Don't mix pink by adding white to red, as this will waste both paint and time.

Add a Complementary Color to Lighten the Pink. You can adjust the shade of pink by adding black. However, many artists believe that using a complementary color instead of black produces more attractive results. You can add the complementary color directly (like green), but even a color near to it, such as blue, can also work well.

• Regardless of the color you choose to lighten the pink, always add a little at a time and mix until you're happy with the new shade.

Choose a Base Color. Many watercolor paints offer shades ideal for creating beautiful pinks. You can take any amount of paint and dilute it with a little water. Base colors to consider include:

• Permanent Rose
• Quinacridone Rose
• Ruby Red

Dilute to Lighten the Base Color. Watercolors are visible through the reflection of light passing through the transparent layer of paint on white paper. To create a lighter pink, simply dilute the base color with enough water to make the paint transparent.

• Experiment by diluting the paint with different amounts of water on your palette before applying it to the paper. This will give you an idea of the different pink shades you can achieve.
• You can also carefully wet the paper first, then apply a little red to create a lighter pink.

Use a Contrasting Color to Add Shadows to the Pink. The thinned paint from the tube works well for areas with dominant pink tones. However, for shadows, apply a layer of a contrasting color, like cobalt blue, over the pink.

• Using a contrasting color instead of black for shadows will give you a deeper and more vibrant hue.

Use Warm Colors to Brighten the Pink. Applying a layer of a warm, watered-down color before the pink will result in a warmer, brighter look. Watered-down yellow is a very effective choice.

Mix Pink with Red for a Richer Shade. If the base color isn’t as dark as you desire, select a deeper red. Mix the base color with pink/red-pink on your palette, then dilute to your liking.

• The general principles for mixing acrylic or oil paints also apply when mixing paints used in construction.
• If you need a large amount of pink paint for a home project, it's best to order from a reliable supplier. It's challenging to mix the exact same color if you run out of paint before completing the job.
• Some color-mixing techniques can create pink without using white. For example, combining Quinacridone with Hansa Yellow can produce a salmon-pink hue. Experiment and see if you can create the perfect shade of pink.