How to mix turquoise paint
Turquoise is a bright, light blue-green: phthalo blue with a little yellow and a lot of white.
Ways to mix it
This mix The colour Way 1
very close · difference 2.4
- 10 parts Titanium white PW6
- 1 part Phthalo blue PB15:3
- a touch Cadmium yellow medium PY35
This mix The colour Way 2
very close · difference 2.4
- 8 parts Titanium white PW6
- 1 part Hansa yellow light PY3
- 1 part Phthalo blue PB15:3
The palette opens with this colour as the colour you want; the coach finds it with the tubes of your box.
Lighter, darker, warmer, cooler, duller
What to add to way 1, as the coach on the palette would tell you:
- LighterAdd 8 parts Titanium white and a touch Hansa yellow lightWhite lightens but also cools and greys: a touch of yellow brings the warmth back.
- DarkerAdd ½ part Burnt umber and ½ part Phthalo blueDarken with a dark colour of the same family rather than black, which kills the colour.
- WarmerAdd a touch Cadmium yellow mediumWarmer means towards yellow and orange.
- CoolerAdd a touch Ultramarine blueCooler means away from yellow and orange: towards pink, blue or green.
- DullerAdd a touch Yellow ochre and a touch Burnt siennaIts opposite colour dulls a colour while keeping it alive; black dulls and darkens at once.
A tip
Add the phthalo to the white and yellow a touch at a time: a little goes a very long way.
To understand why
Close colours
Computed from a common box: Titanium white, Hansa yellow light, Cadmium yellow medium, Cadmium red medium, Quinacridone magenta, Ultramarine blue, Phthalo blue, Yellow ochre, Burnt sienna, Burnt umber and Ivory black. Parts are by volume; a touch is about a quarter of a part. Your screen shows the colours close, not exact.
Print a mixing chart of these tubes (PDF)
All the colour recipes