How to Mix SKIN TONES with Oil Paint: ONE Tube Color + B&W, by Anna Wakitsch on YouTube. 5 min 26 s.
- Video length
- 5 min 26 s
- Time to do it
- 20 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 9
What you need
Steps
Squeeze out a warm red or orange, titanium white and ivory black onto your palette. Keep them spaced apart so you can pull clean mixtures from each.
Mix a warm mid tone by combining the warm color with a little white. This becomes your base for warmer, lighter skin.
Mix a cool mid tone by adding a small amount of black to the warm color, then lighten with white. Black cools the mixture.
Test both mid tones on a scrap of canvas or paper. Compare them side by side to see which leans warm and which leans cool.
Lighten each mid tone with more white in small steps to build a range of lighter values. Keep the warm and cool versions separate.
Darken each mid tone with a touch of black or more of the warm color to build deeper shades. Add black sparingly so the color stays rich.
Mix a few transitional tones between your light and dark values. Skin shifts gradually, so you need more than two or three values.
Lay out your mixed tones in a row from light to dark. Use this as a reference when painting the face.
Adjust as you paint by nudging a mixture warmer with the warm color or cooler with black. Keep notes of the ratios that work.
Tips and common mistakes
Add black in tiny amounts, since it can quickly dull a mixture and make it muddy.
Keep your warm and cool piles separate on the palette so the tones stay distinct.
Mix more paint than you think you need, because oil paint dries slowly and matching a tone later is hard.
Work in good light so you can judge warm and cool shifts accurately.
Questions
Can I use acrylic paint instead of oil?
Yes. The same warm, cool, black and white mixing logic works in acrylics. Acrylics dry fast, so mix smaller batches and keep them damp.
Do I need a special palette?
No. A glass sheet, palette paper or a sealed wooden palette all work. A flat, non-porous surface you can wipe clean is enough.
Why use black to cool a skin tone?
Black lowers the warmth and value at the same time, which helps create cooler shadow tones. Use it sparingly and test each mix.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
