How to Mix Sage Green Oil Paint
To mix sage green with oil paint, combine 5 parts Raw Sienna, 3 parts Cerulean Blue and 2 parts Titanium White. Sage is a soft, grey-green with a lot of white in it. The trick is to dull the green before you lighten it; white added to a bright green gives mint, not sage.
Opens the free browser simulator with these colors on the palette. Squeeze them out and blend with the palette knife.
Step by step
- Put down 5 parts of Raw Sienna. It is the largest amount, so it is your base.
- Add 3 parts of Cerulean Blue.
- Add 2 parts of Titanium White. White lightens the mix but also cools and softens it, so add it gradually.
- Blend with a palette knife, folding the paint over itself until no streaks of the separate colors remain.
- Pull a thin smear out to the side. Thin paint shows the true color better than a thick pile.
Lighter versions of sage green
The same recipe with more and more titanium white mixed in, by volume:
#9FA57C
#B9BC9C
#C6C8AE
#D4D5C2
#E6E6DB
Another way to mix sage green
With Cadmium Orange, Titanium White and French Ultramarine: 5 parts Cadmium Orange, 5 parts Titanium White and 4 parts French Ultramarine.
Tips for mixing greens
Greens from a blue and a yellow are only as clean as the two colors you start with. A cool lemon yellow and a green-leaning blue give bright greens; a warm yellow and ultramarine give softer, more natural ones.
Questions
What colors make sage green?
To mix sage green with oil paint, combine 5 parts Raw Sienna, 3 parts Cerulean Blue and 2 parts Titanium White. You can also mix it from 5 parts Cadmium Orange, 5 parts Titanium White and 4 parts French Ultramarine.
How do you make sage green lighter?
Add titanium white a little at a time. Adding the same amount of white as the whole mix gives about #D4D5C2. White also cools and softens a color, so you may need a touch more of the warm color in the recipe to keep the same character.
How do you make sage green darker?
Add a little more of the blue, or a touch of a red such as alizarin crimson. Red is green's complement, so it darkens and dulls the green without making it look dirty the way black can.