Green is a mixture of blue and yellow. Once you understand the basic color theory, you can make it using many different mediums, including paints, glazes, and polymer clays.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Understanding Color Theory
Step 1. Mix yellow and blue
Green is a secondary color, so to create it you need to combine equally blue and yellow, two primary colors.
- "Primary" colors exist in nature and cannot be created by combining others. The three primary colors are red, blue and yellow, but the last two are enough to get green.
- "Secondary" colors are obtained by mixing two primary colors together. Green is one of them because it comes from the combination of blue and yellow. The other two secondary colors are orange and purple.
Step 2. Vary the aspect ratio to change the hue
Pure green is a mixture of pure yellow and pure blue, but adding more of either color will give you a slightly different shade of green.
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The two simplest variants are "blue green" and "yellow green", which are called "tertiary" colors since they are between the secondary and primary colors on the color wheel.
- The "blue green" is made with two parts of blue and one of yellow. You can also make it by mixing equal parts of green and blue.
- The "yellow green" is made with two parts of yellow and one of blue. You can also make it by mixing equal parts of green and yellow.
Step 3. Change the brightness of the color to black and white
If you want to get a lighter green without changing its hue, you need to add white. If you want to darken your color instead, use black.
While in Italian there are no well-defined terms to distinguish light or dark colors, in English they are divided into tints (light) and shades (dark)
Method 2 of 4: Get Green Paint
Step 1. Mix blue and yellow paint
Pour small equal amounts of blue and yellow paint onto a palette, then use a palette knife to mix them well.
- Once mixed, the original colors should produce a pure green.
- To get a better idea of what kind of green you got, use a brush and apply a small amount on a sheet of paper.
Step 2. Vary the aspect ratio
Depending on the subject you want to draw, pure green may not be the best fit for your purpose. The easiest way to change the hue of the color is to add more yellow or blue.
- Adding more yellow will result in a warmer green, while with more blue the resulting color will be colder.
- When trying to change the hue of the color, make small adjustments until you get the one you want. Gradually producing the right shade is easier and allows you to waste less paint than going overboard and having to work backwards from one extreme.
Step 3. Experiment with various types of yellow and blue
Free up some space on your palette and try mixing various shades of yellow and blue together. This way you will get different types of greenery.
- With pure yellow and pure blue you will get pure green, but by tweaking those starting colors before mixing them, the resulting green will also be different. For example, mixing golden yellow with standard blue will result in a duller, more brownish green. Conversely, with standard yellow and blue you will get a lighter green.
- The best way to understand what types of greens you can get from combining the various yellows and blues is to experiment. Choose a few different shades of blue and yellow. Mix them in equal parts, trying all possible combinations. Mark the results as a reference for the future.
Step 4. Try mixing various types of greenery
If you have two shades of green that are similar to the color you want, but not exactly the same, you can try combining them.
- Since all greens contain parts of blue and yellow, mixing them should result in new shades.
- You can also mix green with various yellows or blues to change the hue even more dramatically.
Step 5. Change the brightness using white or black
Once you have found the right shade, you can change it without altering it by using white or black paint.
- Add white paint to create a lighter color, or black paint for a darker color.
- Regardless of the brightness you want to achieve, add only small amounts of black or white. If you overdo it, you may end up with too light or too dark green.
Method 3 of 4: Making Green Icing
Make Green Step 9 Step 1. Prepare some saucers for the samples
There are many ways to create green frosting, of various shades. By experimenting with some of these options at the same time, you will be able to better understand the process.
- You need at least 4 saucers, but the experiment is more complete with 6-12 plates.
- Put between 50 and 125ml of white icing on each plate. Mark how much frosting you use, as you will need to know how much food coloring to add.
- Get at least four types of food coloring: one green, one yellow, one blue, and one black. You can also purchase other shades of green, yellow, or blue to experiment.
- The types of dye designed to color the icing are in paste, powder or gel, so limit yourself to using those, which should not alter the texture of your dessert. Liquid dyes are only useful if you want very light shades, otherwise the amount of dye you need to add to get a vibrant color will change the consistency of the glaze.
Step 2. Add green food coloring to one of the dishes
Dip a toothpick in the dye, then place it in the icing to transfer the color. Stir until the color is uniform.
- To get a better idea of the color you created, you need to keep mixing until you no longer see any green streaks in the icing.
- The type of green dye used affects the color of the icing. For example, using "moss green" dye will result in a warmer color than "kelly green" and leaf green dyes.
- The amount of dye used changes the brightness of the color. Since the glaze is white, with small amounts of green you will get very light pastel colors. With more dye you can create more vibrant colors.
Step 3. Mix blue and yellow in equal parts in another dish
Use two clean toothpicks to transfer equal parts of yellow and blue dye to the second saucer of white icing. Stir until the color is uniform.
- After mixing the two colors, you should get some green icing.
- The precise hue varies based on the yellow and blue you used. As mentioned earlier, the brightness of the color changes depending on the amount of dye.
Step 4. Mix green and black in another dish
Create a third saucer of green icing by adding equal parts green or blue and yellow dye to the white icing, following the procedure described in the previous steps. Add a small amount of black in this case.
- Once the black food coloring is mixed well, you should notice that the glaze turns a darker green than the original, but without varying the hue.
- Since black can have a major impact on the appearance of a color, you should only use very small amounts.
Step 5. Experiment with other combinations
Use the remaining samples of white icing to experiment with various combinations. Mark the shades of the dyes and the quantities used for each sample, as a reference for the future.
- Follow the dye manufacturer's directions to create different shades, or experiment on your own.
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Here are some ideas:
- Mix equal parts sky blue and leaf green to get an aqua color.
- Create the chartreuse using 9 parts of lemon yellow and 1 part of leafy green.
- Combine leaf green and royal blue in equal parts, then add a hint of black. That way you should get a dark jade color.
- Mix various amounts of lemon yellow and sky blue to produce turquoise or sky blue.
Method 4 of 4: Obtain Green Polymer Clay
Make Green Step 14 Step 1. Get some clay samples
At a minimum, you will need two blue, two yellow, one white, one clear and one black clays.
- Choose a warmer shade of blue clay (with a hint of green) and a cooler shade (with a hint of purple). Similarly, the color of one of the yellow clays should be slightly warm (with an orange tip) and the other slightly cool (with a green tip).
- You can use multiple variations of blue and yellow clay, but by starting with the two mentioned above you should be able to figure out how to get the shade of green you want.
Step 2. Mix a blue and a yellow clay
Take identical amounts of warm blue and cool yellow. Squeeze the two parts together and knead the ball until the colors are uniform.
- Roll, stretch and squeeze the ball to mix colors. When you are done, you should no longer notice blue or yellow streaks in the sample.
- The resulting color should be a relatively vibrant green, as both yellow and blue tended to be green.
Step 3. Complete the remaining combinations
Mix the blue and yellow clays in equal parts, following the same procedure used to create the first green sample. Repeat for all possible combinations.
- Warm yellow and cool blue should give a dull green with brown tints.
- Warm yellow and warm blue should create a warm green of medium intensity, with strong yellow undertones.
- Cool yellow and cool green should create a cool green of medium intensity, with strong blue undertones.
Step 4. Add blank to a sample
Choose the green shade you prefer and replicate it. Once done, add a pinch of white clay.
Mix the white with the green until all the streaks disappear. The color should become less bright and lighten. The more white you add, the lighter the color will be
Step 5. Add the clear clay to another sample
Replicate the same green used in the previous step, but do not add the white clay, but the transparent one.
- Once the clays are mixed, the transparent one should make the color much less intense, without changing its brightness.
- If you use more transparent clay than the green one, you will get a semi-transparent washed-out color instead of an opaque one.
Step 6. Add black to the last swatch
Create the same greenery that you used for your experiments with white and clear clay. This time, mix a very small pinch of black clay well.
- Once the black is mixed with the green, the sample should become darker but remain the same hue.
- In most cases it won't take a lot of black clay to noticeably darken the green, so use only very small amounts of color.
