TINTING
AND MIXING TRADITIONAL PAINTS
One of the biggest challenges for anyone
using a traditional paint is how to obtain the correct colour.
This can be achieved, but depends on the type of paint used,
whether it be soft distemper, oil distemper or oil based paint.
Tvpe
of Paint
There are fundamental differences in the way that the various
types of traditional paints are formed into a colou r and a
brief outline of these are as follows:
Oil
Based Paint
There are three ways that you can arrive at your chosen colour;
1. Buy ready mixed from a supplier
2. Tint yourself from a base colour using modern stainers.
3. Tint yourself from a base colour using pigment ground in
oil.
The
shortfalls of each are as follows:
1.The
ready mixed paint will probably not be exactly the colour
you want, in which case you will still have to adjust it,
using one of the following methods.
2.
The easiest way to alter a colour or to mix one from white
but the modern stainers do not equate either in particle size
or to the staining power of the traditionally used pigments.
Therefore the balance of pigment to white or pigment to extender
is significantly different. This gives the paint a more 'modern'
look which can to some extent be overcome by dirtying the
paint with umber. However, it is still noticeable.
3. The traditional method is by far the best, usually carried
out on site by a skilled colour mixer within a painting team.
The colour mixer will usually have a range of 10 -15 colours
in oil, the most common are as follows; raw umber, burn umber,
raw sienna, burn sienna, black, ochre, lemon chrome, mid chrome,
orange chrome, standard red, crimson, prussian blue, ultra
blue, light fast green, mid chrome green and vandyke brown.
Some of these colours are transparent and are therefore more
suitable for graining or glaze work.
To
tint from white, the colour mixer would usually either be matching
to an existing dry colour on a surface or to a wet sample. To
match a light stone colour would be asfollows: 
Pour
some of a white base colour into a paint kettle and then with
a twelve inch palette knife take some raw umber out of the tin
or tube of a colour ground in oil and put onto a palette board.
This is best made up of a sheet of 5 mm thick plywood 21 cms
x 30 cms -from this cut out a handle as illustrated.
Using
a palette knife which you have wiped clean on a piece of rag,
pick up some of your white paint and add to the stainer. This
should be approximately two parts paint to one of stainer. With
the palette knife work the two together onto the surface of
the board blending with acircular motion.
As
you do this the mixture will spread out but it is a simple matter
to scrpae it back into the centre and start blending again.
Continue to do this unti1 the paint 4nd stainer are combined.
This mixturp. is now added to your kettle of stock white and
stirred with a separate clean palette knife. The process can
be repeated until the required deptch of colour is obtained.
A
typical stone colour comprises of burnt umber, ochre and a touch
of ultra blue. The sequence of tinting starts with the predominate
stainers, which are added to the paint until the desired deptch
of colour is achieved. Fine tune with the secondary stainers.
In the case of a stone colour, umber and ochre are the predominant
stainers and the blue would be used to counteract the pinkness
of the burnt umber.
The
above method is the same for all oil paints and with practice
very good results can be achieved.
One
further point that should be noted is that there will always
be some pigment that has not been fully ground and therefore
the mixed paint should be stained. There are stainers that can
be bought from decorators merchants. Just as effective is a
double thickness of nylon stocking or tights which can be stretched
over a paint can and the paint strained through this.
Soft
Distemper
Soft distemper can be bought
ready tinted but has a limited shelf life and is relatively
expensive, it is a simple matter to make your own and there
are many recipies for 'soft white'. Tinting soft distemper to
soft pastel shades does not present too many problems -simply
add some powder pig met ground on a board as described abov-e-for
oil colour. However to -achieve deeper shades requires the addition
of Jar~e.amDunts of pigment and these upset the balance of glue
13ize to pigment in the distemper. Consequently you have an
underbound paint which will rub oft on your hand. The solution
to this is to grind your pigment with some warm glue size to
a paste, then inforporate this mixture into your soft distemper.
When you have mixed the desired colour, bearing in mind that
distempers always dry lighter, it is worth painting a sample
onto a piece of stiff white paper and letting it dry. If it
rubs off, more glue size needs to be added.
In
conclusion, colour mixing is a rewarding skill to master and
provided you work systematically and cleanly, good results will
follow. One final tip: a hair dryer is a very useful tool to
have when matching to existing painted surfaces as there is
nothing worse than spending your day 'watching paint dry'.
PAUL HUMPHREYS
THE
TRADITIONAL PAINT FORUM
Hon. Secretary: Una Richards, Simpson & Brown, 179 Canongate,
Edinburgh EH8 8BN
Journal Editor: Patrick Baty, Papers & Paints, 4 Park Walk,
Chelsea, London SWI0 OAD
Please
Note: SMUDGE is a regular news and information supplemento the
annual journal TRADITIONAL PAINT NEWS. Each issue of SMUDGE
is written, in turn, by a member of The Traditional Paint Forum,
subject to the control of the Committee. The information is
provided in good faith. It is not necessarily the view of other
members of the Forum; it is offered only as a contribution to
the ongoing debate.
