Favorite Watercolor Mixes

I like to use Cobalt Blue, Winsor Yellow, Permanent Rose and Viridian as much as possible in the beginning of a painting. These colors are non-staining and easily removed from most papers, which means you can adjust your composition if needed. Mixed together they will only give a middle value, so to get darks it’s best to switch to other paints. I switch French Ultramarine for Cobalt Blue, Winsor Green Blue Shade for Viridian, and Permanent Alizarin for Permanent Rose. For warm, rich darks sometimes I’ll add in Burnt Sienna. 

This portrait in progress of  Pootie, a chow puppy, uses
Winsor Yellow, Permanent Rose and Cobalt Blue for the
fur, with Viridian and Permanent Rose for the
nose followed by Winsor Green Blue shade and
Permanent Alizarin crimson for the darkest darks.

  

Apart from not getting darker than a middle value, these colors  are really versatile.  The portrait of "Pootie" uses Winsor Yellow, Permanent Rose and Cobalt Blue for the fur. I find it's helpful to mix a red violet first from Permanent Rose and Cobalt Blue, then add varying amounts of the Winsor Yellow to get a range of yellow golds and browns. 

The green golds around her muzzle use the same mix but start with a blue violet and add yellow for a raw umber color.

Her nose and gums are painted with a mix of Viridian and Permanent Rose. To get the really dark darks in her nostrils and pupils I've mixed Winsor Green blue shade and Permanent Alizarin Crimson. Both mixes will go from a blue green gray to a blue gray to a neutral gray and then a rosy gray as the magenta is added to the green. The Permanent Rose and Viridian mix is easily scrubbed out if I need to adjust the shape of her nose or mouth, but it doesn't get dark enough on its own. I find the Winsor Green and Permanent Alizarin Crimson mix on its own results in too harsh a look, and it tends to bleed when rewet.

The background is Viridian and Permanent Rose with a touch of Winsor Yellow. Again, it's easily scrubbed out if I need to. It's good to keep your options open as long as possible so you can make changes as the painting develops.