Acrylic
Golden Heavy Body Acrylics
Mixed result
#D34F52
- 1. Pyrrole Red (PR254)61%
- 2. Titanium White (PW6)39%
Dry-down
Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.
How to mix
How to mix Crimson paint
Real pigment ratios for crimson (#DC143C) in acrylic, oil and watercolour. The recipes below come straight from Chromilla’s mixer, calibrated to real manufacturer paint data.
Target colour
Crimson
#DC143C
Live mixer
Open this colour in the mixer
The Chromilla mixer is pre-loaded with #DC143C. Change your brand, medium or palette and the recipe updates instantly.
Recipes by medium
One default brand per medium. Open the mixer to swap in your own tubes.
Oil
Winsor & Newton Artists' Oil Colour
Mixed result
#C1383A
- 1. Bright Red (PR254)100%
Dry-down
Dries true to colour.
Watercolour
Daniel Smith Extra Fine
Mixed result
#C1383A
- 1. Pyrrol Red (PR254)100%
Dry-down
Dries slightly darker and a touch cooler.
Common mistakes when mixing crimson
Crimson is a cool, slightly blue-leaning red, and the mistake is starting from a warm red (a cadmium, say) and trying to cool it down, which usually just dulls it. Starting from a naturally cool red pigment (an alizarin or quinacridone crimson) gets there directly, since you're not fighting the pigment's own undertone. Warm reds and cool reds behave differently enough in a mix that swapping the base pigment solves more problems than adjusting ratios does.
Related colours
More colours to try once you have crimson sorted.