Mixing guide
What colors make gray: warm, cool and chromatic grays
By Marco, painter and founder of chromilla · Last checked August 2026
Gray is not black plus white. The grays that hold up on a canvas come from mixing two complementary colors, like Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna, so the gray carries a hidden warmth or coolness instead of reading flat and dead.
Warm gray vs. cool gray
Same three tubes, different ratio. Lead with the earth tone for a warm gray that leans toward the wall or the shadow side of a form. Lead with the blue for a cool gray that recedes.
- #B9A9A7
Warm gray
- Titanium White60%
- Burnt Sienna25%
- Ultramarine Blue15%
Reads as a warm stone gray, good for skin shadow and worn wood.
- #AEA8B2
Cool gray
- Titanium White60%
- Ultramarine Blue25%
- Burnt Sienna15%
Recedes into the distance. Good for overcast sky and background stone.
Chromatic gray (the complementary method)
Push the same two complements further and skip the white for a darker, more saturated gray with real color underneath. This is how old-master shadows stay alive instead of going dead.
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Deep chromatic gray
- Ultramarine Blue50%
- Burnt Sienna40%
- Titanium White10%
A near-black with color still visible in the mass. Use in place of black for a shadow that doesn't go flat.
- #CDBFB3
Living gray
- Cadmium Red Light15%
- Phthalo Green15%
- Titanium White70%
A pale gray with just enough red-green tension to feel warm in some light and cool in others.
When flat black-and-white gray is actually fine
For a quick value study or an underpainting nobody will see, Mars Black plus Titanium White is a perfectly reasonable shortcut. Save the complementary method for grays that stay in the final piece.
Why your gray goes green, purple or muddy
A gray that drifts green or purple usually means the two complements weren't matched in temperature, a warm blue against a cool red, for example. A gray that goes muddy instead of neutral usually means a third pigment snuck in. Rebuild with exactly two complements plus white, and adjust the ratio in small steps rather than adding a third tube to fix it.
Try it on your tubes
Get a calibrated gray for your tubes
Paste your target hex and pick your brand. Chromilla returns the complementary pair and ratio tuned to your paint.
Open Chromilla →Frequently asked questions
- What two colors make gray without using black?
- Any complementary pair: Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna, or a red and a green. Mix them close to equal parts and the colors cancel each other toward neutral. Add white to lighten.
- Why does my gray look muddy instead of neutral?
- Muddy usually means a third pigment is in the mix, even a trace left on the brush. Wipe clean and rebuild from exactly two complements plus white, adjusting the ratio in small steps.