What two colors make sepia?

Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses 3 tubes rather than two: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue. Cadmium Red leads the mix. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Why does sepia look different when acrylic dries?

Acrylic binder looks milky while wet and clears as it dries, so the dried film reads darker. Chromilla's model applies a 10% value shift for acrylic, so the wet mix #4A3624 is predicted to dry to about #46311E. Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.

What is the hex code for sepia?

Chromilla uses #4A3624 as the target for sepia. The acrylic recipe is predicted to dry to about #46311E.

Can I mix sepia without black?

Yes. Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses no black: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue.

How to Mix Sepia in Acrylic

Quick answer

To mix sepia (#4A3624) in acrylic, use 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out. Chromilla is a web-based paint color mixer that turns any color, from a photo, the camera or a hex code, into exact paint-tube ratios for acrylic, oil and watercolor, using Kubelka-Munk pigment mixing and aiming at the color after it dries.

Adjust for my paints

Target

Sepia

#4A3624

Predicted dry result

96% match when dry

Mix to #4A3624 while wet. It dries to about #46311E.

Sepia in acrylic: tube ratios, and ml for a 100 ml batch
Paint	Pigment	Parts	Share	100 ml batch
Cadmium Red	PR108	10	52%	52 ml
Yellow Ochre	PY43	9	43%	43 ml
Phthalo Blue	PB15	1	5%	5 ml

How we calculated this: Kubelka-Munk pigment mixing, then a per-medium dry shift, scored with CIEDE2000. Method and accuracy benchmark. Last checked August 2026.

Terms used here: Tinting strength, Dry shift, Kubelka-Munk, Delta E (dE2000), Pigment code, Gamut.

A soft, warm dark brown. Slightly cooler than Van Dyke. This guide gives you the pigment ratios that land on #4A3624 in acrylic, using the same solver that powers the Chromilla mixer.

Pigment recipe

Checked August 2026

Ratios calibrated for acrylic. Start with the dominant pigment, add the modifiers in the order below, and adjust in 5% steps to your target swatch.

1. Cadmium Red
PR108
52%
2. Yellow Ochre
PY43
43%
3. Phthalo Blue
PB15
5%

What colors make Sepia?

Cadmium Red, Yellow Ochre, and Phthalo Blue, in roughly a 52:43:5 ratio.

How to make Sepia in acrylic

Start with Cadmium Red at about 52% as your acrylic base, then work in Yellow Ochre and Phthalo Blue in the order above. Adjust in 5% steps until the swatch reads #4A3624.

Why mix Sepia instead of buying it

Mixing Sepia yourself lets you approximate an expensive or hard to find tube from pigments you already own, match Sepia across paint brands whose factory tubes differ, and rebuild the exact color when you run out mid painting. The recipe above is the working starting point.

Common mistakes

That pigment is a very strong tinter, add it a touch at a time or it will swallow the mix.

Variations on Sepia

Each variation is its own target (lighter and darker move OKLCH lightness by 0.08; warmer and cooler turn the hue 12 degrees toward red or blue), solved fresh.

Lighter Sepia

#604B39

76% Viridian Green, 21% Cadmium Red and 3% Titanium White. Chromilla's model predicts a 93% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Darker Sepia

#352210

77% Burnt Sienna, 13% Ivory Black and 10% Alizarin Crimson. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Warmer Sepia

#4C3527

5 parts Cadmium Red, 4 parts Ultramarine Blue and 4 parts Yellow Ochre. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Cooler Sepia

#4C3527

5 parts Cadmium Red, 4 parts Ultramarine Blue and 4 parts Yellow Ochre. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Sepia questions

What two colors make sepia?: Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses 3 tubes rather than two: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue. Cadmium Red leads the mix. Chromilla's model predicts a 96% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
How do you make sepia paint lighter without losing the hue?: Re-balance the mix instead of only adding white. For a lighter sepia (#604B39) in acrylic, Chromilla mixes 76% Viridian Green, 21% Cadmium Red and 3% Titanium White. Chromilla's model predicts a 93% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
Why does sepia look different when acrylic dries?: Acrylic binder looks milky while wet and clears as it dries, so the dried film reads darker. Chromilla's model applies a 10% value shift for acrylic, so the wet mix #4A3624 is predicted to dry to about #46311E. Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.
What is the hex code for sepia?: Chromilla uses #4A3624 as the target for sepia. The acrylic recipe is predicted to dry to about #46311E.
Can I mix sepia without black?: Yes. Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses no black: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue.

Sepia in other mediums

Sepia in Oil: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue, predicted 100% dry match by Chromilla's color model.
Sepia in Watercolor: 10 parts Cadmium Red, 9 parts Yellow Ochre and 1 part Phthalo Blue, predicted 95% dry match by Chromilla's color model.

Get this recipe for your paint brand

Open the live mixer with Sepia + acrylic pre-loaded and calibrate to your tubes.

Open in mixer

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Pigment mixing is subtractive, so small ratio changes matter. The mixer refines this recipe to your brand and updates on the fly.