Lighter Taupe
#A39681
9 parts Viridian Green, 9 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Cadmium Red. Chromilla's model predicts an 86% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
How to Mix Taupe in Acrylic
Quick answer
To mix taupe (#8B7E6A) in acrylic, use 73% Titanium White, 17% Burnt Umber and 10% Ivory Black. Chromilla's model predicts an 87% 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.
Target
Taupe
#8B7E6A
Predicted dry result
87% match when dryMix to #8A7D6B while wet. It dries to about #7F715E.
| Paint | Pigment | Share | 100 ml batch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Titanium White | PW6 | 73% | 73 ml |
| Burnt Umber | PBr7 | 17% | 17 ml |
| Ivory Black | PBk9 | 10% | 10 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 gray-brown taupe that sits between warm and cool. This guide gives you the pigment ratios that land on #8B7E6A 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. Titanium White
PW6
73%2. Burnt Umber
PBr7
17%3. Ivory Black
PBk9
10%
What colors make Taupe?
Titanium White, Burnt Umber, and Ivory Black, in roughly a 73:17:10 ratio.
How to make Taupe in acrylic
Start with Titanium White at about 73% as your acrylic base, then work in Burnt Umber and Ivory Black in the order above. Adjust in 5% steps until the swatch reads #8B7E6A.
Why mix Taupe instead of buying it
Mixing Taupe yourself lets you approximate an expensive or hard to find tube from pigments you already own, match Taupe 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
Reaching for more black to deepen it kills the chroma, add the dark modifier already in the recipe instead. White cools and chalks a mix as you add it, so tint in small steps and stop before it goes pastel.
Variations on Taupe
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.
Darker Taupe
#736753
4 parts Titanium White, 2 parts Burnt Umber and 1 part Ivory Black. Chromilla's model predicts a 91% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
Warmer Taupe
#8E7C6B
76% Titanium White, 10% Ivory Black, 9% Cadmium Red and 5% Burnt Sienna. Chromilla's model predicts an 89% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
Cooler Taupe
#8E7C6B
76% Titanium White, 10% Ivory Black, 9% Cadmium Red and 5% Burnt Sienna. Chromilla's model predicts an 89% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
Taupe questions
- What two colors make taupe?
- Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses 3 tubes rather than two: 73% Titanium White, 17% Burnt Umber and 10% Ivory Black. Titanium White leads the mix. Chromilla's model predicts an 87% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
- How do you make taupe paint lighter without losing the hue?
- Re-balance the mix instead of only adding white. For a lighter taupe (#A39681) in acrylic, Chromilla mixes 9 parts Viridian Green, 9 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Cadmium Red. Chromilla's model predicts an 86% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
- Why does taupe 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 #8A7D6B is predicted to dry to about #7F715E. Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.
- What is the hex code for taupe?
- Chromilla uses #8B7E6A as the target for taupe. The acrylic recipe is predicted to dry to about #7F715E.
Taupe in other mediums
- Taupe in Oil: 73% Titanium White, 17% Burnt Umber and 10% Ivory Black, predicted 98% dry match by Chromilla's color model.
- Taupe in Watercolor: 73% Titanium White, 17% Burnt Umber and 10% Ivory Black, predicted 88% dry match by Chromilla's color model.
Compare acrylic, oil and watercolor for taupe
Get this recipe for your paint brand
Open the live mixer with Taupe + acrylic pre-loaded and calibrate to your tubes.
Deep-dive guide
How to mix Taupe, the long version
Common mistakes, per-brand recipes, and the honest limits when the target sits outside what real paint can reach.
Read the guideNew to browns? See what colors make brown, in plain terms.
Technique guides for this color
Related mixing guides
Pigment mixing is subtractive, so small ratio changes matter. The mixer refines this recipe to your brand and updates on the fly.