How to Mix Sunset Orange in Watercolor

A rich, warm orange with a hint of red. The last hour of daylight. This guide gives you the pigment ratios that land on #E86A2E in watercolor, using the same solver that powers the Chromilla mixer.

Target

Sunset Orange

#E86A2E

Mixed result

96% match

From these pigments

#DF6A30

Pigment recipe

Checked August 2026

Ratios calibrated for watercolor. 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
60%
2. Alizarin Crimson
PR83
29%
3. Cadmium Yellow
PY35
11%

What colors make Sunset Orange?

Titanium White, Alizarin Crimson, and Cadmium Yellow, in roughly a 60:29:11 ratio.

How to make Sunset Orange in watercolor

Start with Titanium White at about 60% as your watercolor base, then work in Alizarin Crimson and Cadmium Yellow in the order above. Adjust in 5% steps until the swatch reads #E86A2E.

Why mix Sunset Orange instead of buying it

Mixing Sunset Orange yourself lets you approximate an expensive or hard to find tube from pigments you already own, match Sunset Orange 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

White cools and chalks a mix as you add it, so tint in small steps and stop before it goes pastel.

Get this recipe for your paint brand

Open the live mixer with Sunset Orange + watercolor pre-loaded and calibrate to your tubes.

Open in mixer

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.