If you want to mix watercolor more effectively, a watercolor wheel can be a good start. Making your own watercolor wheel lets you know more about the watercolor paints you are using and what you will get when mixing two colors.
In today’s lesson, we will learn how to create a color wheel using watercolor step-by-step.
A watercolor wheel is a tool for artists to understand the relationships between colors (color theory) and a guideline for mixing watercolor paints.
New artists are encouraged to make their own watercolor wheels because the paints from different watercolor brands may work differently. In addition, different variations of the same hue (for example, warm red and cool red) will result in different colors after they are mixed with another hue. This is due to color bias.
There are different variations of a watercolor wheel. In this post, we are going to create a watercolor wheel that has 12 main colors.
What Are the 12 Main Colors on the Watercolor Color Wheel?
Before we jump into the steps to create a watercolor wheel, let’s take a look at how a color wheel is structured! A watercolor wheel has 12 colors categorized into three groups: 3 primary colors, 3 secondary colors, and 6 tertiary colors.
Primary Colors
Primary colors are the colors that can’t be created by mixing other colors. Primary colors are used to mix all other colors. There are three primary colors: yellow, red, and blue.
Secondary Colors
Secondary colors are the colors created by mixing two primary colors. There are three secondary colors: orange, purple, and green.
Tertiary Colors
Tertiary colors are the colors created by mixing a primary color with a secondary color next to it on a color wheel at a ratio of 1:1. There are six tertiary colors as below:
- Yellow-orange
- Red-orange
- Red-purple
- Blue-purple
- Blue-green
- Yellow-green
How Does a Watercolor Wheel Work?
How can we use a watercolor wheel as guidelines for using colors and mixing colors? So far, you already know about the primary colors, and how to create secondary colors and tertiary colors. You can broaden your color palette by mixing different colors on the color wheel to create a variety of colors.
Two colors that are opposite to each other on a watercolor wheel are complementary. They will intensify each other when they are put next to each other. For example, red and green, blue and orange, and purple and yellow are three pairs of complementary colors.
Mixing two complementary colors creates vibrant variations of brown. Using a mixed brown color from complementary colors will make your painting more vibrant and interesting than using a pre-manufactured brown paint.
You can also choose analogous colors for your painting to create color harmony. Analogous colors are the colors that are next to each other on a watercolor wheel. For example, red, red-orange, and orange are analogous colors.
If you mix three colors that form a triangle through the center of the color wheel, you will get a gray or dulled color. Avoid this practice because it will make your painting dull and less vibrant.
How to Make a 12-color Wheel with Watercolor Paint? (Step by Step)
Making a watercolor wheel is fun. Here are the art supplies you will need to create a watercolor wheel:
- Watercolor paper
- Watercolor paints
- A round painting brush
- A pencil
- An eraser
- A ruler
- A school compass or anything that helps you draw circles
- A jar with clean water
We are going to create two watercolor wheels, one with warm colors and one with cool colors. If you are new to those terms, read my explanations about color temperature. Warm colors and cool colors work differently and result in different colors when you mix them together. That’s why we should create at least two watercolor wheels.
Below are my warm and cool colors but you can select what you have on your palette:
Warm hues:
- Gamboge Hue (yellow)
- Cadmium Red Deep Hue
- Ultramarine (blue)
Cool hues:
- Lemon yellow
- Crimson
- Prussian Blue
Step 1: Draw the Layout of a Watercolor Wheel
- Use a compass or a round object such as the bottom of a bottle or a bowl to draw two circles with the same center point but in different sizes. You can create two watercolor wheels on the same paper or different paper sheets.
- Use a ruler and a pencil to separate the gap between the two circles into 12 equal cells. You can separate the cells with gaps so it’s easier to paint the colors later on.
- Label the cells with P1, P2, P3 for primary colors; S1, S2, S3 for secondary colors; and T1, T2, T3, T4, T5, T6 for tertiary colors. Look at the image above for the position of the labels.
Step 2: Paint Three Primary Colors
- Moisten the three primary colors yellow, red, and blue with a little bit of water. Avoid adding too much water, otherwise, the colors will look pale when they are dry and will not reflect colors at their highest saturation.
- Remember to clean your brush thoroughly with clean water before getting another color, so the colors will not be mixed on your brush.
- Paint the cells labeled P1, P2, and P3 with yellow, red, and blue respectively.
Step 3: Mix Three Secondary Colors
- Get two primary colors with a ratio of 1:1 to a mixing palette.
- Dip your brush in clean water, then mix the two colors carefully.
- Paint the cells labeled S1, S2, and S3 with orange, purple, and green respectively.
Step 4: Mix Six Tertiary Colors
This step will be a bit tricky because you need to mix the secondary colors first before mixing them with a primary color. Remember to keep the ratio of 1:1 in each step. For example, mix 50% yellow with 50% red to get orange. After that, mix 50% orange with 50% yellow to create a yellow-orange color.
Color each cell T1, T2, T3, T4, T5, and T6 with the color created by mixing the two colors next to it.
Step 5: Mix the Brown and Gray Color
The last step is to mix the three primary colors yellow, red, and blue at a ratio of 1:1:1. You will get a brown color when you mix three warm primary colors, and a gray color when you mix three cool primary colors. Paint them in the center of the watercolor wheels.
The complete watercolor wheels (for warm and cool colors separately) should look like these:
The colors and the cells should be in the following order:
- P1: yellow
- T1: yellow-orange
- S1: orange
- T2: red-orange
- P2: red
- T3: red-purple
- S2: purple
- T4: blue-purple
- P3: blue
- T5: blue-green
- S3: green
- T6: yellow-green
- Center: brown or gray
Now, look at the two watercolor wheels you have created. Can you see the difference between them? That’s why we should test our watercolor paints by actually mixing them and painting them on paper to see how they look.
Creating watercolor wheels for warm colors and cool colors separately is a great way to help you choose colors when you paint. For example, to paint leaves, I would prefer the green color created by mixing warm yellow and warm blue because it looks more natural.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You have learned how to create two watercolor wheels with six primary colors. You can experiment with the colors and create different variations of a watercolor wheel or a color mixing chart.
What’s next? Check out the five watercolor techniques for beginners and start painting! Sign up for my newsletter to get free watercolor tips via email.
