How to Mix Paint: A Beginner's Guide to Custom Colors

Your ColorFig kit comes with six paints — white, black, brown, red, blue, and yellow — and that’s all you need to make just about any color you can imagine. The secret is mixing. Here’s the simple, no-experience-needed guide to custom colors.

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Start with your six colors

Those six aren’t random. Red, blue, and yellow are the three primary colors — you can’t make them by mixing, but you can mix them into everything else. White and black adjust how light or dark a color is, and brown gives you quick earthy tones.

The only color rules you need

• Two primaries make a secondary. Blue + yellow = green. Red + yellow = orange. Red + blue = purple.
• White lightens (tints). Add a little white to soften any color — red + white = pink.
• Black darkens (shades) — but go easy; a tiny bit goes a long way.
• Brown warms and mutes. Great for wood, fur, skin tones, and toning down a color that’s too bright.

Quick mixing cheat sheet

• Green → blue + yellow (more yellow = brighter, spring green)
• Orange → red + yellow
• Purple → red + blue
• Pink → red + white
• Grey → black + white
• Skin tones → white + a little brown + a touch of red
• Tan / gold → yellow + a little brown

5 tips for clean color mixing

1. Mix on your palette, not the figurine. That’s exactly what the mixing palette is for.
2. Add dark to light, a little at a time. It’s easy to darken a color and hard to lighten it back.
3. Make enough. Mix a bit more than you think you need so the shade stays consistent.
4. Keep water and a paper towel handy to rinse your brush between colors — muddy brushes make muddy colors.
5. Two thin coats beat one thick one for bright, even results.

Now put it on a Figment

Every ColorFig figurine ships bright white with molded paint zones to guide you — perfect for testing your new color-mixing skills. Pick a character and make it exactly the shade you imagined.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I really make any color from six paints?
Just about! Red, blue, and yellow mix into every other hue, and white and black control how light or dark it is.

How do I make a color lighter?
Add white a little at a time. For pastels, start with white and add small amounts of color.

Why did my color turn out muddy?
Usually too many colors at once, or a dirty brush. Rinse between colors and stick to two or three paints per mix.

How much should I mix?
A little more than you need for the area — it’s tough to match a custom shade exactly a second time.