3 Different Methods for Making Your Own Paint

Art supplies are expensive, especially paint. Making paint yourself can save you money and allow you to control your paint ingredients. There are different methods for making your own paint, depending on the type you need for a particular project. Keep reading to learn about three of these methods.

DIY Oil Paint

It’s never easy to make paint, but oil paint poses a particular challenge since you want to get the measurements just right. The dry-to-wet ratio is 1:2 in tablespoons, so have your measuring tools ready. Start with your chosen amount of pigment powder or dry paint pigment and mix in several drops of water. You’ll want roughly two drops of water for every tablespoon of pigment powder. The water will help smooth out the pigment so that it’s easier to incorporate the oil, but we don’t count the water as part of the dry-to-wet ratio.

Choose a liquid medium, such as linseed oil, and pour in double the amount of the dry powder. For example, if you used one tablespoon of pigment powder, you would then add two tablespoons of linseed oil. Mix until it reaches the desired consistency.

DIY Watercolors

Making your own watercolors requires more ingredients, but the mixing process is slightly easier. Start with one and a half tablespoons of either homemade or store-bought corn syrup in a bowl. Add one and a half fluid ounces of white vinegar, one and a half ounces of baking soda, and one and a half ounces of cornstarch. Mix until smooth, then pour this base mixture into the number of containers that corresponds with the number of colors you plan to have. Add a pinch of pigment powder or a few drops of food coloring to the containers, mixing until you evenly distribute the color in your paint.

Flour-Based Paint

Flour-based paint is thicker than watercolors but easier to make than oil paint. Pour 8 fluid ounces of warm water into a bowl. Add 12 ounces of white flour and 12 ounces of table salt, then mix until smooth. Like the watercolors, you’ll then pour this base mixture into different containers based on the number of colors you want to create. Add pinches of pigment powder or drops of food coloring to each container, mixing thoroughly to combine them well. You can add water if the mixture is too thick.

Whether you need oil paint or just want to throw a quick paint together with pantry ingredients, you can do so. Making your own paint with these three different methods provides creative freedom, saves you money, and allows you to control the ingredients in your art supplies. If you want to use a safe, non-toxic ingredient to make gold paint, you can use our gold pigment powder. We offer various shades of gold so that you can always find exactly what you’re looking for.