How I create a colour palette for a series of paintings

Have you ever wondered how I approach choosing colours for a new series? In this video I’m going to show you my process of creating an initial colour palette - from where I get my colour inspiration to batch mixing the paint.
Sign up to my newsletter: dashboard.mailerlite.com/form...
My Instagram: j.close.studio
My website: www.jclosestudio.com
My Pinterest: www.pinterest.co.uk/jclosestudio/
Blog post: www.jclosestudio.com/post/how...
My video on how I make a mood board:
• How I gather inspirati...
Products mentioned:
Daler Rowney System 3 Acrylics
www.jacksonsart.com/daler-row...
Jackson’s Acrylic Flow Medium
www.jacksonsart.com/jacksons-...
Some of these are affiliate links. If you purchase via a link to the Jackson’s website and you are a new customer, you receive 10% off your first order.
Music by Lemonmusicstudio - Sunshine - pixabay.com/music/id-108600/
Music by Rudy Kalma - forever their riverFLOWS - thmatc.co/?l=648BCD06

[@k8marlowe]

Very helpful, and satisfying to watch. ☺️ I wish I could be so organized!

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! Everyone works in a different way 😄

[@apple369]

Wow. I'm sitting here gobsmacked. You're fantastic at making colour theory accessible. Thank you. I haven't swatched or planned my palette before but now am looking forward to doing this for my next project or just for fun without a project in mind. You've got a new subscriber.

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks for subscribing! I definitely love doing the colour mixing just for fun every now and then. Give it a try!

[@Christine__D]

What a beautiful video, I really enjoyed your process. Thank you for sharing!

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you so much! I’m really glad you enjoyed it.

[@rachelleandrichard]

Subscribed. Ive been bingeing your channel. The quality of your content and filming is exceptional. I bought heavy body acrylics but sometimes I i want them more fluid, and I found the solution on your channel. I love swatching videos and exploring my own colours too. Thanks for all the inspiration. Rachelle, Australia

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks so much, Rachelle! How wonderful to hear you've been enjoying all my videos and even found a soluion to your problem. Welcome to the channel!

[@dianecharest8365]

Thank you so much Jeannine. You have been sooooo helpful with every video i watch. Youve given me hope. I realize that im not using muted colors.

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, Diane! This is the video where I mixed the red oxide-ish colour by the way 😉

[@chriscooper4579]

Incredibly helpful and clear for this late starter. I will use this approach for my next series. Thank you .

[@jclosestudio]

That' great to hear! Glad it was helpful.

[@denisecope]

What a great video. This is just what I needed!

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, Denise! Glad it's been helpful.

[@debbiegarland7124]

You're so thorough, what a great idea for consistency. Also, how do you keep so clean? You're even wearing a white shirt, I would of had paint on myself within the first 5 minutes lol 😂

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, Debbie 😊. It may look clean, but there are always little bits of paint on my clothes!

[@BetaGolchin]

That was actually very educational. Thank you for sharing. I found using a Palette tray to put individual colours in each compartment helps to remember the combinations better, as somewhere in the mixing on the flat Palette board, I forgot which colour combination was where lol. Hope this helps someone reading this. I love the structure of choosing a colour Palette intentionally before starting a painting project, especially when creating a series. However, the flow of instinctually picking and mixing as you paint seems to work better with my creativity. But this certainly helps if I want to be more intentional and organized in advance!

[@jclosestudio]

Great tip! And I completely agree with the instinctually mixing. The premixed colours I made are a good starting point, but I still like to mix while in the process to vary the colours and to give the painting more depth.

[@lindasteger7207]

Super

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks!

[@christinegirardartiste8022]

That is perfect organizing!!! I am more messy in my colour pallet study but I really want to try your method !!!

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! It’s definitely worth a try, but there is no reason why you can’t do messy studies instead. Everyone works best in a different way!

[@dumitriudaniela]

thank you for explaining your process, its really fascinating to watch and very insightful!

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! I’m glad it’s bee insightful for you.

[@jclosestudio]

Your other comment seems to have disappeared, but that's a great idea for a possible future video. I'm not selling very much at the moment. Would like to try more art fairs, the one I've done previously went quite well. Let me think about this!

[@Scottlp2]

Thanks-something I’ve always wondered.

[@jclosestudio]

Glad it‘s been insightful!

[@tanyahunter7320]

This was really well presented and a great help. Thanks for sharing 💗

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, so glad it was helpful for you!

[@tonyamiller8418]

Thanks so much for this. I couldn’t make out what the two rows that started with the equal mix of the 3 primary colors consisted of after that first equal mix square. Thanks!

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, Tonya! Do you mean at the bottom of the second spread? Have you figured it out?

[@tonyamiller8418]

@@jclosestudio not yet 😀

[@jclosestudio]

@@tonyamiller8418they are the three primaries mixed in different ratios. If you have those primaries on hand you could give it a try yourself. It’s lots of fun and I’m always surprised at the variety of colours you can mix!

[@tannaorr4133]

This was excellent! Going to have to watch it a few times to get it in my head, cause I definitely like the muted colors best.

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you, give it a try! I’m sure there will be lots of beautiful muted colours you like.

[@kennicekallabat4551]

Great info! So organized love it

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! Glad it was helpful.

[@GoogleBot-lf7xv]

Thanks for this. Really informative x

[@jclosestudio]

I‘m so glad you found it helpful!

[@2gooddrifters]

Beautiful Farrow and Ball colours.

[@jclosestudio]

Haha, I guess they could be. I do love those, maybe they influenced me subconsciously.

[@2gooddrifters]

I bought a colour fan from them and use it for inspiration.

[@jclosestudio]

@@2gooddrifters that’s a great idea!

[@blackpoppymagazine]

Hi, I am rekindling a love for art and painting and I just LOVE your idea of creating a mood board and colour swatches to help focus your painting! What a fab idea! Is it common to do this I wonder, as it seems such a natural place to start out! I'm going to do this, as it's great to have some sort of perimeters, or guidelines when you start out staring at an empty canvas!! thank u so much!

[@jclosestudio]

Hi Erin! Thanks so much. I’m so happy to hear you are getting back into painting ! That’s an exciting time. I do find it helpful to have a direction to start with. Especially working with a limited colour palette leaves me with one less decision to make during the process and I can focus more on other things. It makes the painting process more enjoyable for me. I know of other artists having a similar approach, but there is no right or wrong way, so try if it works for you, and if not, just ditch it 😊 You could do the same with selecting just a few tools to paint with, or determine some marks you want to include. But if in the moment you feel like doing something different, just go for it. Have fun rekindling!

[@BetaGolchin]

Very useful and helpful response. Thank you!

[@thenandthere]

Love the color pallet you chose!

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks so much!

[@gathercreatelivewithleslie8340]

Very helpful.I guess I need to start working towards this procedure. I kinda fly by the seat of my pants and sometimes it gets frustrating.

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! There is no right way. I do find it helpful though to have a limited colour palette, it’s easier to keep everything harmonious that way. Definitely worth trying to see if it works for you

[@minnahumble2294]

Great ideas for starting a painting. Can you give more info about the sketch book? What brand is your book, what is the paper weight etc etc …

[@jclosestudio]

Hi Minna! It‘s the Seawhite cloth bound sketchbook with 140gsm paper. This one is 19 x 19 cm. The paper is fairly smooth and quite thin for acrylics, but works great for just painting swatches on. www.jacksonsart.com/seawhite-jackson-s-cloth-bound-sketchbook-140gsm-19x19cm-95-sheets?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=2d00f43f07911355d4151f13925ff292

[@Hastypearl]

Second time I’ve watched this. Love the process so much. Maybe sped up a little fast during the mixing stage? Love the colors you ended with! 🌻Laura

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! Hope it’s inspired you to go mix some colours. I always have to stop myself not to get carried away mixing endlessly 😊

[@janerogers5717]

Really helpful video on colour mixing and making swatches, thank you. How long does the mixed paint last in the food containers?

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, I’m so glad it was helpful! I opened some containers I used about six months ago and they started drying up. But if you spray them with a little water every couple of months they should last pretty much indefinitely.

[@cindyfromsydney7693]

Very interesting! Thank you

[@jclosestudio]

So glad you enjoyed it!

[@chronicfish]

May I ask what thickness the wood panels are, that you work on? This was such a useful video, thank you Jeannine!

[@jclosestudio]

So glad you've found it useful! The ones I use are 5mm thick. www.jacksonsart.com/jackson-s-5mm-wooden-painting-panels-pack-of-5?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=2d00f43f07911355d4151f13925ff292

[@chronicfish]

@@jclosestudio Thank you so much!

[@jenalouise9813]

I just discovered your channel. I've been wanting to try acryluc painting for awhile now. (Im an oil painter) learning some new ideas to try. Thanks for showing your process. Can I ask about your paint storage containers to hold your mixed paints? Where did you find these? Is it just food containers?

[@jclosestudio]

Welcome to the channel! I love how quickly acrylics dry, and also that they are much less smelly than oil paints 😄 The storage containers come with any takeaway meals here in the UK. So they are basically free! I like them because they are very wide and you can easily fit a large brush in. You could also use ice cream containers, but they are quite a bit bigger. And you would have to eat a lot of ice cream!

[@natashat2702]

great info thanks

[@jclosestudio]

Thanks, I‘m glad it‘s been helpful!

[@shirleyross8563]

Jeannine thank you again for such a wonderful video. I LOOOOVE your color palette! Can I ask, how long do your paints last in those take away containers? I obviously don't paint as much as you do, so just wondered so that one does not mix a lot and then it goes to waste. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you.

[@jclosestudio]

Hello again! The paints should last pretty much indefinitely if you add in a little water every couple of months or so. If you don't use them a lot, mix a smaller batch. You can always try to recreate the colours later.

[@shirleyross8563]

@@jclosestudio thank you! Thank you! That's wonderful news. Much appreciated Jeannine 💛

[@gol622]

Excellent thank you ☺️

[@jclosestudio]

You’re welcome 😊

[@creativitybar]

What is that liner in the tray? And is it water?

[@jclosestudio]

I use what they call a “stay wet palette”. It’s a tray (can be any tray) with wet kitchen roll (or any kind of fabric that holds water) soaked with water, and then tracing paper or baking paper on top. On that paper I mix my paints. It helps them stay wet for longer. If you put another tray on top as a lid they’ll stay wet over night even.

[@traces2807]

Great video! Could you please tell me what that paper is in your tray? Do you wet the palette to make it stick to the tray? Thank you!😊

[@jclosestudio]

Thank you! The tray is my DIY version of a stay-wet-palette. I use a baking tray (you can use any kind of waterproof tray, like a plastic cafeteria tray) with wet kitchen roll. On top of that I put either thin tracing paper or baking parchment. Put the paint directly on the parchment. If I want to keep the paint on the palette over night I put a second baking tray on top as a lid and the paint will stay wet for a few days even. But don‘t leave it for too long, or it will develop a musty smell :)

[@traces2807]

@@jclosestudio Genius! Thanks so much for your reply!