CHAPTER IX.
BROWNS, AND HOW TO MIX THEM.
ACORN BROWN.--This is very similar to a rich chocolate, and may be made in the same way.
ALDERNEY.--This is an orange brown in hue, and may be made by mixing fourteen parts of black, one of white, two of orange and three of yellow.
ARABIAN BROWN.--This is a dark terra-cotta, and may be made by adding white and black to Indian red.
ARGUS BROWN.--This is a very dark brown, and may be made by mixing twelve parts of black with two parts of orange and one part of yellow.
AUBURN TAN.--Mix together one part of burnt umber, three parts of golden ochre and twenty parts of white lead.
AUTUMN LEAF.--This is also called “leather lake.” It may be made by mixing on a base of white lead French ochre, orange chrome yellow and Venetian red.
BISMARK.--A shade of this name may be produced by using two parts of black, one of red and one of orange, which mixed together form an orange brown.
BISMARK BROWN.--This colour is obtained by mixing with six parts of black, one part of orange and one of yellow.
BISTRE.--This colour is principally used by artists. It must not be mixed with oil, and it is not always reliable for its permanency. It may be imitated by mixing together ten parts of black with two of red and a little green.
BRONZE BROWN.--Black coloured with a little orange chrome and bright green.
BROWN.--The methods of obtaining different browns will be found under the headings of the respective names, such as “Chesnut,” etc. A good average brown may be obtained by mixing together three of Indian red, two parts of lamp black and one part of yellow ochre. A lighter colour is obtained by using more ochre and less black, in fact, a large variety of brown tints may be produced by varying the proportions of ochre and black.
BURNT ROSE.--This is a dark red brown shade. To produce it use eight parts of black, one and half parts of red, two parts of orange, and one of blue.
BURNT SIENNA.--This is a sienna calcined, the effect being to produce a darker shade.
BURNT UMBER.--This is a rich dark greenish brown, but the shade varies considerably in different qualities. Turkey umber is the richest. Umbers should always be purchased ground ready for use.
CAFE AU LAIT.--To produce this shade mix five parts of black, three of white, one of yellow and a little orange. A little red may also be added if desired.
CAPPAGH BROWN.--This is an artist’s colour of a reddish brown colour, being very like umber.
CHESNUT.--This rich brown may be obtained by mixing four parts of medium chrome yellow and two parts of Venetian red. One part of yellow ochre may be added if desired.
CHOCOLATE.--Five parts of burnt sienna and one part of carmine or lake give a rich chocolate. A less expensive colour is obtained by mixing Indian red and lamp black with a little yellow ochre. A touch of vermilion will clear and brighten this mixture. Another way to produce chocolate is to mix twenty parts of black with three parts of red, but this gives a more or less muddy shade.
CINNAMON.--Six parts white lead, two parts burnt sienna, and one part of golden ochre makes a good cinnamon; or French ochre, English Indian red and a little lamp black will produce the same colour. Another way is to mix Italian sienna and burnt umber.
CLAY DRAB.--Mix equal parts of white lead, raw umber and raw sienna, and add a little chrome if desired. Some painters prefer to add a little medium chrome yellow.
COCOANUT BROWN.--This shade may be obtained by mixing one part of white lead with double the quantity of burnt umber.
COFFEE.--To produce this colour mix together five parts of burnt umber, two parts of yellow ochre and one part of burnt sienna.
COPPER.--Tint zinc white with French ochre, Italian sienna and lamp black to obtain the shade shown in the sample. A very good copper shade is obtained by mixing two parts of medium chrome yellow, one part of Venetian red, and one part of drop black or two parts of lamp black, three parts of medium chrome yellow and six parts of Venetian red.
CORK COLOUR.--Tint white lead with French ochre, Indian red and a little lamp black, or with raw Italian sienna and burnt umber.
DARK DRAB.--French grey, Indian red and lamp black added to white lead give this colour.
DARK LAVA.--Mix French ochre, Indian red and lamp black, and lighten with white lead.
DARK OAK.--Add French ochre and Venetian red to white lead as a base.
DOE COLOUR.--This may be produced by mixing raw Italian sienna and burnt umber with white lead, or French ochre and mineral brown with a little lamp black.
DOVE COLOUR.--White lead, with a little Prussian blue and a touch of ivory black will produce an excellent dove colour; but French ochre, Indian red, and lamp black may be employed, or a mixture of raw and burnt Turkey umber and Italian sienna.
DRAB.--A good drab is made by using burnt umber and white lead in the proportion of one of the former to ten of the latter, but raw umber and a little Venetian red may be used instead.
FAWN.--This might also be called deep drab. It is produced by tinting white lead with a mixture of French ochre, Indian red, and lamp black or raw Italian sienna and raw Turkey umber. Another shade of fawn is obtained by using eight parts of white lead, one part of chrome yellow, one part of Indian red, and one part of burnt umber; or eight parts of white lead, two parts of medium chrome yellow, one part Venetian red, and one part of burnt umber.
FOLIAGE BROWN.--Mix burnt umber with raw and burnt sienna and lighten with white as may be necessary.
FRENCH OCHRE.--This colour, of course, is bought ready made, and it must be observed that, in addition to the fineness, the particular tone of this colour is very important, especially to grainers.
GOLDEN BROWN.--Sixteen parts of white lead are mixed with one of burnt sienna and three parts of yellow ochre.
INDIAN BROWN.--Mix equal parts of Indian red, lamp black and yellow ochre.
LAVA.--An orange brown lava shade can be got by mixing fifteen parts of black, five parts of orange, four of yellow and a very little white.
LEATHER BROWN.--Four parts of yellow ochre, three parts of Venetian red, two parts of white lead, and one part of blue black give a rich leather brown. If a lighter tint is required less black should be used. Or the following recipe may be used: Mix white with three times the quantity of red and the same amount of yellow. Some painters use French ochre for a base and tint with burnt umber or Venetian red.
LIGHT LAVA.--A mixture of raw umber and raw sienna added to white will give this colour.
LIME CHOCOLATE.--This is a speciality of Messrs. MANDER BROS. It is suitable for mixing in water or oil and is very useful for all purposes of the decorative artist.
LIGHT OAK.--Add French ochre and Venetian red to white as a base.
LIZARD BRONZE.--Fifteen parts of black, one of orange, five of yellow, and four of green will produce this dark greenish yellow shade.
MADDER GREEN.--A reddish brown madder shade is produced with one part blue, three parts each of orange and red, and six parts black.
MAHOGANY.--Mix orange and yellow in equal proportions with five times the quantity of black.
MAST-COLOURED PAINT.--The following recipe gives good results. Mix twelve parts of genuine dry white lead with two parts of French ochre, two parts of grey barytes, and one part of genuine oxide of iron.
NUT BROWN.--Equal quantities of red and yellow mixed with ten times as much black will give this shade.
OLD WOOD.--To get this shade mix one part of blue and red, two of orange and five of black.
OLIVE BROWN may be made by mixing three parts of burnt umber and one part of lemon chrome yellow; or another shade is given by mixing equal quantities of orange and green with about twelve times as much black. Some painters add lemon chrome yellow to raw umber for a base.
ORANGE BROWN.--Two parts of orange chrome yellow mixed with three parts sienna.
POMEGRANATE.--A golden brown shade sometimes called by this name is given by mixing three parts of red, six of orange, four of yellow with twenty parts of black.
PURPLE BROWN.--Mix four parts of dark Indian red with one part of ultramarine blue and of lamp black. The addition of white lead will usually make a more satisfactory tint; if the shade is too purple, a similar quantity of blue should be added; if too red, more black may be used, or a little yellow added, but purple brown pigment is cheap.
RAW SIENNA.--Siennas are valuable earth colours most useful for staining or tinting, but practically useless as body colours. The degree of transparency determines to some extent the quality.
RAW UMBER.--A valuable earth colour.
RUSSET BROWN.--Indian red lightened with white produces a tint sometimes called by this name.
RUSSET.--A very good russet shade is got by mixing twenty parts of black, twelve parts of red, ten of orange, three of yellow, and five of green. Or medium chrome green, raw umber, and a little orange chrome yellow added to white as a base will give an excellent russet.
SANDSTONE.--A tinting colour made by mixing raw and burnt umber will produce this colour.
SEAL BROWN.--Four parts burnt umber, one part golden ochre.
SEPIA.--This is a natural colour used chiefly by artists. It cannot be imitated and it must not be used in oil.
SIENNA BROWN.--This colour is variously called “sienna brown,” “teak brown,” and by other names. It is made by mixing burnt Italian sienna and French ochre with pure zinc.
SNUFF BROWN.--French ochre and Indian red added to zinc white will produce this colour. Another way to produce a snuff colour is to mix four parts of medium yellow and two parts of Vandyke brown, or burnt umber may be substituted for the Vandyke brown if desired. Another snuff colour may be obtained by mixing burnt umber and yellow ochre, tinging with a little Venetian red.
TAN.--Mix ten parts of burnt sienna and four parts of medium chrome yellow with three parts of raw umber. White lead and burnt sienna, to which has been added a very little lamp black, will also produce a tan colour.
THRUSH BROWN.--One part yellow ochre, three parts burnt umber, twelve parts white lead.
TURKEY UMBER.--The richest variety of the many umbers on the market.
VANDYKE BROWN.--This is an important brown to the house painter. It cannot be imitated, although a little red added to umber produces a colour somewhat similar to it.
VIENNA SMOKE.--The best burnt umber should be tinted with lemon chrome yellow and a little Venetian red.
WALLFLOWER BROWN.--This beautiful brown may be made by a mixture of medium chrome yellow and brown lake. Or crimson lake and burnt sienna may be mixed with medium chrome.