Watercolor Techniques - Staining - Colors

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Watercolor Techniques - Staining - Colors

Dark Staining

When a pigment tints the fiber of the paper it is called a staining color.These colors behave like a dye. The staining nature in a pigment is not relevant to other qualities. Opaque, sedimentary or transparent colors can be either staining or nonstaining. The degree of staining quality of a pigment is important to know only if you intend to lift out a color. 

A staining color will show a tint of its hue even after you have tried to wet-scrub and blot off the paint. This behavior remains even if the staining color is mixed with other nonstaining colors.

Dark Staining Colors include:

. All phthalo colors

. Burnt Sienna

. Scarlet Lake

. Sap Green

. Hooker's Green

Light Staining

These few pigments stain a little if they are applied with heavy pressure or with a scrubbing technique. However, their hue retains only a light tint in the paper. If they are mixed with other nonstaining or light staining colors, the resulting mix will stain according to the strength of the dominant color.

Light Staining Colors include:

. Gold Ochre

. Cobalt Blue

. Gamboge Yellow

. Cerulean Blue

. Magenta

Testing Staining Strength

To test the staining strength of a color, paint a rich brushstroke and let it dry. After loosening the pigment with a very wet brush (such as a small oil painting brush), blot it off with a tissue. A staining color will get a little lighter but will leave a strong impression of its hue in the fiber of the paper. It's important to test on the same kind of paper as you will use for your painting. The staining quality of a color may vary from one brand of paper to another.