Color Swatch and Pigment Guide

Where to Find Color Swatches and Pigment Information

Hover over the paint you wish to see a swatch for in the paint category in the “Paints“ tab or on the left of product images on product pages.

On the product page for that color, hover over the product image and accompanying swatch to see a magnified version.

Pigment information is located in the “Detail“ tab on the product page below the product images.

About Our Paint Swatches

Our paint swatches vary in appearance depending on the paint used to create them. Oil and Ceracolors paint swatches typically display two colors, one representing the full strength color and the tint mixed in a ratio of 1:1 with titanium white.

There are several variations for paints, such as watercolors: full strength and tint. In cases where white is not commonly used, as with watercolors, the swatch will show a solid and thinned application.

Oil Color Swatches

The color swatch was created with a full-strength application (left side) of color and a tint (right side) made with equal parts of color and titanium white and applied on acrylic primed cotton canvas.

Ceracolors Cold Wax Swatches

The color swatch was created with a full-strength application (left triangle) of color and a tint (right triangle) made with equal parts of color and titanium white and applied on a smooth acrylic primed panel.

Watercolor Swatches

Colors swatches are shown in mass tone at the top, mixed with an equal amount of water, and brushed out toward the bottom. Paint is lifted midway down the swatch to show the amount of staining or lifting possible.

All images of color swatches on this website approximate the paint's actual color. We have carefully matched the color in these pictures on calibrated color monitors to the actual color. However, your results may vary because of the wide variance in color monitors.

About Paint Drawdowns

The image of the "drawdown" contains a pre-mixed paint film of 6 mils (0.006 inches) thickness applied to a standard test card to examine color consistency, opacity, and other qualities. The drawdowns show the full-color strength (mass tone) on the left and mixed in a 1:2 ratio with titanium white on the right. The bottom area of the drawdowns is scraped to show undertones.

A black bar is printed across the middle of the test card, showing the relative opacity of the color. If the color hides the back bar, the paint is opaque at that thickness. The paint is transparent at the same thickness when the black bar is visible.

Pigment Information

In addition to color swatches, we’ve gathered the most detailed pigment information for every color we carry. To find pigment information, click on the color you’re searching for under the ”Paints” or ”Pigments” tab. Scroll down to the “Details” tab on the product page below the product images.

The table with the heading “Pigment Information” on the product image includes the Pigment Name, Pigment Classification, Colour Index, Chemical Name, Chemical Formula, CAS Number, Properties, Permanence, and Toxicity.

On our Pigment pages, you will find complete information about the  History, Source, Oil Absorption, Permanence, and Toxicity of that pigment.