Using Phthalo Blue & Green in Watercolor

Phthalos are sometimes considered difficult to use because of their intensity. I'll show you some ways to tame the colors and learn what else you can do with them. I'll be demonstrating specifically with Phthalo Blue GS (PB15:3) and Phthalo Green BS (PG7).

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[mindofwatercolor]

I should have specified in this video that I was using Phthalo Blue Green Shade ( PG15:3) and Phthalo Green Blue Shade (PG7). I consider these the more commonly used of the Phthalos which is why I didn't specify, but just note there will be differences with Phthalo Blue Red Shade (PB15:1) and Phthalo Green Yellow Shade (PG36). The mixing principles demonstrated here are the same.

[FortheBudgies]

Phthalo is my favorite color to paint with. It is gorgeous. I love it in other people's art as well. I even named my cat Phthalo.

[blondelebanese]

I am a sponge, you are water. Actually I consider you my have shown me how to paint properly because until now I have been self taught. I’ve been painting for more than 40 years, mostly in acrylic. Now I’ve been teaching myself to paint with watercolors and failing, until I found your videos. You take the time to tell us WHY you do what you do....that’s pretty epic. Thank you for being so generous with your time and knowledge. You’ve heard the saying ‘can’t teach an old dog new tricks’? Not true! You’ve taught me plenty and I’m eager to learn more!
🎨🖌Annie B.

[InLiquidColor]

So, when I first started with watercolors I bought phthalo green because all the lists said to. However it was such an unnatural color that I took it off my palette for quite some time. HOWEVER, after painting for some time, I realized what a valuable color it is for mixing! I looove mixing it with dioxazine violet for deep moody violets or with Ultramarine for teals. Mixed with the original quinacridone gold, at my favorite sap green of all time :)

As for the blue, my favorite mixes are transparent pyrrol orange to make a very, very solid black and with just about any red for vibrant purples :)

In short, I'm a big fan! Thanks for the fun video Steve!

[Mslonewolf]

This is a help to beginners because they need to know what their colors will and can do while they are painting. I Know I needed to do this to get to know my paints because they are a different brand of paint than what you use. Thanks for the video. 😊!

[JuJuForREAL]

The beginning!!! As a 90s baby. I totally loved that!! So you were one of those cool older people I admired growing up 😍🥰🥰🥰🤘🏾🤘🏾🤘🏾🤘🏾

[vivaldirules]

Thumbs upping. Thank you, Steve. Phthalo green = Wizard of Oz.

[jesstolley]

Phthalo Green and Maroon Perylene make and AWESOME dark green! :D

[mariahellerstedt]

Just love your way to learn. im from Sweden and like it slow and clear as english is my second languich. im a new beginner and i will look at old ones and falling you in new. thnx Maria

[annenglish]

Thanks for this hilarious beginning and all your sharing... I'm a newbie Gramma and impulse buy those intense phthalos and greens and blues I immediately fell in love with. Now I realize some are almost identical... I'm more careful and can always share. I just opened 3 tubes yesterday WOW!!! The Holbein Marine blue took my breath away!!!... PB16 & PG7, PEACOCK BLUE, PB 15, PG7, PRUSSIAN GREEN PB60, PG7. YES I PLAY with seascapes and skies. I also try not to listen to the 10 reasons not to do this in watercolor! Very surprising, cuz' I thought it was a satire! Love ❤ it! God bless you from a California Gramma

[MeowMeowKapow]

 Sold.  Took four seconds to get me on board.

Personally, I love phthalo!  Phthalo turquoise is almost always in my palettes, and phthalo blue is an absolute MUST have.  I accidentally discovered it while in college, when I tried to glaze an entire oil piece with a thin layer of phthalo blue to unify  It was a very bad painting and that didn't work to solve it, but the blue itself had stolen my heart by the very first brushstroke.

Great tips in here, thanks for taking the time to spread the phthalove!

[kathys]

Amazing how beautiful the colors are to begin with- and equally as beautiful mixed!!!!

[bethc]

I love these two colors both in watercolor and in acrylic. They are my favorite.

[LafayetteLeSaint]

I remember many many years ago an art teach gave me five tubes of acrylic. One was ultramarine blue which really frustrated me. I was trying to get an emerald or what I call a kelly or grass green and couldn't. No matter how much or how little yellow I mixed with the ultramarine blue I couldn't get it. I even tried mixing black and white with still no results. The greens I got I hated. Then years later I got into watercolors and discovered Thalo Blue. Bingo! I found the green I was looking for and also discovered it made great purples and/or violets. I for one love the intensity of it.

[annettefournier]

Ok, this makes more sense to my newbie brain than just swatching out colors and not knowing how they mix with other colors. I'm not into phthalos yet but just love them. I'm so new to this I'm still limiting myself to three or four basic colors at a time. Thanks for your expertise.

[ArtByStephenB]

I think Pthalo blue and green are genius for palettes because they are essentially concentrated base colors.

Pthalo green blue shade can mix extremely unnatural neon greens, to middle emerald greens, to sap green, to neutralized greens, yellow greens, or teals. Extremely versatile. You can even add white to it to make a pretty close Cobalt Teal blue hue.

I’m so torn between French ultramarine and Pthalo blue red shade though. I CANNOT for the life of me decide which one to put on my palette. I love the extreme warmth and vibrancy of ultramarine (almost like its glowing) and love the purples it can make but I’m not the biggest fan of its granulation. I love the Pthalo blue red shade for its smooth washes and no granulation and it’s a stunning blue to look at. I’ve been experimenting to see the greys that both of these blues can make with burnt sienna and the results were similar yet a little different. I CANT DECIDE. 🤔🤔🤔🤔

[dianehansma]

Laughing, love the humor in the beginning!! I really like those two colors~~~it's great to use unusual colors, especially in abstracts in acrylics!!!

[tinyrocks]

Lol, you won the award for best dad-joke with that intro

[rainspren]

The information you pass on is priceless for new watercolorists, but your sense of humour keeps me coming back. Haha. Thank you!

[romaeterna]

So glad you clarified this! Thanks for super instructions overall. BTW "knowledge is power"when you use it; also when you remember it!