In this desert-island scenario I'm choosing a limited palette that I would hypothetically spend the rest of my life with. It was a difficult choice, and made me consider what pigment properties are the most important to me such as transparency and granulation. Want to join in? This challenge is open to the art community. At the bottom of the post you can find different ways to join!

Watercolour triads are an amazing way to explore new watercolours on a smaller budget, and to increase your colour mixing knowledge through limitation. I selected three pigments I have not used before to create an unusual yet practical limited palette for my self study and plein air adventures. All from a new-to-me watercolour brand Jackman’s Art Materials. Earthy greens mix with rich orange-browns, set against deep purples in this textural trio.

Exploring my new six colour limited watercolour palette with an unconventional split primary yellow. I use Azo Orange for the warm yellow and Azo Green for the cool yellow, and explain how I can mix a yellow from the two. Let’s dive into some colour mixing and a sketchbook test with a leopard portrait.