Paint & Colour Mixing / A practical handbook for painters, decorators and all who have to mix colours, containing 72 samples of paint of various colours, including the principal graining grounds

by Arthur Seymour Jennings

Venetian, Indian and Tuscan Reds, etc.

These colours may be classed as the iron colours, consisting largely of oxide of iron. It should be remembered that ochres and umbers also receive their colouring from iron. Analysis gives but little information concerning the value of this group of colours. They form economical paints, especially as they spread well. The proportion of oxide of iron contained is often considered to be an indication of quality, but this refers particularly to cases where paint is to be used on iron. The tests of value to the painter are body and fineness of grinding, which may be tested in the usual way. Oxide paints are usually sold as such in three shades. A Venetian red is lighter than an Indian red, which, in comparison, should have a purplish tint. It must be remembered in this class of colours that a comparison of the same shades must be made if any useful result is to be obtained.

Tuscan Red

is a mixture of Indian red with some sort of lake colour in order to secure brilliancy. This brilliancy forms an important feature of the test; body should also be ascertained, and fineness of grinding is also important. Tuscan red, which is coarse, may lose its richness when ground fine.

Vermilion and Vermilionettes.

—Many of the imitation vermilions consist of orange red, that is, a superior red lead coloured with eosine, which is the name of one of the coal tar colours. Speaking generally, the scarlet colours are more permanent than those having a crimson tinge. It is important to know that the tinting strength for many vermilionettes is no indication of their quality or rather, perhaps it should be said that within reasonable limits the better stainers they are, the worse colours they will prove to be. This is because barytes or some other mineral may be substituted for the orange red and then the eosine will go farther in staining.

Red Lead.

—Every painter knows that the great objection to the use of red lead is that it will harden quickly. We recommend that on large jobs arrangements should be made with a manufacturer to supply a sufficient quantity for two or three days. It should be well ground to a thin paste in the proportion of, say, about one pound of oil to five pounds of red lead. The usual manner of painting iron, etc., in red lead is to first give a priming coat of pure lead and then a second coat of any colour desired. An excellent second coat is formed of equal parts by weight of red lead and good iron oxide. Any finishing coat may be applied.