Caroline
Orange and green may not be two colors that come to mind when you think of classic pairings. You have orange, a really warm color, and then you have green which is a lot colder.
Could these colors possibly go well together? Also, what color does orange and green make when mixed?
These are two questions we will aim to answer in this guide along with many other tips and tricks. We will find out how these colors can go together along with the variations you can get when mixed.
So get ready for some coloring fun as we show you some unconventional color pairings!
How you can mix orange and green?
First of all, how can you mix orange and green? The initial thing you need to take note of is that when it comes to mixing colors, it’s not as simple as just saying orange and green and calling it a day.
Both of these colors can come in very different variations. To illustrate this, we will provide you with some color hex codes.
You can enter these codes into any search engine and you will find swatches of the color so that you can better see what we mean. Let’s first look at how drastic green can look.
First, look up #11FF00 and you will find a bright, neon green. Then, we have #153C1D which is an incredibly dark and rich green.
We will go into a lot more detail on specific colors throughout the guide, but this shows you how you can’t just say ‘green’ and have a universal idea of the color.
If you took both of those greens and mixed them with a light blue like #2080FE, you would get drastically different results. It makes sense, as lighter colors will create light mixes while darker colors will create dark mixes.
This is something to keep in mind when you mix orange and green, as the shades you choose will have a huge impact. If you don’t choose the right shades, you can quickly find one color overriding the other.
If you want to try and mix these colors, you can pick your favorite medium and just start going for it.
You will soon start to see which shades overpower others and which suit your taste the best.
It would also depend on what kinds of colors you need for your artwork. As mentioned, we will be covering that in more detail throughout the guide.
Next, we will be looking at how good of an idea it is to use orange and green together.
Are orange and green a good combination to mix together?
There are certain color combinations that are really classic that many people may think of. Orange and green are a more unconventional combination, but does that mean that they are bad together?
If you look at a color wheel, you will notice that orange and green are almost opposite each other on the wheel. If they were opposite one another, that would make them complementary colors.
This means that they would stand out from one another in a vibrant way that compliments each other.
With these colors, orange and blue would be complementary whereas green and red would be complementary.
As you will see on a color wheel, they are close to being opposites, so that means that they can be a great combination. Again, it will depend on the shades that you use, but they can look amazing.
These colors are also both secondary colors, which means they’re each made up of two primary colors. To clarify, green is made of blue and yellow and orange is made of red and yellow.
That means that essentially, a mix of orange and green is a mix of the three primary colors. So what color does that result in?
More often than not, you will get a lighter brown when mixing orange and green. This can vary a lot, though, and it can depend on the specific colors and quantities you use.
We will show off some of these variations in the next few steps, so we won’t dive too deeply into that right now.
The main takeaway from this step is that orange and green can indeed be a great combination.
Whether this is by using them with one another or by mixing them, you have many different outcomes you can arrive at.
You will find that it is a really useful and versatile set of of colors to have!
What results you can expect?
This next step will go into a bit more detail on some of the results you can expect from mixing orange and green.
As we touched on in the previous step, brown is the most likely color you will get when mixing these.
Again, this can depend heavily on a few factors. For a comparison, let’s use a nice vibrant orange color of #FF8B1F with a fairly neutral green with #1D8B33.
This will give you a light brown color of #8E8B29. If you look up this color, you will notice that orange is the dominant tone of this color pairing.
If you keep the orange the same but make the green a much darker #0C641E, you will get #7D7725. This is a color that has more of a green tone to it.
As you can see, the results can be quite different with just one change. These color examples have also been presented with the assumption that you are using equal amounts of the colors.
If you use a much larger blob of green as opposed to orange, for example, that will probably make the green more dominant. Also, while brown is the most common result, it is not the only one.
Depending on what you use, you could end up with a muted orange or a warm green. As you can imagine, this will also depend on whether you mix light and dark shades and the quantities you use.
The mediums you use to create your colors can also have a large impact on proceedings. For instance, watercolor paint is a really light medium that will make softer colors.
Acrylic paint and oil paints will give you thicker, richer colors instead. That’s not to say that one medium is any better than another, though.
It all depends on what kind of image you are trying to create. All that being said, the main point is that if you need to make brown then orange and green is one of the best combinations to use.
If you really put the time into it, you can also ensure that the orange and green colors you use are customized to make the perfect color you are imagining.
Now that we know some of the results you can expect from mixing orange and green, the next few steps will focus on some of the ways you can use these colors along with tips and tricks you can try out.
Best uses for orange and green mixes
All of these combinations we have looked at are all well and good, but what are some uses for these combinations? In this step, we will go over some of the ways you can use orange and green.
This will encompass these colors individually, with each other and finally mixed. We mentioned right at the start of the guide that orange is a warm color whereas green is a cool color.
However, both are colors that we see quite a lot in nature. Starting with orange, it is typically associated with stuff that is really warm.
This could include fire, lava and even the sun. Sometimes, the sky will have orange elements to it depending on the time of day.
Orange will also often be found with reds and yellows. Green is also very common in nature.
In fact, if you have a yard and look out at it now, you will almost certainly see something green. Green also symbolically refers to anything having to do with the environment.
Seeing orange and green in nature is a bit less common. It is certainly not unheard of though!
You can get many flowers and leaves that are orange, and these will often contrast with green stems and leaves.
For a perfect example, you could have a fresh orange fruit with the stem and leaf still attached.
That would be a fantastic example that shows how orange and green can go together in a natural setting.
When you mix them together, your options become even more numerous. Whether you land up with orange and green variations, you can find many uses for them.
This becomes even more the case when you start getting browns from the mixtures. You don’t have to stick to just natural designs, either.
They can also be great colors to use with general design and even decor.
No matter what medium or subject you are working with, you can get a lot of use from orange and green along with the many variations they can create.
Lighter and darker orange and green mixes
Finally, you may be wanting to know just how you can get the perfect colors you need. There are many ways you can change the brightness of the colors.
For an example, picture the orange we mentioned earlier that has the stalk and leaf. We will imagine that the orange and green for this fruit are very vibrant.
To finish it off, the orange is sitting on a dark brown plate. That means that the main colors for this painting would be orange, green and brown.
Let’s say you mix the oranges but it comes out too dark like #DA6009. You could add a lighter yellow to make it more vibrant and maybe even incorporate some white.
If you have a green that’s maybe a bit too vibrant like #77FF15, then you can add some darker blue or a bit of black. Then, we can look at the brown plate.
You may mix orange and green and end up with a light brown like #83AB26. There are a few ways to make this darker.
First, add some small amounts of black to make the colors darker. Just be careful when adding this, as it can be easy to overdo it.
You could also add some darker shades of orange or green to make the brown not only darker but also richer.
This is where experimentation is so important, as it can take a bit of trial and error to find your perfect colors.
Just try to bear in mind how light and dark colors will change the tone. Also, try to identify the subtle tones in the subject you’re trying to paint.
For instance, the orange may have a bit of a red undertone. In that case, you could add small blobs of red to change the undertone a bit.
There are lots of tricks that you can use to make the colors look as perfect as they do on the subject you’re trying to replicate.
In summary
We hope that you had a great time with this guide that showed you some of the possibilities of orange and green!
We set out to answer the question of what color does orange and green make, but we also wanted to show you some of the many uses you can have for these colors.
Just be sure to take what you have learned in this guide and use them to have fun experimenting with your favorite colors and mediums.
Whether you need the perfect orange, green or brown, you have everything you could need to create your new artwork. We look forward to seeing what you create!
