How To Make Sage Green Paint: From Scratch Or Primary Colors

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Mixing Sage Green Paint Download Article Get the perfect shade of earthy green with any basic painting set Co-authored by Kelly Medford and Aly Rusciano

Last Updated: October 31, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Using Yellow, Blue, & Gray
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• Using Yellow, Blue, & Red
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• Starting with Green Paint
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This article was co-authored by Kelly Medford and by wikiHow staff writer, Aly Rusciano. Kelly Medford is an American painter based in Rome, Italy. She studied classical painting, drawing and printmaking both in the U.S. and in Italy. She works primarily en plein air on the streets of Rome, and also travels for private international collectors on commission. She founded Sketching Rome Tours in 2012 where she teaches sketchbook journaling to visitors of Rome. Kelly is a graduate of the Florence Academy of Art. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 138,675 times.

Sage is a beautiful, calming gray-green color, but it doesn’t show up in many painting palettes on its own. Thankfully, there are a variety of ways to mix your own custom shade of sage to complete the perfect painting or living room wall. We spoke to professional artist Kelly Medford to bring you the best advice on how to make sage green paint from scratch, primary colors, or other shades of green.

What colors make sage green?

The most common way to make sage green is to mix 2 parts yellow with 1 part blue and 3 parts gray. The combination of yellow and blue creates a basic green sage, and the gray dulls the green and subdues the yellow for an earthier green tone.

Steps

Section 1 of 3:

How to Make Sage Green Paint with Yellow, Blue & Gray

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1. 1 Mix 2 parts yellow paint with 1 part blue to make a basic green. These are two colors that every artist should have on hand. Medford suggests using a “primary palette when you paint, meaning a warm and cool selection of each primary color plus white. This gives you [the ability to mix] more colors than you can imagine.”[1] In a bowl or on a plate, use a paintbrush or palette knife to combine your colors. Stir them until there are no streaks left in your paint. The result is a vibrant, classic green.[2]
   • True green is equal parts yellow and blue. To make sage, more yellow is preferred.

   Meet the wikiHow Expert

   Kelly Medford is an American painter and professional artist who’s studied classical painting, drawing, and printmaking.

2. 2 Add 3 parts yellow paint to the green to make a bright grass green. The amount of yellow you use should equal the amount of green you made earlier. Mix thoroughly with your brush or knife, making circular motions until the colors are evenly blended.
   • Try using a measure, such as 1 tablespoon (15 mL), to ensure the parts of paint are equal in size.
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3. 3 Mix a separate blob of 3 parts white to 1 part black to create gray. The size of the parts here should be about the same as the parts you used to make your grass green. The result is a neutral, medium-light gray color. Mix with a clean brush or knife that doesn’t have any green, blue, or yellow paint on it.[3]
   • Make your gray darker for a more subdued sage. Try a 1:1 ratio of white to black to start.
   • Adding white will lighten your gray, while adding black will darken it. It only takes a small amount of black to darken, but it takes lots of white to lighten.
   • To ensure the parts of paint are equal in size, use the same measure (1 tablespoon (15 mL)) you used to create your grass green paint.
4. 4 Stir the grass green and gray together to create sage green. Use the full amount of gray and green you made to get a standard shade of sage, or try mixing in small amounts of gray at a time until you find the shade you’re looking for. Remember, you can always add more paint, but you can’t take it out!
   • If your sage starts looking too dark, add more of your grass green to balance out the gray (and vice versa if it’s looking too bright).
   Betty Edwards, Distinguished Art Educator

   Mixing the perfect sage green is an intricate balancing act. Adding just a hint of gray can shift a bold, lively green into a softer, more tranquil sage. Every color you mix gives you a new chance to share your one-of-a-kind creative perspective.

5. 5 Adjust the sage (as needed) with dabs of white, black, or gray. If you like the shade of sage you have but want it lighter, add white paint. If you want to make the shade darker, add a tiny amount of black. Add more gray to make a more subdued and somber sage, or add more grass green to make it livelier.[4]
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Section 2 of 3:

How to Make Sage Green Paint with Yellow, Blue & Red

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1. 1 Combine 2 parts yellow paint with 1 part blue to make a basic green. Mix the paint with a palette knife or paintbrush in a bowl or on a plate. Stir smoothly and thoroughly to evenly distribute the colors.[5] If you don’t have a way to precisely measure paint, err on the side of adding too much yellow rather than too much blue. In fact, according to Medford, “[to] mix a light green that has more yellow than blue, start with yellow and then slowly add blue until [you] get to the right value and hue.”[6]
2. 2 Add red paint one drop at a time to create sage. Red is the opposite of green on the color wheel. As you add red, the green will begin to turn more green-brown or green-gray. Slowly add your red and mix after each added drop until you find the shade of sage you like.[7]
   • When you’re using only these primary colors, think of sage green as a recipe: 2 parts yellow, 1 part blue, and just a dash of red for flavor.
   • Red will overpower green quickly, so take your time adding it in.
3. 3 Adjust the sage with small amounts of red, green, white, or black. If your new sage is looking too brown or red, balance it out by adding more of your green into the mix (and vice versa). Once you find the shade you like, lighten it with white paint or darken it with black paint.
   • Black will overpower the sage quickly, so only add 1 drop at a time when you’re darkening. White is weaker, so you’ll need to add more of it to lighten.
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Section 3 of 3:

How to Make Sage Green Paint By Adjusting Green Paint

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1. 1 Add one drop of red paint at a time to turn a green into sage. Since red is the complementary color to green, it pushes the color toward the middle of the color spectrum (the gray-brown area) regardless of the shade of green you started with. Add small amounts of red to a green shade like mint, camo green, or olive, and see where it leads you.[8]
   • If the shade is too brown, add more green to balance it out.
   • If your starting green was more on the blue side, add a “hotter” red that has some orange in it.
   • If your green was more on the yellow side, add a “cool” red-purple or magenta color.
   • The general rule is that cool reds will dull your greens and keep them cool, while hot reds will add warmth to the green.
2. 2 Adjust the brightness of your sage with black or white paint. Add white to lighten the color or black paint to darken it. If the whitened sage seems to lose its saturation or fullness (like a pastel green), you may need to incorporate more green or green-yellow to liven it up. As you’re mixing, keep in mind Medford’s advice that “color is relative to what it is next to, so what looks good on your palate may not be quite right in context on your painting.”[9] [10]
   • Remember, black is a very strong color. You only need a drop to darken your sage paint.
3. 3 Play around with it! There are many different shades and hues of sage you can get depending on the exact colors and proportions you’re mixing together. Medford suggests you “experiment with your colors and their ratios” so that you have a clear sense of what you like best.[11] Once you get familiar with how the colors interact with each other, play around with different combinations and see all the new variations you can come up with. After all, painting is about creativity![12]
   • For inspiration about color combinations, use the color wheel (a circular chart that illustrates the relationships between all colors).
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Tips

• These techniques can also be used while baking or making colored icing! Instead of paint, just use food coloring instead. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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References

1. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview
2. ↑ https://artsyfartsylife.com/what-colors-make-green/
3. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
4. ↑ https://acrylgiessen.com/en/what-colors-make-green/
5. ↑ https://artsyfartsylife.com/what-colors-make-green/
6. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview
7. ↑ https://acrylgiessen.com/en/what-colors-make-green/
8. ↑ https://acrylgiessen.com/en/what-colors-make-green/
9. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview

More References (3)

10. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBWBfvwOMnQ
11. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview
12. ↑ https://artincontext.org/mixing-colors/

About This Article

Co-authored by: Kelly Medford Professional Artist This article was co-authored by Kelly Medford and by wikiHow staff writer, Aly Rusciano. Kelly Medford is an American painter based in Rome, Italy. She studied classical painting, drawing and printmaking both in the U.S. and in Italy. She works primarily en plein air on the streets of Rome, and also travels for private international collectors on commission. She founded Sketching Rome Tours in 2012 where she teaches sketchbook journaling to visitors of Rome. Kelly is a graduate of the Florence Academy of Art. This article has been viewed 138,675 times. 2 votes - 100% Co-authors: 5 Updated: October 31, 2025 Views: 138,675 Categories: Featured Articles | Paints In other languages Portuguese Dutch Spanish Japanese

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  Mara G.

  Jul 24, 2024

  "The article confirmed my previous knowledge, so I'm mixing colors with more confidence."

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Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Co-authored by: Kelly Medford Professional Artist Co-authors: 5 Updated: October 31, 2025 Views: 138,675 100% of readers found this article helpful. 2 votes - 100% Click a star to add your vote

Mara G.

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"The article confirmed my previous knowledge, so I'm mixing colors with more confidence." Share yours!

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