DANIEL SMITH Jane’s Grey Watercolor was created by mixing Burnt Sienna and Ultramarine Blue, which is one of my favorite mixing pairs. This combination of two neutralizing pigments make a wonderful range of beautiful hues, from warm navy blues to deep burnt umbers and a lovely range of greys.

Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna mixed colors

While many people create their own variations of this common two-pigment mix, I decided many years ago to pre-mix it and have it available in my palette as a convenience grey, rather than mix it on the fly every time I needed it. This allows darker and stronger greys to be used more quickly, which saves time when painting en plein air.

I posted the instructions to make my particular version and I’d been putting it in my students’ palettes for years, so I had to name it something. I rather liked the pun on Payne’s Grey. But unlike most other greys, Jane’s Grey doesn’t have black in it. It is made with two liftable (non-staining) pigments so it is itself liftable. This makes it easier to lift out clouds in a stormy sky, soften shadows, or lift out other highlights.

It is also granulating which is rather nice, and without the often deadening effect of a black pigment, it stays lively on the paper. Needless to say, I use it all the time. Burnt Sienna and Ultramarine Blue are such palette staples, that it always works in any of my paintings or sketches. In mixing, it acts as a neutral tint, darkening other colours without changing them.

Mixing with Jane’s Grey – Hansa Yellow Medium, Quinacridone Gold, Pyrrol Scarlet, Pyrrol Crimson, Quinacridone Rose and Ultramarine Blue

Mixing with Jane’s Grey – Cerulean Chromium, Phthalo Blue (Green Shade), Phthalo Green (Blue Shade), Goethite and Burnt Sienna

Mixing grid from the Ultimate Mixing Half Pan Set, including Jane’s Grey

In paintings and sketches, I use it for skies and shadows, windows and concrete, for the shadows on trees or people, or to deepen another colour. It’s a great colour to have available and I’m delighted it’s now in a tube for those who don’t want to have to mix it all the time.