The Ash colours are Holbein's muted set, and Ash Rose shows how they are built: an iron oxide red, PR101, knocked back with PBk7 carbon and PW6 titanium white. Because there is titanium white in the pigment list this is a tint, and because there is carbon in it the chroma stays very low. Munsell reads 8.0R 5.5/3.0, a mid value with only a whisper of saturation. A dusty, greyed rose, rated three stars.

Muted colours are hard to mix and easy to buy, and this is one of the better arguments for the Ash group. It gives you a rose that sits down quietly next to strong colour, which suits interiors, textiles, packaging, dried florals, weathered brick and rendered walls. Illustrators use it for skin in shadow and for the middle tone in a limited three-colour palette. In flat-design work it acts as a neutral with a pulse: not grey, not pink, and rather more interesting than either. It lightens cleanly with white and deepens with Sepia.

What Makes This Colour Special

Pigment, lightfastness and series as published by Holbein. Holbein does not publish an opacity rating for individual colours; the range as a whole is described by Holbein as opaque.

Acrylic Gouache, Not Traditional Gouache

Holbein built this range around flat colour: illustration, animation backgrounds, graphic design, model finishing. Pigment in an acrylic emulsion, water for thinning, nothing else needed. Holbein Acrylic Gouache dries to a matte opaque finish and is water resistant once dry, so it does not reactivate with water like traditional gouache. Muted colours like Ash Rose are shown off by that matte surface, because there is no sheen interfering with a low-chroma tone. Heavier, well-sized sheets from our pads and paper take broad flats without cockling.

Why Holbein Acrylic Gouache Is in Serious Studios

• Genuinely opaque. Holbein describes the range simply as an opaque acrylic paint. It covers, including over darker colour, which is the whole point of reaching for gouache rather than watercolour.
• Velvety matte, no sheen. Holbein describes the colour as opaque, intense, smooth and velvety. It dries flat, which is why it photographs and scans without glare.
• Water resistant once dry, so you can layer. Holbein’s own wording, and the reason the range exists. A dry layer will take another one over the top without lifting.
• The colour you mix is the colour you get. Holbein states it does not shift in colour tone from wet to dried colour. Anyone who has watched a perfect grey dry into a different grey will appreciate that.
• Built to use straight from the tube. Holbein says it is specifically designed to be used directly from the tube and will dry to even, uniform paint layers.
• Works on more than paper. Holbein lists paper, canvas, cloth, stone, wood, leather, plexiglass and concrete, with excellent adhesion, and full compatibility with all acrylic mediums.

Getting the Most Out of This Tube

Straight from the tube is the default. This is what Holbein designed it for, and it is where you get those even, flat, uniform layers. Add a little water to loosen it, but go easy: very diluted washes can dry streaky across a large flat area, so build coverage in thin even coats rather than flooding it on.

Watch the palette, not the clock. Holbein gives an open time of roughly 10 to 30 minutes and notes the drying time is much like ordinary watercolour. The practical consequence is that paint left sitting on the palette will go off and will not come back, so squeeze out small amounts as you need them.

It plays well with acrylic mediums. Holbein states the range is compatible with all acrylic mediums, so you can change the body or extend the working time if you want to. Soft synthetic brushes suit it, since they hold enough paint to lay a flat area without dragging.

Questions About Holbein Ash Rose