Metallic White is the quietest of the specialty colours and one of the more interesting. Holbein lists PW20 alone, Titanated Mica, with nothing added to tint it. Mica is a naturally platey mineral, so what you get is a pale, shifting film that behaves quite differently from a solid white. No Munsell notation is published for it, and no single value could sensibly describe a colour that changes with the angle you view it from. Three stars for lightfastness.

Metallic White is the subtle highlight: moonlight on water, breath in cold air, frost, spider silk, snow, the sheen on satin, a ghost of a reflection on glass. Over black it is startling. Over pale colour it almost disappears, which is occasionally exactly what you want for a barely-there shimmer on a wedding invitation or a pale botanical study. Illustrators use it as the last pass on a finished piece, laid over dry colour where a highlight needs to sit on the surface rather than inside it. Treat it as a finishing colour.

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

Acrylic gouache is what you use when you want colour to sit absolutely flat and then stay there. It is pigment in an acrylic emulsion, thinned with water, and it dries without gloss. 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. For a finishing colour like Metallic White that is essential, since the whole technique depends on painting over work that is already done. There is more about the maker on our Holbein page.

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 Metallic White