What color do purple and white make?
Purple and white make lavender (lilac). White tints purple into lavender and lilac.
Purple + white = lavender (lilac)
Why purple and white make lavender (lilac)
Adding white makes a tint: the same hue, lighter and paler. Tints of purple keep its character but read softer and more pastel.
Paint mixes subtractively: each pigment absorbs part of the light, and the mix reflects only what both let through. That is why paint mixes get darker and duller as you add colors, while light mixes get brighter.
Change the ratio
Equal parts are only the middle of a range. More purple pulls the result toward purple, more white toward white. Mix a small test batch, note the parts you used, and scale up once you like it.
All three are mixed with the same spectral paint model. Dark paints are strong, so a little of them changes a mix a lot; light paints such as white and yellow need more parts to show.
Purple and white on a screen
Tips for mixing purple and white
- Start with the white and add the purple to it a little at a time. Darker colors overpower lighter ones quickly, so this way round wastes less paint.
- Mix thoroughly with a palette knife; streaks of unmixed purple or white change how the color reads from a distance.
- Let a test swatch dry before judging it. Acrylics usually dry a little darker, while watercolors dry lighter.
- Write down the ratio that works (for example 2 parts to 1) so you can mix the same color again.
- To match a color on screen, compare the paint swatch against the hex code here on a calibrated display, and remember print and paint cannot reach every screen color.
More purple color mixes
| Mix | Result | Ratio | Hex |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purple + red | red-violet (plum) | equal parts | #8A2E48 |
| Purple + orange | russet (red-brown) | 3 purple : 2 orange | #874847 |
| Purple + yellow | brown (muddy gray-brown) | 2 purple : 1 yellow | #885056 |
| Purple + green | slate gray (dark gray-brown) | equal parts | #4A4F54 |
| Purple + blue | blue-violet (indigo) | equal parts | #3B3A9F |
| Purple + pink | orchid (light magenta-purple) | 2 purple : 3 pink | #B86CB9 |
| Purple + brown | plum brown (aubergine) | 2 purple : 1 brown | #6F3856 |
| Purple + black | deep purple (eggplant) | 2 purple : 1 black | #312632 |
| Purple + gray | mauve (gray-purple) | 1 purple : 3 gray | #89768C |
More white color mixes
| Mix | Result | Ratio | Hex |
|---|---|---|---|
| White + red | pink | 3 white : 2 red | #FF8793 |
| White + orange | peach | 2 white : 1 orange | #FDD086 |
| White + yellow | pale yellow (cream) | 3 white : 1 yellow | #FDF59A |
| White + green | mint (pastel green) | 2 white : 1 green | #A4E0AE |
| White + blue | light blue (sky blue) | 3 white : 2 blue | #7CB7EB |
| White + pink | pale pink (baby pink) | 3 white : 2 pink | #FCCEE3 |
| White + brown | light brown (beige, tan) | 3 white : 2 brown | #D3AF82 |
| White + black | gray | 3 white : 1 black | #888888 |
| White + gray | light gray (silver) | 4 white : 3 gray | #CBCBCB |
Frequently asked questions
What color do purple and white make?
Purple and white make lavender (lilac) in paint (about #D7A7E6, mixed 1 purple : 2 white). White tints purple into lavender and lilac.
Is purple and white the same in paint and on a screen?
Not exactly. Paint gives lavender (lilac) (about #D7A7E6 at 1 purple : 2 white), while a 50/50 digital blend in a design tool gives #B596CA, because screens mix light rather than pigment.
How do I make the mix lighter or darker?
Add white to lighten it into a tint, black (a little at a time) to darken it into a shade, or gray to mute it. Changing the ratio of purple to white shifts the hue itself.
Mix any two colors
The color mixer blends up to five colors by weight in a spectral paint model, OKLab or linear light, and exports the steps.