New watercolor palette

My old palette

My go-to palette has always been the Mijello with 33 wells. It’s a lightweight, foldable plastic palette with plenty of room for my colors. Although it has a large mixing area, I often use ceramic plates for mixing. However, the built-in mixing space is handy when traveling, making this palette a great companion.

What I was looking for

Over time, I’ve noticed I only use a fraction of the 33 colors in my old palette. In reality, I primarily use just 12 shades. I realized I didn’t need such a large palette anymore, so I began searching for a new one to fit my current needs:

• Around 15 wells for my top colors.
• A nice mixing area to avoid extra plates.
• A protective cover to keep dust away.
• Not too big.

Although my American Journey Cavalcade porcelain palette is beautiful, it’s just too large and heavy for my purposes. Measuring 11” x 16” with 30 wells, it’s not ideal for a compact setup. I needed something smaller but still aesthetically pleasing for my tutorials.

The New Palette

After much research, I finally found the perfect fit—the Sojourner Porcelain Palette. This smaller version of the American Journey Cavalcade measures 9” x 12” and comes with 17 wells for color. It also features two large mixing areas, which are 4” x 7”.

The size is just right, and it meets all my needs. You can find this palette at Cheap Joe’s (US), Jackson’s Art (UK), and probably on Amazon.

Using Swatches to Set Up the Palette

When setting up a new watercolor palette, swatches are incredibly helpful. Before choosing colors, I played around with swatches to see how they’d fit into the palette and what arrangement would be most efficient.

Choosing Colors

I knew I had to include my top 12 colors in this palette. However, with 17 wells available and my aversion to leaving empty spaces, I needed to choose 5 additional colors. I was certain about including two greens: Green Gold PY129 and Winsor Green Yellow Shade PG36. With 3 more spaces to fill, I decided to add complementary colors to balance the palette. Therefore, I included Transparent Orange PO107 and Winsor Violet PV23. For the final slot, I chose Yellow Ochre PY43.

Note: I use Winsor & Newton paints. Although I previously used Translucent Orange PO71 from Schmincke, a beautiful warm orange, I decided to stick with Winsor & Newton this time. I chose Transparent Orange PO107 by Winsor & Newton for consistency. What I appreciate about Winsor & Newton is not just their reputation for high-quality paints, but also the convenience of having a complete range of single-pigmented colors from a single brand. This way, I can easily find all the colors I need without mixing brands.

Here’s how I arranged the colors in the new palette—I’m excited to start using it and see how it performs!

A cover

This palette comes with a transparent plastic cover, the same type included with the larger American Journey Cavalcade palette, so I was familiar with it. This cover tends to turn yellow over time, which isn’t very attractive, but it doesn’t bother me much. Its primary purpose is to protect the paints from dust. I’ve seen a clever idea of making a custom cover from foam board, and I might consider that if the yellowing becomes too bothersome (unlikely).

How much paint

There are various opinions on how much paint to put in the wells. I prefer to fill the entire space rather than just placing a small blob, as I know I’ll need to refill the well eventually. While paints will dry out despite our best efforts to keep them moist, this isn’t a major issue since watercolors are reusable. Before painting, I always spray the paints with clean water, and they’re ready to use even after a year. The wells in this new palette can comfortably hold a small 5ml tube of paint, which is the amount I use.