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How to get brown from paints. Mixing colors to get the desired color. How to get brown paint color

What is needed to create a beautiful painting or drawing? In addition to the ability to draw, there are also coloring skills. One of the most common means for this is gouache. But the classic palette of colors is not very rich. So, getting to work, it is worth studying the technology of mixing paints, in particular, how to get brown from gouache.

The color wheel is a friend to beginners

It's good to be an experienced artist: you know all the intricacies of mixing tones for the most intricate shades. But for beginners, it can take a long time to puzzle over which colors to mix to get brown or some other color that is not included in the traditional set. However, you should not despair: the color wheel will come to the rescue. Good quality gouache kits always have a table on the packaging describing the ingredients to mix. Having studied it, we can breathe a sigh of relief, since you can get a beautiful brown color when mixing paints, and even in several ways.

Subtleties of mixing

It would seem that it is difficult: they combined two or three tones, stirred. It turned out to be a very dark color - added white paint, too light - mixed with black gouache. Meanwhile, mixing shades is a much more complex process that requires certain skills. But you can cope without experience if you follow these recommendations and take note of the following:

If we combine 2 tones from the circle's palette, then it is called secondary, and if we add the resulting mixture to other shades, then the result is already tertiary;

To obtain a brown tone (and all others too), do not mix more than 3 colors;

Too much black to darken will simply "eat" the shade you want;

When adding white, it is worth considering that the tone turns out to be cold. If brown is obtained, this can do a disservice, since the color itself belongs to the palette of warm shades;

When working with gouache, we must not forget that 5-7 minutes after application, the color brightens significantly. So, when combining shades, you need to make the tone a little darker than what was originally conceived;

Before mixing colors, you need to dilute the selected tones and combine in strokes - then you can evaluate the result of the mixture;

To obtain a beautiful uniform paint of the required shade, do not mix different types of gouache. For example, regular and one to which fluorescent pigments are added, since the final shade will turn out to be very dull.

7 and 1 ways to "make" brown gouache

Our life is a series of black and white stripes, and it accompanies us in all manifestations of existence. So in the color scheme for drawing these paints are necessarily present. Also in the palette of colors there are three shades that cannot be made by mixing. It is sky blue, bright yellow and scarlet or red. All other tones can be created on this base. And the easiest way to get brown is to mix the three base colors.

But what if you need not just brown, but its half-tones? To do this, you need not only to change the set of the base, but also to monitor the proportions: by adding a little more or a little less, you can get not at all what you wanted.

1st way

Mixing green with red. And here the question arises: where can I get green if it is not in the database? In fact, everything is very simple: you need to combine blue and yellow. And then, mixing in red, we get tertiary brown at the output.

2nd way

Add blue to the orange paint. In order to have orange at your disposal, you need to mix red and a little yellow. To get a nice shade of brown, blue is added a little at a time.

3rd way

We combine the red tone with the blue and get purple. And now it remains to add yellow paint - and the noble brown is ready.

4th method

This option for creating a deep brown is multi-step. To implement it, you will need to mix two secondary colors - gray and orange. The first is obtained by mixing classic white and blue-black, and the second - scarlet and bright yellow.

5th method

Coffee brown with tints is obtained by mixing purple paint with muted yellow and acid orange. When combining tones for the base, make sure that they are not pale, otherwise the desired tone will be too washed out.

6th method

We add light green and bright purple to orange. It's a rather painstaking way of creating the desired shade, but the finished result - a slightly shaded brown - is well worth the effort.

7th method

This option will appeal to those who love the process of creativity on a palette. You will have to mix blue, yellow and red. But not all at once, but first two tones (any), and then gradually add the remaining 3rd tone.

... and 1 more

We mix greens with blue. Then we introduce strict black, scarlet, and at the very end - rich yellow. It is the last component that is responsible for the shade.

We get beautiful tones

Describing which colors to mix to produce a dark, light, pale, or bright brown will not be enough. It is necessary to indicate what tones we get in certain combinations:

The more actively yellow is mixed, the more the color will resemble ocher;

To give a chestnut shade to red, yellow, orange, add black;

Dark brown is taught by mixing yellow with red and black and white;

Light undertones are the result of adding white paint to the finished mixture.

There are several ways to obtain different shades of this color. In any case, in order to get brown, you just need to mix two primary colors and add an additional one to them. That is:

  • mix blue and yellow to get green and then add red to it,
  • mix red and yellow for orange and add blue,
  • mix red and blue and add yellow to the resulting purple.

So, we figured out how to get brown when mixing paints. To do this, you will need gouache, watercolor, water emulsion, etc. red, yellow and blue. But sometimes, for coloring or drawing, you need not just brown, but brown of a certain shade. So, interior items are usually decorated in light colors. The earth, for example, is painted almost black in the pictures. So how do you get a light brown or a dark brown? The answer to this question is also pretty simple.

To get a dark brown shade, you just need to add a black component to it. But when mixing in this case, you need to use only very small portions. Add black to brown literally drop by drop. Otherwise, you can simply ruin the paint. In this case, the mixed mass must be mixed very well each time until a homogeneous consistency.

To obtain a light brown color, conventional whitewash is most often used as an additive. You do not need to be very careful when mixing in this case. Indeed, with an excess of white in the paint, you can always simply add a little more of the original color.

Brown, of course, is not only light or dark. This color can also differ in shades. So, for example, red gives brown a rust tint. When yellow is added, this color becomes slightly "ocher". Blue makes brown more saturated and contrasting.

So, we hope we have answered in some detail the question of what paints need to be mixed to get brown, as well as how to make this color more saturated, lighter or darker. As you can see, getting the desired result in this case is extremely simple. The main thing is to do everything slowly and carefully and, of course, not be afraid to try and experiment.

How to get brown when mixing paints: several ways
?, Brown & mdash, the color is relatively discreet and dim, but still quite popular.

What color pigments can be mixed to make brown paint?

To determine which colors need to be mixed in order to get the desired color, it is best to use the color triangle, which will very clearly show which paints you will get the desired color from mixing.

To get brown, you need to mix green and red.

An artist can mix green and red paint to create a brown color. In addition, there are several other ways to achieve different shades of brown.

Brown can be obtained by mixing a secondary color with a primary color. For example, you can mix yellow and red together to make orange, which gives the secondary color, and then add blue (the primary color), which turns it brown.

Another easy way to create brown is to mix any shade of orange with black. You can add more black paint to create a dark brown, or add white to lighten the paint in a softer shade.

Get brown you can use several methods of mixing colors:

To obtain a classic brown color mix

  • red and green
  • red, yellow, blue(in equal proportions)
  • orange and blue
  • orange and gray
  • yellow and magenta

To obtain different shades of brown in a mixture of red, blue and yellow, different proportions of paints give the following shades:

  • blue will give depth and contrast to brown,
  • the predominance of yellow - will give the color of ocher,
  • increasing the red will give a warm, rusty hue.

In addition, to obtain the desired shade, add black drop by drop to red, yellow, orange paints. And to get a lighter shade, add a little white.

What colors do you mix brown?
To determine which colors need to be mixed in order to get the desired color, it is best to use the color triangle, which will very clearly show which colors you will not get from mixing.

This shade is not very bright, but popular. It is actively used to decorate the interior of a room, when painting furniture, make-up, while painting canvases, as well as for changing hair color. Based on this, the question of what needs to be mixed with to obtain the desired result is very relevant.

What colors are brown

Correct mixing is a science, but today the task is made easier by the ready-made color wheel, which can be seen on the Internet. He makes it clear that the main colors are yellow, red and blue. The circle represents the result of mixing each of these options with each other - secondary colors. If you combine them, you get tertiary. There are three main laws of mixing:

  • Law No. 1. Each color of the circle is a symbiosis of opposing ones in relation to the center, which, when mixed, give an additional color, that is, achromatic. Complementary are clearly defined, for example, red has green, and yellow has blue.
  • Law number 2. Used in practice, it indicates that when mixing paints that are close to each other in the color wheel, new colors of the main color are formed - the one that is located between the mixed pigments. So, to get orange, you should combine red with yellow, and green - mix yellow with blue. By combining in ambiguous proportions the three main components in the form of red, yellow and blue, you can get any effect.
  • Law no. 3. From the same shades when mixed, similar mixtures are obtained. This result is achieved by combining colors that are identical in tone, but different in saturation. Another option: mix several colors by symbiosis of chromatic with achromatic.

What colors should be mixed to get brown

Gouache artists know that when different colors are combined, new colors are born. Even a special synthesis table has been created, which helps to make the necessary shades. The most basic way to get brown is to add red to green. These tones are available in any hardware store or in the clerical department. However, you can't mix dark red and dark green, because you get a dirty shade that remotely resembles black.

Not sure how to get brown when mixing paints if there is no green in the palette? In this case, you can use three colors: red, blue, yellow. This is because green comes from a synthesis of blue and yellow. Another mixing option will use gray paint plus orange, or purple and yellow. So, you can always find a replacement for the missing pigments that make up the base formula.

How to get dark brown

It is easy to get the desired result: add a little black pigment to red, orange or yellow. Brown can be easily given different shades: you need to take yellow, blue and red as a basis, and then add other colors. For example, red helps to create a warm hue with a hint of rust, while blue helps to create depth and boldness in the final result. Saturation can be achieved by combining different proportions of yellow, blue and red in the following scheme:

  • Mustard can be obtained by combining red, yellow and black with a drop of green.
  • Dark brown will be achieved by mixing red, yellow, white and black.
  • A reddish brown (known as Marsala, similar to a dark pink) should be obtained by mixing two shades of chocolate and red in large quantities.

What colors to mix for brown light shades

To create a cappuccino that is beautiful copper brown, unusual taupe, or honey brown, you should use whitewash. How to make brown from light-colored paints? It is necessary to add a little white to the mixture consisting of the main colors. If yellow prevails in the consistency presented above, then ocher will turn out, that is, a light shade of brown. To understand how to get brown when mixing paints, workout with combined proportions will help. Only then can you get the perfect result.

How to get brown when mixing paints
Find out how to get brown when mixing paints - relevant information for those who want to dye their hair or decorate the interior. There are several ways.


Brown can be obtained by mixing different colors: since this tone is complex and all primary colors are involved in its creation. There are also a huge variety of shades of brown. To obtain them, such tones as yellow, red, blue, white, black are added. You can always easily convert one Tone to another, since the tone is very sensitive to the components, and the eye perceives a wide range of them.
With the help of paint, brown shades can be mixed in 4 ways, 3 of which are based on the theory of additional pairs, which implies that when mixing such colors, obtaining a gray tone, but this effect works if the carrier of the color is a light wave. There is a different layout for pigment paints:

We mix additional colors, we get brown

A pair of additional tones: yellow + purple, where the latter is the sum of red and blue. The tone is obtained with a yellow tint.

Pair: red + green, where the second is the sum of yellow and blue.
Shades are closer to red - with medium green - deep red-brown, with emerald - dark chestnut.

Pair: orange + blue, where orange = yellow + red.

In this case, a gray-brown tone is obtained: paired with blue - medium brown with a chocolate sheen, paired with indigo blue - dark brown - bitter chocolate.

Getting brown and its shades from primary colors?

If we decompose the colors from which brown is obtained, then we can understand that it is formed only when yellow, red and blue - the main shades - converge. Therefore, it is more logical and easier to create it by mixing these three tones together. In addition, it will be much easier to control its shades by changing the amount of one of the components.

How to get medium brown?

Mix three colors to get brown - the shortest way to classic shades of tree bark: red + yellow + indigo blue in the ratio: 1: 1: 0.5

How to get reddish brown?

Red-brown can be created by mixing red, yellow, blue in the ratio: 2: 2: 0.5.
As a dark color - indigo needs little to change the tone, yellow, red, on the contrary, need more, since they are light. For simplicity of approach, you can always correct the resulting brown color by randomly mixing red and yellow into it, while yellow is needed in order to make the overall tone lighter and more saturated.

How to get dark brown?

To get a dark brown in the resulting arbitrary tone, it is worth adding blue (indigo) or black. Since dark brown hides the saturation of the hue, there will not be much difference between the resulting shades.

How to get taupe?

In order to get a taupe, you need any medium brown tone to which you need to add white. If brown needs a darker one: add black to it.

How to get light brown?

To get a light brown in an arbitrary color, add white. However, with such mixing, a gray-brown is often obtained, as we see in the previous version, therefore, red and yellow are mixed into the resulting light gray-brown.
As a result, the resulting color is darkened again (due to the darker red), but if you add more white to it, the result will be more attractive (up to beige):

The brightness of the resulting shades can also be enhanced:

So: let's summarize:

How to get shades of brown? table

Let's combine all the data into a table so that you can clearly see the dependence:
Darken brown - with black,
For reddish brown, add red,
Yellow-brown (orange-brown) - yellow,
Olive brown - yellow + blue,
Purple brown - red + blue,
Light brown - white.

The scheme of interaction of shades with brown, wagging on the final tone, will also be interesting.

In the scheme, the center is - brown, from which the shade will be built. Tones for mixing are located around it. The next circle will already be the resulting tones when mixing the main color with a shade-forming one, in the amount of 30%. Then shades with 10% impurity + additional: darkened (+ 20% black) and lightened (+ 20% white) from 10% of the shade.

How to get other colors and their shades: theory and practice. Click on the icon.

How to get brown by mixing paints
How to get brown? You need to mix red, yellow and blue. To achieve the desired shade, change the proportions. Photos, tables

Brown shades do not differ in their brightness, but are very popular. They are used for renovation work in an apartment and for painting interior elements. Children use them in the process of drawing on paper, artists - when creating paintings on canvas. In gouache and acrylic sets, this color does not always exist, but you can compose it yourself from the available ones. Knowing the rules and tricks of mixing, you can answer the question of how to get brown from paints.

People have different tastes, but in all circumstances, you need to mix the compositions carefully, using a small amount of material. For painting, do not use a brush. Better to work with a metal palette knife. It will help you avoid divorce.

Mixing technique involves the use of different shades and is studied by such a science as coloristics. The base colors are blue, yellow and red. Black and white stand apart. The rest are secondary. All of them are presented in a color wheel.

Mixing is mechanical and optical. In the mechanical method, the contents of the tubes are mixed until a homogeneous consistency with a brush or other instrument. The optical method consists in superimposing strokes of different shades in one place. It is better to do this on a palette or on a white plate. In the absence of earthenware dishes, you can use a white sheet of paper, plastic, cardboard.

Secrets of mixing paints

Distinguish between manual and computer tinting. With the manual method, it is impossible to accurately repeat the resulting shade. The advantages of this method are the possibility of mixing directly at the place of work, as well as its low cost. Computer tinting is done only in a shop or workshop and costs extra money.

  • work on obtaining new shades is performed using at least 2 colors;
  • a translucent paint of a different shade is applied to the applied and dried layer;
  • the illusion of tinting is created by closely spaced strokes;
  • the exact proportions of the starting materials are taken;
  • the color for mixing is introduced in small quantities;
  • the mixture is applied for a sample to the repaired area;
  • when creating a picture, the resulting shade is superimposed on the canvas.

If you follow these secrets, you can create new color shades.

How to get different shades of brown

Purchased paints are not always applicable. It is better to make the walls in the apartment lighter. You can get the desired tone using ink, gouache, acrylic and other materials. For this you need red, blue and yellow shades. White and green paints are added to them.

Almost every student can create a brown hue by mixing green and red. In the absence of green, you need to make it up from yellow with blue, then enter red. The more yellow, the lighter and more transparent the new tone will be.

Compositions of different saturation are obtained from blue and orange, yellow and purple.

This tone can be created from brown by adding a little white to it. The more the basic color is bleached, the lighter the newly obtained one. With too much whiteness, the warm tone becomes colder. It is enough to dilute it with whitewash in the amount of 1-5% of the total.

Another way to create a new color is to use yellow instead of white. But the proportions in this case are more difficult to calculate.

Medium brown

To obtain a shade of medium intensity, blue and yellow are mixed, then up to 20% red is added, then it changes when white or black is added.

Dark brown

If you add green, blue, purple colors to the previous mixtures, you get a dark brown color.

Another method is applied by adding black dye to the brown color. It is better to dilute the black with white, then the dark brown will become softer. You can combine purple, yellow and black in a ratio of 100: 10: 5.

Red brown

When red color is added to green, brown is obtained. More material is injected to create the characteristic red glow. The desired color scheme is created by mixing red, yellow and blue. After bringing the mixture to homogeneity, add red to it.

Gray brown

The tone is obtained by combining orange with blue. Black is added to the mixture. Another way is to combine magenta with orange. A little black is introduced into the new composition.

Different types of paints have their own characteristics. To obtain shades of brown, gouache and acrylic are used.

Acrylic paints

Acrylic is a versatile material. They draw pictures and paint stained-glass windows. It is convenient to work with rich colors: it is enough to purchase 7 colors of paints. If necessary, they can be mixed to obtain the missing shades.

When yellow is combined with brown and black, the color of an avocado is obtained. To create a reddish chestnut, combine brown with red and add black. A chestnut tone is created with a mixture of red and yellow. A little white and black are introduced into the resulting composition. When drawing with the newly obtained compositions, it should be remembered that the dried canvas has a different appearance compared to the wet coating.

Gouache paints

Novice artists often start working with gouache. The paint is thick, with bright colors, easily adheres to paper, dries quickly. In stores, you can always buy a ready-made set, which includes basic tones, but there are not enough of them. In this case, they resort to mixing, referring to the color wheel. When combining paints, one must not forget that gouache brightens when it dries. The black color is added carefully, in small portions. Excess white makes the shade cool.

To get a brown tone, you need to mix 2-3 shades.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Self-Mixing

Making your own brown isn't always a good idea. Sometimes it is better to purchase ready-made paint. The mixing method is good for painting pictures, for renovation work on a small area. If the walls in the apartment are brown, you need to buy the appropriate paint. It is impossible to obtain a large amount of material manually.

The downside of homemade formulations is their tendency to fade. Pros - Saving money, a wide range of shades to mix, work with materials on site.

very simple, and it will not pose any problems.

To do this, you should contact a store specializing in the sale of such a product.

But it often happens that for some reason, you cannot buy the desired paint color, but it is urgently required.

If something like this happens, don't be upset.

After all, the desired color can be obtained by mixing the existing ones.

Here, the main thing is not to be mistaken.

Let's take a look at how to get brown paint.

Light brown

This color is very common and to obtain it it is recommended to add a small amount of white to the main shade.

Mix red, yellow and blue, a little white and you get a light brown tone. A positive result will be provided.

If you don't have white on hand, add more yellow paint. She is great at helping to get a light tone.

True, it will be more buffy, sandy color.

It is not always possible to achieve by mixing primary and secondary tones, the desired cleanliness and a shade that is completely suitable for your desired purpose.

But don't be discouraged. If you want a really good color scheme, then you will need to mix more than just primary and secondary colors. Let's look at how to get brown paint by mixing with others and adding some elements to them.

The main thing is to catch the right balance. Use not only artificial but also natural substances. This way, you can create very interesting light brown colors.

The creation of brown paint, as well as its various shades, is very interesting and exciting. It will allow you to better understand the actions of certain paints, and what color can be created with their help. And this will definitely come in handy in the future. What can replace imported wood paints shown in the video:

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Novice artists may have a question how to get brown, because it is not always in a gouache set. This tone is not included in the group of basic and can be obtained from a mixture of the latter. But the wrong approach to combining paints often leads to obtaining a gray mass or not the shade that was originally required. To create paint that does not differ from the store, you need to know the tricks of color.

Tone mixing rules

All information about the compatibility of shades and the peculiarities of the combination of paints are united by the science of color. It is based on a color wheel with a variety of tones and their subtypes. There are three basic colors - red, yellow and blue. White and black stand apart, although they do not belong to the basic ones. All other tones can be obtained with, therefore they are called secondary (green, purple, orange, blue, etc.).

There are basic laws of mixing dyes:

  • all shades are divided into chromatic (color) and achromatic (white, black, gray), the former differ in color tone, lightness, saturation;
  • when mixing two colors located along the chord of the color wheel, an intermediate tone will be obtained;
  • when two opposite colors are combined from the circle, a different achromatic shade is obtained;
  • you can mix paints mechanically (mix colors from two tubes) and optically (overlay strokes on top of each other).

You can combine gouache, acrylic, watercolor, water emulsion, oil, building paints on a white palette - this is how the finished shade can be seen in detail. If there is no palette, use a white earthenware plate, in extreme cases - white disposable (plastic) dishes or paper.

What colors are brown

You can even make brown from plasticine, felt-tip ink, but the best result will be achieved when using gouache. To create brown paint, you need to prepare yellow, blue, red, green, black and white - their various combinations will participate in obtaining a new tone.

There are several methods for producing the desired color from other paints. It is necessary to take classic, pure tones without impurities. There are several options - basic, tricolor and intermediate, and artists are also aware of a number of additional techniques for creating brown.

Using primary colors

This method is the simplest; it only requires accuracy and high-quality colors.

Green with red

Even schoolchildren from drawing lessons know that brown will turn out if you add red to green. When green is not available, you can mix yellow and blue with each other. The latter are taken in equal proportions to create a "classic" green tone, although individual desires can be taken into account. For a more translucent brown, you can use a little more yellow.

It is important to introduce red color into green, but not vice versa. Add it drop by drop so as not to spoil the new tone, turning it into gray-brown, rusty or brick. Green will be the main one here, but red makes the brown tone warmer.

Orange with blue

First you need to make a bright orange color (if it is not ready-made). To do this, take red, gradually add yellow to it. The amount of yellow should not be large, 10-15% of the total mass of the final color is enough. The final shade should be dark orange, a light shade will not work for brown.

Purple with yellow

The intermediate way to get brown is to create purple and combine it with yellow. Initially, red and blue colors are taken equally. As a result of mixing them, a noble violet is obtained. Next, they begin to gradually add a yellow color scheme, which will lighten the purple. Brown in this case will not be dark, but will have a warm, pleasant glow. Adding new portions of purple acts in the opposite way - it "cools" the hue. With this technique, the addition of a large volume of yellow paint produces an ocher color.

Additional methods

The combination of dark gray with orange also gives a brown color, however, it will remain cold even with the introduction of an increased amount of orange. Brown is also obtained by mixing green, purple and orange, however, this multi-step technique is complex.

In any of the above options, the addition of additional portions of a dark color helps to obtain a dark brown tone. We are talking about blue, green and purple colors. However, shades of brown will be different, as each component contributes to their creation.

There is another easy way to get a dark brown color from acrylic, oil or any other paints. A little black paint is dripped into the finished brown. But you need to work with it with extreme caution, otherwise the color scheme will become dirty black. Professionals first mix black with a small amount of white, after which they prepare brown on its basis. This will make the black softer and give a more pleasant dark brown tone.

You can get a dark chocolate color like this:

  • combine yellow and blue to get dark green;
  • mix red and a little yellow separately until orange is made;
  • mix dark green and a drop of orange until the color of the grass is obtained;
  • mix ready-made herbal color with red, getting chocolate;
  • for dark chocolate, add a drop of black paint.

For a milk-chocolate color, add white, for a golden-chocolate color - yellow.

Light brown

A light brown tone can be easily made by diluting the usual brown with white paint. The more intense the whitening, the lighter the color will be. It is important not to overdo it here, because brown is a warm shade, and white "cools" it. Usually, 1-5% of white from the total mass of the paint is enough to achieve a sufficient degree of lightening. You can also get light brown if you initially add more yellow, although it is quite difficult to calculate the proportions so accurately.

Medium brown

To obtain brown of medium intensity, mix yellow and blue in equal parts, then add 20% of red by weight of the mixture. Further, the depth of the shade is adjusted by adding black or white - depending on the need.

Reddish brown tint

The secret to creating brown with a red glow is to add more red color to it. When you add it to green, you first get a regular brown, then bring it to the desired shade. The intensity will depend on the volume of the color scheme. In addition, the desired color is created by mixing red, blue and yellow. The easiest method to tint brown is to add a drop of red to the finished brown color scheme.

Gray-brown color

This shade is made by combining orange and blue and then adding black paint. Also, a grayish or coffee color is obtained by mixing violet (purple) and orange with the introduction of black.

Shades of brown - table

Below are the data on the colors that must be mixed with each other to obtain brown, as well as their approximate proportions:

Artists advise buying ready-made brown if there are doubts about the quality of mixing paints with your own hands. For example, when working with acrylic, problems may arise when applied to canvas or clothing - on the canvas, the color will look different depending on the manufacturer and the specific components in the composition.

It is also better to carry out tinting in a store if you have to paint a large volume of walls in the house - it is almost impossible to get a second portion of exactly the same paint without special equipment. In other situations, do not be afraid to experiment and create new colors on your own - this will allow you to show your imagination to the fullest!