How to Make Egg Tempera Paints

Egg tempera paints offer modern painters a traditional way to paint. Make your own egg tempera paints if you want to make permanent paint that is semi-transparent. Use this method for making egg tempera paints for each paint color.

Things You'll Need

• One fresh egg yolk
• One dry paper towel
• One jar or container with a lid
• One teaspoon distilled water
• One tablespoon dry pigment powder
• One measuring tablespoon
• A palette knife
• A grinding muller
• A sharp knife
• Glass palette

Instructions

Grind the Pigments

1. Grind up dry paint pigments with a muller on a glass palette. When using a muller to grind paint pigments for egg tempera paints, use a continuous motion. Place a small amount of dry paint pigment onto the glass surface. Add a couple of drops of distilled water to the pigment before grinding.

2. Stir the water and the pigment with a palette knife, moistening the pigment completely. Grind the pigment with the muller. Stop occasionally and scrape pigment reside off the muller and continue grinding the pigments. Use a paint brush to locate any lumps or clumps.

3. Choose which paint pigments based on the type of paining you are creating, as well as your tolerance for paint pigment toxicity. Make paints with the no toxicity by choosing Burn Sienna, Ivory Black, Mars Black, Raw Sienna, Titanium White, Ultramarine Blue pigments, Venetian Red, Yellow Ochre or Zinc White.

4. Select paint pigments in these hues if you have a tolerance for materials with a medium level of toxicity. These pigments traditionally carry a medium level of toxicity: Burnt Umber, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow,Cerulean Blue, Chromium of Oxide Green, Cobalt Blue, Cobalt Green, Manganese Blue, Raw Umber, Vermilion and Viridian Green.

5. Store pre-ground pigments in small jars. By grinding them ahead of time they will be ready when you need to prepare a small batch of egg tempera paint.

Make the Egg Medium

1. Prepare a work surface with a clean container with a lid. Place a sharp knife near the container. Also place a clean paper towel near the container. You will need these items ready after you crack the egg in Step 2.

2. Crack open an egg over the sink, discarding the egg whites. Separate the yolk from the egg white by transferring yolk to the other half of the egg shell carefully, while letting the egg white dribble out and away. Handle the egg yolk gently, transferring it back and forth between the egg shells until most of the white is gone. Try not to break the egg yolk at this stage.

3. Roll the the egg yolk onto a clean paper towel. Gently roll the egg yolk on the paper towel to remove any excess egg white. You should see the egg white residue on the towel. Try not to break the egg yolk.

4. Release the egg yolk from its egg sac by poking a small hole in the egg yolk with a knife. Hold the egg over a container to catch the egg yolk. Continue holding the egg yolk sac until all of the egg yolk innards have been transferred to the container. Discard the egg yolk sac.

5. Add one teaspoon of distilled water to the egg yolk. This will create the egg yolk medium.

Mix the Paints

1. Mix the egg medium and the dry pigments together when you are ready to paint. There is no exact measurement of how much you should mix, but there is a simple formula to follow for egg tempera paints. Add equal parts egg medium and paint pigment.

2. Blend the egg medium and the paint pigment on a white or gray paint palette. Use a palette knife or a paint brush to mix and swirl the mixture together. Play with the amounts until the egg tempera is a workable consistency.

3. Test the color by dipping a paint brush into the egg tempera paint and painting a test stroke.

4. Glaze paintings with egg tempera paints by increasing the amount of distilled water in the mix. Create layers of paint, letting each layer dry in-between

5. Experiment with different egg tempera recipes by adding one part oil equal to the egg mixture. Or, use two parts egg medium with one part oil, one part resin and four parts water.

Tips & Warnings

• Always wash your hands thoroughly after handling raw eggs.

• Use a fresh egg yolk.

• Apply egg tempera paints to a gessoed canvas.

• Make the egg tempera paint in very small batches.

• Because making egg tempera paint involves raw eggs, young children should not make this paint.

• Do not save unused egg tempera paint.

• The painting may look slightly yellow in the first 24 hours.

• Egg tempera is not completely resistant to water.

• Read labels of any paint pigments to verify toxicity levels.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish