My Gray Icing Looks Purple????

Decorating By just_for_fun Updated 25 Sep 2011 , 7:31pm by Claire138

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just_for_fun Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 3:19am
post #1 of 19

When I tint my icing gray, it has a very purple tinge. How do I get a real gray?? The other color is lavender, so I don't want it to look like 2 diff shades of lavender... Any help will be appreciated!!

18 replies
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tmgarcia_98 Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 3:27am
post #2 of 19

It sounds odd....but add yellow. I learned that on here not too long ago.

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sweetheart6710 Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 3:37am
post #3 of 19

Is it Wilton coloring? I have heard of this happening with that brand. Adding yellow will make it more brownish, so be careful. Maybe before adding yellow, add white, and see if you can make a lighter shade, like, washing out the purple? I dont know if that will work..just an idea. Just remember, yellow is a 'warm' color, and gray is 'cool', so adding a warm tone wont get you a cool tone (if that makes sense) Thats my only concern with that. Good Luck

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Sorelle Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 4:08am
post #4 of 19

Always refer to the color chart... opposites on the color chart will always make some shade of gray Opposites are yellow& violet, orange& blue, red & green. Add white or black to get the value you need. To make brown add all three primary colors, red, yellow and blue.

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sweetheart6710 Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 7:29am
post #5 of 19

All I know is purple and yellow are direct opposites on the color wheel, and when mixing across the color wheel, you get brown. They neutralize each other. Same with red/green, and blue/orange. One primary, and one secondary color straight across the color wheel makes neutral. I don't know about buttercream exactly, because blue has more pigment then red, and yellow has the least. Different intensities you could say. I'm not saying yellow is wrong, it just goes against everything I have never learned. So be careful. Maybe pull out a small spoonful of your 'purple/gray' and try a few different options??

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sweetheart6710 Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 7:45am
post #6 of 19

Maybe this will help. If you look at Silver/Gray, it shows mixing 2 cool colors. No yellow there. And just to point out, if you look at brown, it says red and green.. 2 opposite colors. HTH


http://cakecentral.com/articles/54/how-to-color-your-icing

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just_for_fun Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 1:12pm
post #7 of 19

Thanx for your replies! I will try each one on just a little til something works.

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Sorelle Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 5:09pm
post #8 of 19

My bad icon_redface.gif That was terribly ambiguous. I should have written- When you add a trace of the opposing color it will gray it down, the more you add the duller the color becomes and eventually, yes it will be brown. Brown is composed of all primaries, that is why red and green make brown. (Green= blue+yellow) Sorry if I confused anyone.

"I Annie (aka Sorelle) will preview any and all posts from this day forward"

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microbiology1 Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 5:19pm
post #9 of 19

I have the same problem, also with wilton. I have started adding lemon yellow before adding black. That helps SOME. I still have to figure out exactly how much yellow to add keep it gray. I finallly figured out how much rose to add to violet to keep it purple. That took a long time!

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just_for_fun Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 5:32pm
post #10 of 19

So here are my results!

First I tried with yellow, it was amazing how it finally looked like gray, I thought "that's it!"

But I just HAD to try the blue, too. And it looks alot more like the gray I was trying to get. so I guess I will will adding blue to my whole batch! Now to start decorating....


I can't get the picture to load, see my pics

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Sorelle Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 5:39pm
post #11 of 19

I just love your new assistant justforfun!

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indydebi Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 5:47pm
post #12 of 19

You don't need to have an actual color wheel in your hand to figure this out, so if you don't have one handy, don't stress it. You just need to knwo the 3 primary colors. Here's your basic art lesson/logic:

the three primary colors, red - blue - yellow, when mixed together make black. Now, this is when PURE colors are mixed, which the general public usually doesn't have access to.

If your mixture looks purple, remember that red + blue = purple. This means its short on yellow.

If your mixture looks green (another common issue on here), remember that yellow + blue = green. This means it's short on red.

The basic rule is to mind the rules of the primary colors. Everything is made from those 3 and the various combinations. By knowing what you've got, you can figure out what you're missing.

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just_for_fun Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 8:48pm
post #13 of 19

Indy, you always make everything so simple!

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just_for_fun Posted 24 Nov 2010 , 8:50pm
post #14 of 19

and Sorelle, my little helper isnt so little anymore!! I keep saying I gotta update the pic, he would never do tha anymore. If the oven door is open, he runs away yelling "hot, hot".

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mashelle Posted 11 Jan 2011 , 9:32am
post #15 of 19

i was having the same problem.. was trying to dye my gumpaste grey, but it kept turning out purple.. I added a small amount of the lemon yellow and that worked perfectly icon_smile.gif thank you thank you thank you haha!!

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Shelleshell Posted 17 Aug 2011 , 5:26am
post #16 of 19

Just wanted to say-- was freaking out about my lavender gray. Added the little dab of lemon yellow as suggested, immediate success. Thank you ladies!!!

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theCword Posted 17 Aug 2011 , 2:10pm
post #17 of 19

I have black in both Wilton gels and Americolor. I didn't even bother with Wiltons because of what I read here.

LAst night I was making grey mmf with Americolor and it turned purple. Granted, my mmf was off white since I put some non clear vanilla in it. Maybe that's why it went purple because from what I heard from CC, Americolor would do the trick. I managed to add some yellow and worked like a charm.

Interesting thing was my hands were greased up and as I was kneading the Americolor black in I could see red on my hands.

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Niki11784 Posted 25 Sep 2011 , 7:07pm
post #18 of 19

This thread helped me so much- thank you! I needed grey buttercream. Started with black, which turned it blue ( not purple) then added yellow, and it turned into a greenish blue. Then added RED which turned it into gray. Someone mentioned you need to neutralize the colors with the opposite color on the wheel. Since red is opposite blue- it worked!! Thanks !!

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Claire138 Posted 25 Sep 2011 , 7:31pm
post #19 of 19

I hope I can remember all of this when I am stumped while trying to make black fondant and it has a purple hue to it. I always end up adding cocoa but I hate it bc it dries out the fondant so quickly and I always get tears and elephant skin.
This site is a well of information, thanks everyone.

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