Designers Gouache colours are a range of opaque water colours developed for and mainly used by designers.  Gouache is however also used by fine artists as an opaque water colour, or in combination with Artists' Water Colour.

Winsor & Newton Designers Gouache is accepted today as the finest quality range available, with a wide colour spectrum catering for both designers and fine artists.  In addition unsurpassed covering power is achieved by the high level of pigmentation and brilliance of colour from the use of pure pigments.  In use, the colours' even flow produces flat washes without streaking .

Spectrum/Colour Range

One of the main reasons artists choose Winsor & Newton is our colour spectrum. The Designers Gouache range offers a wide and balanced spectrum of 82 tube colours (4 additional colours in pots). These colours have been chosen according to mass tone (colour from tube), colour bias (undertone), colour strength and relative opacity. The range includes bright colours for designers and more lightfast ones for fine artists. The resultant colour range ensures that all artists can obtain the palette which best suits their work, and also that all colours can be safely intermixed.

As a result of the recent review there are now also a number of unique ultra bright colours such as Opera Pink and Opera Rose.

Opacity

All the Designers' Gouache colours are more opaque than Artists' Water Colours. However, the degree to which they cover does vary. The relative opacity of the colours is marked on the colour chart; the transparent colours are marked with  or T and the opaque colours are marked with  or O. When overpainting in layers, the relative 'staining' (bleeding) properties of the colours are indicated on the colour chart.

Transparent         Semi-Transparent          Semi-Opaque               Opaque