Before you begin to randomly experiment, it's important to review the basic colour wheel. You can make all hues from the primary colours: red, yellow and blue. Orange, green and purple are secondary colours. From these you add white to achieve a tint of a colour or black to create a shade.

Measure a tbsp of yellow paint on a plate or in a plastic container. By keeping track of how much of each colour paint you add, you can duplicate the colour if you need a larger quantity.

Mix one tsp of each of the primary colours together on a plate: red, blue and yellow. This should give you a basic brown if you have an even amount of each colour.

Add a few drops of the brown paint to your yellow paint. Mix it to create a basic gold colour.

Add a drop of red to your gold paint if you want a gold shade that has more orange tinges. Add a drop of blue if you want a shade with green undertones.

Look at your colour in natural light. If you like the hue but want it lighter, add a drop of white paint. Likewise if you want it darker, add a drop of black.