Colours that go with blue

Chapter 2 · Five plates with blue

Chapter 2 · From the bookHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

From the book

The two Wada combinations that contain the book colours closest to blue, measured in Lab. They have been in use for almost a century: the harmony is already proven.

161

Brown, Helvetia Blue, Pinkish Cinnamon

#834222 · #00538a · #f0ba83

Dark · button 3:1Warm and coolIts page →Open →

187

Helvetia Blue, Grayish Lavender - B, Aconite Violet

#00538a · #c8b1ba · #aa67a2

Light · button 4.6:1All coolIts page →Open →

Chapter 2 · By ruleNamed harmonies

By rule

Three plates built from blue with a rule that can be explained: the opposite, the neighbours or a single hue with an accent. None of them comes from a roll of the dice.

R·01

Complementary

#28558c · #b48b5f · #eef4fc · #34220f

The starting blue and the one opposite it on the wheel, plus a light neutral and a dark version for background and text.

Light · button 6.9:1Warm and coolOpen →

R·02

Analogous

#20868b · #28558c · #2a2e60 · #eef4fc

The starting blue and its two neighbours on the wheel, plus a neutral that lets them breathe.

Light · button 4.9:1All coolOpen →

R·03

Monochrome with accent

#162e4b · #28558c · #dae9fd · #ba8952

One hue in three lights and a small accent opposite it.

Light · button 6.9:1Warm and coolOpen →

Strip: the colours in equal parts, as in kimono sample books. It is the quickest reading for comparing.

Plate 01 of 05 · Wada combination 161

All five ↑

The plate, as printedHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

Wada combination 161

Brown#834222
Helvetia Blue#00538a
Pinkish Cinnamon#f0ba83

It contains a colour very close to the starting blue (Helvetia Blue) and has been in use for almost a century. The original colours are called Brown · Helvetia Blue · Pinkish Cinnamon.

3 colours in equal parts, as in the book. It is the inspiration, not the interface. Click one to copy it.

See this combination →

Plate · MixesThree parts to one

The three colours, mixed two by two

3 parts brown1 part helvetia blue
3 parts helvetia blue1 part pinkish cinnamon
3 parts pinkish cinnamon1 part brown
3 parts brown1 part pinkish cinnamon
3 parts helvetia blue1 part brown
3 parts pinkish cinnamon1 part helvetia blue

This is where the in-betweens the plate doesn’t carry come from: borders, card backgrounds, disabled states. The mix is done in OKLab, which is closer to mixing paint than to averaging numbers. Click the result to copy it.

On screen · the split60 · 30 · 10

Adapted for screen

The same hue as the plate with the lightness moved to where an interface needs it: the background rests, the surface keeps the colour from the book and the accent earns the button. Each role says which colour it comes from and what was done to it. Click any to copy.

60% BackgroundWhere the eye rests: most of the screen. The plate's #00538a, darkened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. From the plate, as is (#00538a).
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #834222, lightened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 4.6:1: AA, it reads.Passes
On screen, the text #f4ece6 on the background #182231 gives 13.7:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 94: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #9f5a38 stands 3.0:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.6:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes
Under protanopia, your accent and your background drop to 2.6:1. The button stops standing out: give it a border, change the lightness, or don't rely on colour alone to mark it.Falls short

Out in the worldAdapted

This is the plate with a whole screen to fill.

This paragraph is here so you can see real text on a real background, which is where half of the pretty palettes fall over. If it's hard to read, now you know. And this is a link.

A card

Secondary surfaces use the support colour. If it doesn't separate from the background, the hierarchy is gone.

Adapted: the background rests, the surface keeps the plate’s colour and the accent earns the button.

How to use it

ProportionDistribute, don't equalise: #182231 on 60% of the screen, #00538a on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #9f5a38 on 10%, only on buttons and links. A colour loses force the more surface it covers; what looks intense on the plate softens at full screen.
TextBody text goes in #f4ece6, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue, even though the plate had a pair that read: a saturated colour as text tires by the third line. The book's colour enters through the heading, in #f0ba83, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #9f5a38 stands 3.0:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #f3f7fe.
TemperatureWarm and cool together: let one lead and the other point. Here the background #00538a leads, and the accent #9f5a38 is the first thing the eye will look for.
How manyThree colours is the comfortable measure: background, text and one accent. Don't add a fourth unless it earns its place by contrast or by hue.
In the dictionaryIn the dictionary it sits among the contrasting-hue sets: hues deliberately set against each other. The contrast is already there; don't force it with shadows or blacks. It is one of the dense ones: loaded colours that need plenty of air around them; less is more.

The kit · ramps and statesFor the design system

The kit

A brand needs four colours; an interface needs a good deal more. This is what you'd otherwise invent by hand once you take four hex codes into the editor.

Click any swatch to copy it.

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The kit · night and code161

The same plate, by day

The same colour, by day.

The palette is born dark; this is its light version. The background is not pure white: it carries a little of its hue, just as the dark one was not black.

A button

Take it with you

/* Wada combination 161 — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #182231;
  --superficie: #00538a;
  --texto: #f4ece6;
  --tinta: #f4ece6;
  --texto-suave: #b9afa6;
  --titular: #f0ba83;
  --acento: #9f5a38;
  --acento-texto: #f3f7fe;
  --enlace: #c27855;
  --borde: #3c4759;

  /* la lámina de Wada, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #834222;
  --lamina-2: #00538a;
  --lamina-3: #f0ba83;

  --acento-50: #fff4ef;
  --acento-100: #ffe6db;
  --acento-200: #f7cfbc;
  --acento-300: #e9b298;
  --acento-400: #d79373;
  --acento-500: #c07753;
  --acento-600: #9f5a38;
  --acento-700: #82482b;
  --acento-800: #62341d;
  --acento-900: #44200f;
  --neutro-50: #f8f6f5;
  --neutro-100: #eeeae9;
  --neutro-200: #dbd6d4;
  --neutro-300: #c4bdb9;
  --neutro-400: #aba19d;
  --neutro-500: #918782;
  --neutro-600: #776e69;
  --neutro-700: #5e5552;
  --neutro-800: #453e3b;
  --neutro-900: #2e2927;

  --boton: #9f5a38;
  --boton-encima: #b36b48;
  --boton-pulsado: #c37f5f;
  --boton-apagado: #413631;
  --foco: #b0501e;

  --exito: #80b97b;
  --aviso: #ccb46b;
  --error: #ee9480;
  --info: #78aef4;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: light) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #fff2ed;
    --superficie: #f9e4db;
    --borde: #e7ccc0;
    --texto: #2b221e;
    --tinta: #2b221e;
    --texto-suave: #6e605a;
    --acento: #9f5a38;
    --acento-texto: #fef5f0;
  }
}

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Goethe’s readingWhat it conveys

What this combination conveys, and why.

Wada tells you which colours go together. Goethe, a century earlier, explains why a combination means something or means nothing, and what each colour does depending on how much of the screen it takes. His circle has six colours and three oppositions, and every verdict below carries the paragraph it comes from.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

The palette crosses both sides of the circle, active and passive. It carries the most tension and most needs one of the two to lead.

Surface · blue
Blue recedes: it draws the eye inward rather than coming out to meet it. It holds a large surface without fighting whatever sits on top. § 781
Accent and Heading · orange
Orange in a small patch is the accent that needs no explaining: it advances, it is seen, and it does not need size to do it. § 775

What is happening to this palette

There is nowhere for the eye to rest: no neutral, no muted colour, no green. The whole palette asks for attention at once. § 802

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Opposite #834222 · #00538a
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810
Same sector #834222 · #f0ba83
Both fall in the same sector of the circle. There is no hue contrast, so whatever separates them will have to be lightness. § 832
This verdict is ours. Goethe judges four of the six pairs in this group and says so himself, or one of the two colours sits right between two sectors of the circle.
Opposite #00538a · #f0ba83
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810

Criteria taken from Zur Farbenlehre (1810), in Eastlake's 1840 translation, which is public domain. The explanations are ours: from a book you take the substance, not the wording. The light values usually credited to Goethe for working out surface proportions are not in the Farbenlehre — they are Itten's, 1961, and that is how they are credited in the adaptation rules.

Plate 02 of 05 · Wada combination 187

All five ↑

The plate, as printedHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

Wada combination 187

Helvetia Blue#00538a
Grayish Lavender - B#c8b1ba
Aconite Violet#aa67a2

It contains a colour very close to the starting blue (Helvetia Blue) and has been in use for almost a century. The original colours are called Helvetia Blue · Grayish Lavender - B · Aconite Violet.

3 colours in equal parts, as in the book. It is the inspiration, not the interface. Click one to copy it.

See this combination →

Plate · MixesThree parts to one

The three colours, mixed two by two

3 parts helvetia blue1 part grayish lavender - b
3 parts grayish lavender - b1 part aconite violet
3 parts aconite violet1 part helvetia blue
3 parts helvetia blue1 part aconite violet
3 parts grayish lavender - b1 part helvetia blue
3 parts aconite violet1 part grayish lavender - b

This is where the in-betweens the plate doesn’t carry come from: borders, card backgrounds, disabled states. The mix is done in OKLab, which is closer to mixing paint than to averaging numbers. Click the result to copy it.

On screen · the split60 · 30 · 10

Adapted for screen

The same hue as the plate with the lightness moved to where an interface needs it: the background rests, the surface keeps the colour from the book and the accent earns the button. Each role says which colour it comes from and what was done to it. Click any to copy.

60% BackgroundWhere the eye rests: most of the screen. The plate's #c8b1ba, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. From the plate, as is (#c8b1ba).
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #aa67a2, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 4.0:1: only good for large text.Falls short
On screen, the text #1f242d on the background #fff2f7 gives 14.3:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 97: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #9a5792 stands 4.6:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.6:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes

Out in the worldAdapted

This is the plate with a whole screen to fill.

This paragraph is here so you can see real text on a real background, which is where half of the pretty palettes fall over. If it's hard to read, now you know. And this is a link.

A card

Secondary surfaces use the support colour. If it doesn't separate from the background, the hierarchy is gone.

Adapted: the background rests, the surface keeps the plate’s colour and the accent earns the button.

How to use it

ProportionDistribute, don't equalise: #fff2f7 on 60% of the screen, #c8b1ba on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #9a5792 on 10%, only on buttons and links. A colour loses force the more surface it covers; what looks intense on the plate softens at full screen.
TextNo pair on the plate read as text (the best gave 4.0:1). That is why body text goes in #1f242d, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue: it is not in the book, and it is needed.
The buttonThe accent #9a5792 stands 4.6:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #faf5f7.
TemperatureAll cool: orderly and serious. So it doesn't feel distant, leave plenty of air and use the accent generously on whatever you want touched.
How manyThree colours is the comfortable measure: background, text and one accent. Don't add a fourth unless it earns its place by contrast or by hue.
In the dictionaryIn the dictionary it sits among the tone-on-tone sets: colours from one family. Hierarchy comes from light, not hue, so order elements from lightest to darkest. It is one of the pale ones: muted tones that get along; running text needs an ink from outside, near black.

The kit · ramps and statesFor the design system

The kit

A brand needs four colours; an interface needs a good deal more. This is what you'd otherwise invent by hand once you take four hex codes into the editor.

Click any swatch to copy it.

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The kit · night and code187

The same plate, at night

The same colour, at night.

The background isn’t pure black: it carries a little of the accent’s hue. That’s what separates a designed dark mode from one that looks like a fault.

A button

Take it with you

/* Wada combination 187 — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #fff2f7;
  --superficie: #c8b1ba;
  --texto: #1f242d;
  --tinta: #1f242d;
  --texto-suave: #5d646f;
  --titular: #00538a;
  --acento: #9a5792;
  --acento-texto: #faf5f7;
  --enlace: #9a5892;
  --borde: #dacfd3;

  /* la lámina de Wada, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #00538a;
  --lamina-2: #c8b1ba;
  --lamina-3: #aa67a2;

  --acento-50: #fff3fd;
  --acento-100: #fae5f6;
  --acento-200: #efcde9;
  --acento-300: #dfafd8;
  --acento-400: #cc8fc4;
  --acento-500: #b671ae;
  --acento-600: #9a5792;
  --acento-700: #7c4375;
  --acento-800: #5d3058;
  --acento-900: #401d3c;
  --neutro-50: #f7f6f7;
  --neutro-100: #edeaec;
  --neutro-200: #dad6d9;
  --neutro-300: #c2bcc1;
  --neutro-400: #a8a1a7;
  --neutro-500: #8f868d;
  --neutro-600: #756d74;
  --neutro-700: #5c555b;
  --neutro-800: #443e43;
  --neutro-900: #2d292c;

  --boton: #9a5792;
  --boton-encima: #874680;
  --boton-pulsado: #71386b;
  --boton-apagado: #bbafb8;
  --foco: #ab47a1;

  --exito: #407a3e;
  --aviso: #9f8a40;
  --error: #a95543;
  --info: #2670b3;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #2a1e28;
    --superficie: #382a36;
    --borde: #534150;
    --texto: #f3ecf2;
    --tinta: #f3ecf2;
    --texto-suave: #b7aeb5;
    --acento: #c47ebb;
    --acento-texto: #292128;
  }
}

Open the card →Post on LinkedIn →

Goethe’s readingWhat it conveys

What this combination conveys, and why.

Wada tells you which colours go together. Goethe, a century earlier, explains why a combination means something or means nothing, and what each colour does depending on how much of the screen it takes. His circle has six colours and three oppositions, and every verdict below carries the paragraph it comes from.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

The whole palette sits on the passive side: the colours that recede, cool and draw the eye inward.

Accent · violet
The violet that would be intolerable as a background works in a border or a button. Same colour, different dose: this is a rule about surface, not about hue. § 790
Heading · blue
Blue recedes, and an accent is asked to do the opposite. As a link it only has to be distinguishable; as a primary button it needs contrast to do the work the colour will not. § 781

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

With a neutral #00538a · #c8b1ba
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
Adjacent #00538a · #aa67a2
Adjacent on the circle, with no colour between them to keep them apart. They are saved by proportion: one has to lead and the other to follow. § 828
With a neutral #c8b1ba · #aa67a2
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831

Criteria taken from Zur Farbenlehre (1810), in Eastlake's 1840 translation, which is public domain. The explanations are ours: from a book you take the substance, not the wording. The light values usually credited to Goethe for working out surface proportions are not in the Farbenlehre — they are Itten's, 1961, and that is how they are credited in the adaptation rules.

Plate 03 of 05 · Complementary

All five ↑

The plate, as printedRule of harmony · not in the book

Complementary

Accent#28558c
Support#b48b5f
Background#eef4fc
Text#34220f

The starting blue and the one opposite it on the wheel, plus a light neutral and a dark version for background and text. For brands that want attention: the accent jumps out because the eye reads it as the opposite of everything else.

The colours the rule gives, raw and in equal parts. It is the starting point, not the interface. Click one to copy it.

Plate · MixesThree parts to one

The four colours, mixed two by two

3 parts #28558c1 part #b48b5f
3 parts #b48b5f1 part #eef4fc
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #34220f
3 parts #34220f1 part #28558c
3 parts #28558c1 part #eef4fc
3 parts #b48b5f1 part #34220f
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #28558c
3 parts #34220f1 part #b48b5f
3 parts #28558c1 part #34220f
3 parts #b48b5f1 part #28558c
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #b48b5f
3 parts #34220f1 part #eef4fc

This is where the in-betweens the plate doesn’t carry come from: borders, card backgrounds, disabled states. The mix is done in OKLab, which is closer to mixing paint than to averaging numbers. Click the result to copy it.

On screen · the split60 · 30 · 10

Adapted for screen

60% BackgroundWhere the eye rests: most of the screen. The plate's #eef4fc, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. The plate's #eef4fc, darkened.
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. From the plate, as is (#28558c).

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 13.7:1: AAA, reads with room to spare.Passes
On screen, the text #272320 on the background #f2f5fa gives 14.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 96: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #28558c stands 6.9:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 6.9:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes

Out in the worldAdapted

This is the plate with a whole screen to fill.

This paragraph is here so you can see real text on a real background, which is where half of the pretty palettes fall over. If it's hard to read, now you know. And this is a link.

A card

Secondary surfaces use the support colour. If it doesn't separate from the background, the hierarchy is gone.

Adapted: the background rests, the surface keeps the plate’s colour and the accent earns the button.

How to use it

ProportionDistribute, don't equalise: #f2f5fa on 60% of the screen, #dde3eb on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #28558c on 10%, only on buttons and links. A colour loses force the more surface it covers; what looks intense on the plate softens at full screen.
TextBody text goes in #272320, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue, even though the plate had a pair that read: a saturated colour as text tires by the third line. The book's colour enters through the heading, in #34220f, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #28558c stands 6.9:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #f5f6f8.
TemperatureWarm and cool together: let one lead and the other point. Here the background #dde3eb leads, and the accent #28558c is the first thing the eye will look for.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #dde3eb and #34220f are the base, the other two are detail. If in doubt, drop the support colour before the accent.

The kit · ramps and statesFor the design system

The kit

A brand needs four colours; an interface needs a good deal more. This is what you'd otherwise invent by hand once you take four hex codes into the editor.

Click any swatch to copy it.

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The kit · night and codeR·01

The same plate, at night

The same colour, at night.

The background isn’t pure black: it carries a little of the accent’s hue. That’s what separates a designed dark mode from one that looks like a fault.

A button

Take it with you

/* Complementary — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #f2f5fa;
  --superficie: #dde3eb;
  --texto: #272320;
  --tinta: #272320;
  --texto-suave: #67625e;
  --titular: #34220f;
  --acento: #28558c;
  --acento-texto: #f5f6f8;
  --enlace: #28558c;
  --borde: #cfd2d6;
  --apoyo-1: #b48b5f;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #28558c;
  --lamina-2: #b48b5f;
  --lamina-3: #eef4fc;
  --lamina-4: #34220f;

  --acento-50: #f3f6ff;
  --acento-100: #e4ebfe;
  --acento-200: #cbd7f5;
  --acento-300: #abbee9;
  --acento-400: #88a4d9;
  --acento-500: #658ac6;
  --acento-600: #4b70a9;
  --acento-700: #28558c;
  --acento-800: #254067;
  --acento-900: #142a48;
  --neutro-50: #f6f6f8;
  --neutro-100: #eaebee;
  --neutro-200: #d6d7db;
  --neutro-300: #bcbec4;
  --neutro-400: #a0a3ab;
  --neutro-500: #868991;
  --neutro-600: #6c6f77;
  --neutro-700: #54575e;
  --neutro-800: #3e4045;
  --neutro-900: #282a2e;

  --boton: #28558c;
  --boton-encima: #0c457a;
  --boton-pulsado: #063560;
  --boton-apagado: #91959f;
  --foco: #005598;

  --exito: #457942;
  --aviso: #9e8b48;
  --error: #a45747;
  --info: #3670ac;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #1d222c;
    --superficie: #282e3b;
    --borde: #3f4757;
    --texto: #ebeef4;
    --tinta: #ebeef4;
    --texto-suave: #aeb0b8;
    --acento: #7397d4;
    --acento-texto: #21242a;
  }
}

Open the card →Post on LinkedIn →

Goethe’s readingWhat it conveys

What this combination conveys, and why.

Wada tells you which colours go together. Goethe, a century earlier, explains why a combination means something or means nothing, and what each colour does depending on how much of the screen it takes. His circle has six colours and three oppositions, and every verdict below carries the paragraph it comes from.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

The palette crosses both sides of the circle, active and passive. It carries the most tension and most needs one of the two to lead.

Accent · blue
Blue recedes, and an accent is asked to do the opposite. As a link it only has to be distinguishable; as a primary button it needs contrast to do the work the colour will not. § 781
Heading · orange
Orange in a small patch is the accent that needs no explaining: it advances, it is seen, and it does not need size to do it. § 775

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Opposite #28558c · #b48b5f
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810
With a neutral #28558c · #eef4fc
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
Opposite #28558c · #34220f
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810
With a neutral #b48b5f · #eef4fc
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831
Same sector #b48b5f · #34220f
Both fall in the same sector of the circle. There is no hue contrast, so whatever separates them will have to be lightness. § 832
This verdict is ours. Goethe judges four of the six pairs in this group and says so himself, or one of the two colours sits right between two sectors of the circle.
With a neutral #eef4fc · #34220f
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831

Criteria taken from Zur Farbenlehre (1810), in Eastlake's 1840 translation, which is public domain. The explanations are ours: from a book you take the substance, not the wording. The light values usually credited to Goethe for working out surface proportions are not in the Farbenlehre — they are Itten's, 1961, and that is how they are credited in the adaptation rules.

Plate 04 of 05 · Analogous

All five ↑

The plate, as printedRule of harmony · not in the book

Analogous

Accent#20868b
Support#28558c
Text#2a2e60
Background#eef4fc

The starting blue and its two neighbours on the wheel, plus a neutral that lets them breathe. For calm brands: everything looks like one family and nothing shouts.

The colours the rule gives, raw and in equal parts. It is the starting point, not the interface. Click one to copy it.

Plate · MixesThree parts to one

The four colours, mixed two by two

3 parts #20868b1 part #28558c
3 parts #28558c1 part #2a2e60
3 parts #2a2e601 part #eef4fc
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #20868b
3 parts #20868b1 part #2a2e60
3 parts #28558c1 part #eef4fc
3 parts #2a2e601 part #20868b
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #28558c
3 parts #20868b1 part #eef4fc
3 parts #28558c1 part #20868b
3 parts #2a2e601 part #28558c
3 parts #eef4fc1 part #2a2e60

This is where the in-betweens the plate doesn’t carry come from: borders, card backgrounds, disabled states. The mix is done in OKLab, which is closer to mixing paint than to averaging numbers. Click the result to copy it.

On screen · the split60 · 30 · 10

Adapted for screen

60% BackgroundWhere the eye rests: most of the screen. The plate's #eef4fc, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. The plate's #eef4fc, darkened.
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #20868b, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 11.4:1: AAA, reads with room to spare.Passes
On screen, the text #24232b on the background #f2f5fa gives 14.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 96: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #0d767b stands 4.9:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.5:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes

Out in the worldAdapted

This is the plate with a whole screen to fill.

This paragraph is here so you can see real text on a real background, which is where half of the pretty palettes fall over. If it's hard to read, now you know. And this is a link.

A card

Secondary surfaces use the support colour. If it doesn't separate from the background, the hierarchy is gone.

Adapted: the background rests, the surface keeps the plate’s colour and the accent earns the button.

How to use it

ProportionDistribute, don't equalise: #f2f5fa on 60% of the screen, #dde3eb on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #0d767b on 10%, only on buttons and links. A colour loses force the more surface it covers; what looks intense on the plate softens at full screen.
TextBody text goes in #24232b, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue, even though the plate had a pair that read: a saturated colour as text tires by the third line. The book's colour enters through the heading, in #2a2e60, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #0d767b stands 4.9:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #f5f6f8.
TemperatureAll cool: orderly and serious. So it doesn't feel distant, leave plenty of air and use the accent generously on whatever you want touched.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #dde3eb and #2a2e60 are the base, the other two are detail. If in doubt, drop the support colour before the accent.

The kit · ramps and statesFor the design system

The kit

A brand needs four colours; an interface needs a good deal more. This is what you'd otherwise invent by hand once you take four hex codes into the editor.

Click any swatch to copy it.

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The kit · night and codeR·02

The same plate, at night

The same colour, at night.

The background isn’t pure black: it carries a little of the accent’s hue. That’s what separates a designed dark mode from one that looks like a fault.

A button

Take it with you

/* Analogous — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #f2f5fa;
  --superficie: #dde3eb;
  --texto: #24232b;
  --tinta: #24232b;
  --texto-suave: #63626d;
  --titular: #2a2e60;
  --acento: #0d767b;
  --acento-texto: #f5f6f8;
  --enlace: #0b7c81;
  --borde: #cfd2d6;
  --apoyo-1: #28558c;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #20868b;
  --lamina-2: #28558c;
  --lamina-3: #2a2e60;
  --lamina-4: #eef4fc;

  --acento-50: #ecf9f9;
  --acento-100: #d9eff0;
  --acento-200: #badee0;
  --acento-300: #93c7ca;
  --acento-400: #67afb3;
  --acento-500: #3c959a;
  --acento-600: #0d767b;
  --acento-700: #066165;
  --acento-800: #04474b;
  --acento-900: #012f32;
  --neutro-50: #f5f7f7;
  --neutro-100: #e8ecec;
  --neutro-200: #d2d8d9;
  --neutro-300: #b7c0c0;
  --neutro-400: #9aa5a6;
  --neutro-500: #7e8b8c;
  --neutro-600: #657272;
  --neutro-700: #4e595a;
  --neutro-800: #394142;
  --neutro-900: #252b2b;

  --boton: #0d767b;
  --boton-encima: #0b6368;
  --boton-pulsado: #035155;
  --boton-apagado: #a4b0b0;
  --foco: #0c767b;

  --exito: #457942;
  --aviso: #9e8b48;
  --error: #a45747;
  --info: #3670ac;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #172425;
    --superficie: #213132;
    --borde: #364a4b;
    --texto: #e8eff0;
    --tinta: #e8eff0;
    --texto-suave: #a9b2b3;
    --acento: #4ba3a8;
    --acento-texto: #1d2526;
  }
}

Open the card →Post on LinkedIn →

Goethe’s readingWhat it conveys

What this combination conveys, and why.

Wada tells you which colours go together. Goethe, a century earlier, explains why a combination means something or means nothing, and what each colour does depending on how much of the screen it takes. His circle has six colours and three oppositions, and every verdict below carries the paragraph it comes from.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

The whole palette sits on the passive side: the colours that recede, cool and draw the eye inward.

Accent · green
Green is the colour of rest, so as an accent it points at nothing: the eye accepts it and moves on. If this palette needs something to stop the eye, this is not it. § 802
Heading · blue
Blue recedes, and an accent is asked to do the opposite. As a link it only has to be distinguishable; as a primary button it needs contrast to do the work the colour will not. § 781

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Adjacent #20868b · #28558c
Adjacent on the circle. This is the one pair Goethe dismisses outright, and that judgement does not hold today — teal is well liked. What does hold is the measurable half: two neighbours with no difference in lightness produce no contrast. § 829
Adjacent #20868b · #2a2e60
Adjacent on the circle. This is the one pair Goethe dismisses outright, and that judgement does not hold today — teal is well liked. What does hold is the measurable half: two neighbours with no difference in lightness produce no contrast. § 829
With a neutral #20868b · #eef4fc
A neutral with a colour that has no side on the circle. Goethe has nothing to say here. § 831
Same sector #28558c · #2a2e60
Both fall in the same sector of the circle. There is no hue contrast, so whatever separates them will have to be lightness. § 832
This verdict is ours. Goethe judges four of the six pairs in this group and says so himself, or one of the two colours sits right between two sectors of the circle.
With a neutral #28558c · #eef4fc
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
With a neutral #2a2e60 · #eef4fc
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831

Criteria taken from Zur Farbenlehre (1810), in Eastlake's 1840 translation, which is public domain. The explanations are ours: from a book you take the substance, not the wording. The light values usually credited to Goethe for working out surface proportions are not in the Farbenlehre — they are Itten's, 1961, and that is how they are credited in the adaptation rules.

Plate 05 of 05 · Monochrome with accent

All five ↑

The plate, as printedRule of harmony · not in the book

Monochrome with accent

Text#162e4b
Accent#28558c
Background#dae9fd
Support#ba8952

One hue in three lights and a small accent opposite it. The one studios use most: the brand is recognised by one colour and the accent does the work of pointing at buttons and links.

The colours the rule gives, raw and in equal parts. It is the starting point, not the interface. Click one to copy it.

Plate · MixesThree parts to one

The four colours, mixed two by two

3 parts #162e4b1 part #28558c
3 parts #28558c1 part #dae9fd
3 parts #dae9fd1 part #ba8952
3 parts #ba89521 part #162e4b
3 parts #162e4b1 part #dae9fd
3 parts #28558c1 part #ba8952
3 parts #dae9fd1 part #162e4b
3 parts #ba89521 part #28558c
3 parts #162e4b1 part #ba8952
3 parts #28558c1 part #162e4b
3 parts #dae9fd1 part #28558c
3 parts #ba89521 part #dae9fd

This is where the in-betweens the plate doesn’t carry come from: borders, card backgrounds, disabled states. The mix is done in OKLab, which is closer to mixing paint than to averaging numbers. Click the result to copy it.

On screen · the split60 · 30 · 10

Adapted for screen

60% BackgroundWhere the eye rests: most of the screen. The plate's #dae9fd, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. From the plate, as is (#dae9fd).
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. From the plate, as is (#28558c).

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 11.1:1: AAA, reads with room to spare.Passes
On screen, the text #212429 on the background #eff6ff gives 14.3:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 97: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #28558c stands 6.9:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 6.9:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes

Out in the worldAdapted

This is the plate with a whole screen to fill.

This paragraph is here so you can see real text on a real background, which is where half of the pretty palettes fall over. If it's hard to read, now you know. And this is a link.

A card

Secondary surfaces use the support colour. If it doesn't separate from the background, the hierarchy is gone.

Adapted: the background rests, the surface keeps the plate’s colour and the accent earns the button.

How to use it

ProportionDistribute, don't equalise: #eff6ff on 60% of the screen, #dae9fd on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #28558c on 10%, only on buttons and links. A colour loses force the more surface it covers; what looks intense on the plate softens at full screen.
TextBody text goes in #212429, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue, even though the plate had a pair that read: a saturated colour as text tires by the third line. The book's colour enters through the heading, in #162e4b, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #28558c stands 6.9:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #f4f7fb.
TemperatureWarm and cool together: let one lead and the other point. Here the background #dae9fd leads, and the accent #28558c is the first thing the eye will look for.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #dae9fd and #162e4b are the base, the other two are detail. If in doubt, drop the support colour before the accent.

The kit · ramps and statesFor the design system

The kit

A brand needs four colours; an interface needs a good deal more. This is what you'd otherwise invent by hand once you take four hex codes into the editor.

Click any swatch to copy it.

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The kit · night and codeR·03

The same plate, at night

The same colour, at night.

The background isn’t pure black: it carries a little of the accent’s hue. That’s what separates a designed dark mode from one that looks like a fault.

A button

Take it with you

/* Monochrome with accent — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #eff6ff;
  --superficie: #dae9fd;
  --texto: #212429;
  --tinta: #212429;
  --texto-suave: #60636a;
  --titular: #162e4b;
  --acento: #28558c;
  --acento-texto: #f4f7fb;
  --enlace: #28558c;
  --borde: #cbd2dc;
  --apoyo-1: #ba8952;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #162e4b;
  --lamina-2: #28558c;
  --lamina-3: #dae9fd;
  --lamina-4: #ba8952;

  --acento-50: #f3f6ff;
  --acento-100: #e4ebfe;
  --acento-200: #cbd7f5;
  --acento-300: #abbee9;
  --acento-400: #88a4d9;
  --acento-500: #658ac6;
  --acento-600: #4b70a9;
  --acento-700: #28558c;
  --acento-800: #254067;
  --acento-900: #142a48;
  --neutro-50: #f6f6f8;
  --neutro-100: #eaebee;
  --neutro-200: #d6d7db;
  --neutro-300: #bcbec4;
  --neutro-400: #a0a3ab;
  --neutro-500: #868991;
  --neutro-600: #6c6f77;
  --neutro-700: #54575e;
  --neutro-800: #3e4045;
  --neutro-900: #282a2e;

  --boton: #28558c;
  --boton-encima: #0c457a;
  --boton-pulsado: #063560;
  --boton-apagado: #91959f;
  --foco: #005598;

  --exito: #457942;
  --aviso: #9e8b48;
  --error: #a45747;
  --info: #3670ac;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #1d222c;
    --superficie: #282e3b;
    --borde: #3f4757;
    --texto: #ebeef4;
    --tinta: #ebeef4;
    --texto-suave: #aeb0b8;
    --acento: #7397d4;
    --acento-texto: #21242a;
  }
}

Open the card →Post on LinkedIn →

Goethe’s readingWhat it conveys

What this combination conveys, and why.

Wada tells you which colours go together. Goethe, a century earlier, explains why a combination means something or means nothing, and what each colour does depending on how much of the screen it takes. His circle has six colours and three oppositions, and every verdict below carries the paragraph it comes from.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

The palette crosses both sides of the circle, active and passive. It carries the most tension and most needs one of the two to lead.

Accent and Heading · blue
Blue recedes, and an accent is asked to do the opposite. As a link it only has to be distinguishable; as a primary button it needs contrast to do the work the colour will not. § 781

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Same sector #162e4b · #28558c
Both fall in the same sector of the circle. There is no hue contrast, so whatever separates them will have to be lightness. § 832
This verdict is ours. Goethe judges four of the six pairs in this group and says so himself, or one of the two colours sits right between two sectors of the circle.
With a neutral #162e4b · #dae9fd
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
Opposite #162e4b · #ba8952
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810
With a neutral #28558c · #dae9fd
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
Opposite #28558c · #ba8952
Opposite on the circle: together they complete what the eye asks for on its own. It is the only category Goethe approves without reservation. § 810
With a neutral #dae9fd · #ba8952
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831

Criteria taken from Zur Farbenlehre (1810), in Eastlake's 1840 translation, which is public domain. The explanations are ours: from a book you take the substance, not the wording. The light values usually credited to Goethe for working out surface proportions are not in the Farbenlehre — they are Itten's, 1961, and that is how they are credited in the adaptation rules.

What goes with blue

Five palettes with blue, each with a reason.

Brown, Helvetia Blue, Pinkish Cinnamon

Helvetia Blue, Grayish Lavender - B, Aconite Violet

Complementary

Analogous

Monochrome with accent

Wada combination 161

The three colours, mixed two by two

Adapted for screen

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

How to use it

The kit

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The same plate, by day

Take it with you

What this combination conveys, and why.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

What is happening to this palette

How each pair reads on the circle

Wada combination 187

The three colours, mixed two by two

Adapted for screen

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

How to use it

The kit

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The same plate, at night

Take it with you

What this combination conveys, and why.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

How each pair reads on the circle

Complementary

The four colours, mixed two by two

Adapted for screen

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

How to use it

The kit

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The same plate, at night

Take it with you

What this combination conveys, and why.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

How each pair reads on the circle

Analogous

The four colours, mixed two by two

Adapted for screen

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

How to use it

The kit

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The same plate, at night

Take it with you

What this combination conveys, and why.

What it conveys, by where each colour landed

How each pair reads on the circle

Monochrome with accent

The four colours, mixed two by two

Adapted for screen

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

How to use it

The kit

The accent’s tints

The neutrals, tinted with the accent

Button states and alerts

The same plate, at night