Colours that go with pink

Chapter 2 · Five plates with pink

Chapter 2 · From the bookHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

From the book

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

254

Corinthian Pink, Sulphur Yellow, Olive, Laelia Pink

#f7bdc3 · #f8f0c8 · #8a8122 · #d097ad

Light · button 3.1:1All warmIts page →Open →

280

Eugenia Red | B, Lincoln Green, Laelia Pink, Taupe Brown

#d84c5a · #5d5b31 · #d097ad · #844859

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

Chapter 2 · By ruleNamed harmonies

By rule

Three plates built from pink 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

#dd8fa0 · #307568 · #fbf0f2 · #0d2d27

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

Light · button 3.1:1Warm and coolOpen →

R·02

Analogous

#f3bbe2 · #dd8fa0 · #ae745c · #fbf0f2

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

Light · button 3.1:1All warmOpen →

R·03

Monochrome with accent

#46202a · #dd8fa0 · #fae0e5 · #197768

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

Light · button 4.9:1Warm 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 254

All five ↑

The plate, as printedHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

Wada combination 254

Corinthian Pink#f7bdc3
Sulphur Yellow#f8f0c8
Olive#8a8122
Laelia Pink#d097ad

It contains a colour very close to the starting pink (Laelia Pink) and has been in use for almost a century. The original colours are called Corinthian Pink · Sulphur Yellow · Olive · Laelia Pink.

4 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 four colours, mixed two by two

3 parts corinthian pink1 part sulphur yellow
3 parts sulphur yellow1 part olive
3 parts olive1 part laelia pink
3 parts laelia pink1 part corinthian pink
3 parts corinthian pink1 part olive
3 parts sulphur yellow1 part laelia pink
3 parts olive1 part corinthian pink
3 parts laelia pink1 part sulphur yellow
3 parts corinthian pink1 part laelia pink
3 parts sulphur yellow1 part corinthian pink
3 parts olive1 part sulphur yellow
3 parts laelia pink1 part olive

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 #f8f0c8, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. The plate's #f8f0c8, darkened.
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #f7bdc3, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 3.4:1: only good for large text.Falls short
On screen, the text #262419 on the background #f9f5e4 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 #b37d83 stands 3.1:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.7:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes
Under deuteranopia, your accent and your background drop to 2.9:1. 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: #f9f5e4 on 60% of the screen, #e7dfb7 on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #b37d83 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 3.4:1). That is why body text goes in #262419, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue: it is not in the book, and it is needed.
The buttonThe accent #b37d83 stands 3.1:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #262419.
TemperatureAll warm: close and unified, but to make something stand out don't rely on colour, rely on light: the important thing darker or lighter than its surroundings.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #e7dfb7 and #7a7210 are the base, the other two are detail. If in doubt, drop the support colour before the accent.
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 mixed-light ones: it already brings hierarchy. Keep it on screen: lightest at the back, darkest in front.

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 code254

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 254 — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #f9f5e4;
  --superficie: #e7dfb7;
  --texto: #262419;
  --tinta: #262419;
  --texto-suave: #676353;
  --titular: #7a7210;
  --acento: #b37d83;
  --acento-texto: #262419;
  --enlace: #925f65;
  --borde: #d6d2be;
  --apoyo-1: #d097ad;

  /* la lámina de Wada, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #f7bdc3;
  --lamina-2: #f8f0c8;
  --lamina-3: #8a8122;
  --lamina-4: #d097ad;

  --acento-50: #fef4f5;
  --acento-100: #f8e7e8;
  --acento-200: #ecd1d3;
  --acento-300: #dbb5b8;
  --acento-400: #c7979c;
  --acento-500: #b37d83;
  --acento-600: #946268;
  --acento-700: #774b50;
  --acento-800: #59363b;
  --acento-900: #3d2326;
  --neutro-50: #f8f6f6;
  --neutro-100: #eeeaea;
  --neutro-200: #dcd6d6;
  --neutro-300: #c5bcbd;
  --neutro-400: #aca1a1;
  --neutro-500: #928687;
  --neutro-600: #786d6e;
  --neutro-700: #5f5556;
  --neutro-800: #463e3f;
  --neutro-900: #2f2829;

  --boton: #b37d83;
  --boton-encima: #a06b71;
  --boton-pulsado: #875d61;
  --boton-apagado: #d9cfd0;
  --foco: #cf6e7d;

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

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #291f20;
    --superficie: #372b2c;
    --borde: #524344;
    --texto: #f3eced;
    --tinta: #f3eced;
    --texto-suave: #b6afaf;
    --acento: #be888d;
    --acento-texto: #282223;
  }
}

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 active side of the circle: the colours that advance, warm and push outward.

Surface · yellow
Yellow across a large surface is a gamble. It is the least forgiving colour: the slightest drift towards green turns gold into dirt, and on screen that drift is supplied by compression or a gradient. § 770
Accent · red
Red is the high point of the active side. In a small patch it does exactly what an accent is for: stopping the eye once. § 793
Heading · yellow
Yellow points, but it loses the moment the ground stops being smooth and bright. On screen that means shadows, gradients and small type on top. § 771

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Characteristic #f7bdc3 · #f8f0c8
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Characteristic #f7bdc3 · #8a8122
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Same sector #f7bdc3 · #d097ad
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.
Same sector #f8f0c8 · #8a8122
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.
Characteristic #f8f0c8 · #d097ad
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Characteristic #8a8122 · #d097ad
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820

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 280

All five ↑

The plate, as printedHaishoku Sōkan · 1933

Wada combination 280

Eugenia Red | B#d84c5a
Lincoln Green#5d5b31
Laelia Pink#d097ad
Taupe Brown#844859

It contains a colour very close to the starting pink (Laelia Pink) and has been in use for almost a century. The original colours are called Eugenia Red | B · Lincoln Green · Laelia Pink · Taupe Brown.

4 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 four colours, mixed two by two

3 parts eugenia red | b1 part lincoln green
3 parts lincoln green1 part laelia pink
3 parts laelia pink1 part taupe brown
3 parts taupe brown1 part eugenia red | b
3 parts eugenia red | b1 part laelia pink
3 parts lincoln green1 part taupe brown
3 parts laelia pink1 part eugenia red | b
3 parts taupe brown1 part lincoln green
3 parts eugenia red | b1 part taupe brown
3 parts lincoln green1 part eugenia red | b
3 parts laelia pink1 part lincoln green
3 parts taupe brown1 part laelia pink

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 #d097ad, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. From the plate, as is (#d097ad).
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #d84c5a, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 2.9:1: does not read.Falls short
On screen, the text #25241d on the background #fff2f6 gives 14.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 97: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #c63a4c 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: #fff2f6 on 60% of the screen, #d097ad on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #c63a4c 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 2.9:1). That is why body text goes in #25241d, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue: it is not in the book, and it is needed.
The buttonThe accent #c63a4c stands 4.6:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #fef4f7.
TemperatureAll warm: close and unified, but to make something stand out don't rely on colour, rely on light: the important thing darker or lighter than its surroundings.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #d097ad and #5d5b31 are the base, the other two are detail. If in doubt, drop the support colour before the accent.
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 code280

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 280 — bluenze.com/paletas */
:root {
  --fondo: #fff2f6;
  --superficie: #d097ad;
  --texto: #25241d;
  --tinta: #25241d;
  --texto-suave: #65635b;
  --titular: #5d5b31;
  --acento: #c63a4c;
  --acento-texto: #fef4f7;
  --enlace: #c63b4c;
  --borde: #e7cad5;
  --apoyo-1: #844859;

  /* la lámina de Wada, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #d84c5a;
  --lamina-2: #5d5b31;
  --lamina-3: #d097ad;
  --lamina-4: #844859;

  --acento-50: #f6f6f6;
  --acento-100: #ffe5e5;
  --acento-200: #ffcaca;
  --acento-300: #ffa7a8;
  --acento-400: #fa7d83;
  --acento-500: #e75865;
  --acento-600: #c63a4c;
  --acento-700: #a12a3a;
  --acento-800: #7b1a29;
  --acento-900: #560c19;
  --neutro-50: #f8f6f6;
  --neutro-100: #eeeaea;
  --neutro-200: #dcd6d6;
  --neutro-300: #c5bcbc;
  --neutro-400: #aca1a0;
  --neutro-500: #938686;
  --neutro-600: #796d6d;
  --neutro-700: #5f5555;
  --neutro-800: #463e3e;
  --neutro-900: #2f2928;

  --boton: #c63a4c;
  --boton-encima: #b1243c;
  --boton-pulsado: #97132f;
  --boton-apagado: #c5acab;
  --foco: #db0143;

  --exito: #197e25;
  --aviso: #a28a0d;
  --error: #bd4431;
  --info: #0770ba;
}

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #2e1d1d;
    --superficie: #3e2929;
    --borde: #5a4040;
    --texto: #f9ebea;
    --tinta: #f9ebea;
    --texto-suave: #bdadad;
    --acento: #f66672;
    --acento-texto: #2f2020;
  }
}

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 active side of the circle: the colours that advance, warm and push outward.

Surface · red
Red at full surface leaves room for nothing else. It is the colour of gravity and dignity, and in a background that reads as constant weight. § 790
Accent · red
Red is the high point of the active side. In a small patch it does exactly what an accent is for: stopping the eye once. § 793
Heading · yellow
Yellow points, but it loses the moment the ground stops being smooth and bright. On screen that means shadows, gradients and small type on top. § 771

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Characteristic #d84c5a · #5d5b31
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Same sector #d84c5a · #d097ad
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.
Same sector #d84c5a · #844859
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.
Characteristic #5d5b31 · #d097ad
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Characteristic #5d5b31 · #844859
Yellow and red, with orange skipped between them. The characteristic pair he thinks best: serene and magnificent. § 820
Same sector #d097ad · #844859
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.

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#dd8fa0
Support#307568
Background#fbf0f2
Text#0d2d27

The starting pink 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 #dd8fa01 part #307568
3 parts #3075681 part #fbf0f2
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #0d2d27
3 parts #0d2d271 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #fbf0f2
3 parts #3075681 part #0d2d27
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #0d2d271 part #307568
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #0d2d27
3 parts #3075681 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #307568
3 parts #0d2d271 part #fbf0f2

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 #fbf0f2, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. The plate's #fbf0f2, darkened.
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #dd8fa0, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 13.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare.Passes
On screen, the text #202523 on the background #faf3f5 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 #c07586 stands 3.1:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.7:1 (a word needs 4.5:1).Passes
Under deuteranopia, your accent and your background drop to 2.9:1. 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: #faf3f5 on 60% of the screen, #eadfe1 on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #c07586 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 #202523, 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 #0d2d27, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #c07586 stands 3.1:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #202523.
TemperatureWarm and cool together: let one lead and the other point. Here the background #eadfe1 leads, and the accent #c07586 is the first thing the eye will look for.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #eadfe1 and #0d2d27 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: #faf3f5;
  --superficie: #eadfe1;
  --texto: #202523;
  --tinta: #202523;
  --texto-suave: #5e6463;
  --titular: #0d2d27;
  --acento: #c07586;
  --acento-texto: #202523;
  --enlace: #9f5668;
  --borde: #d6d0d1;
  --apoyo-1: #307568;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #dd8fa0;
  --lamina-2: #307568;
  --lamina-3: #fbf0f2;
  --lamina-4: #0d2d27;

  --acento-50: #fff4f6;
  --acento-100: #fde5e9;
  --acento-200: #f4ced5;
  --acento-300: #e6b0bb;
  --acento-400: #d4919f;
  --acento-500: #c07586;
  --acento-600: #a15a6b;
  --acento-700: #814553;
  --acento-800: #61313d;
  --acento-900: #431e28;
  --neutro-50: #f8f6f6;
  --neutro-100: #eeeaeb;
  --neutro-200: #dcd6d7;
  --neutro-300: #c5bcbe;
  --neutro-400: #aba0a2;
  --neutro-500: #928688;
  --neutro-600: #786d6f;
  --neutro-700: #5f5556;
  --neutro-800: #463e3f;
  --neutro-900: #2e282a;

  --boton: #c07586;
  --boton-encima: #ac6374;
  --boton-pulsado: #935563;
  --boton-apagado: #dbced0;
  --foco: #da6484;

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

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #2b1e21;
    --superficie: #3a2a2d;
    --borde: #564145;
    --texto: #f4eced;
    --tinta: #f4eced;
    --texto-suave: #b8aeb0;
    --acento: #cc8091;
    --acento-texto: #2a2123;
  }
}

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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 whole palette sits on the active side of the circle: the colours that advance, warm and push outward.

Accent · red
Red is the high point of the active side. In a small patch it does exactly what an accent is for: stopping the eye once. § 793
Heading · 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

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Opposite #dd8fa0 · #307568
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 #dd8fa0 · #fbf0f2
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831
Opposite #dd8fa0 · #0d2d27
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 #307568 · #fbf0f2
A neutral with a colour that has no side on the circle. Goethe has nothing to say here. § 831
Same sector #307568 · #0d2d27
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 #fbf0f2 · #0d2d27
A neutral with a colour that has no side on the circle. Goethe has nothing to say here. § 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#f3bbe2
Support#dd8fa0
Text#ae745c
Background#fbf0f2

The starting pink 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 #f3bbe21 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #ae745c
3 parts #ae745c1 part #fbf0f2
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #f3bbe2
3 parts #f3bbe21 part #ae745c
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #fbf0f2
3 parts #ae745c1 part #f3bbe2
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #f3bbe21 part #fbf0f2
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #f3bbe2
3 parts #ae745c1 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #fbf0f21 part #ae745c

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 #fbf0f2, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. The plate's #fbf0f2, darkened.
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. The plate's #f3bbe2, darkened.

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 3.4:1: only good for large text.Falls short
On screen, the text #2b221e on the background #faf3f5 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 #af7ba0 stands 3.1:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.7:1 (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: #faf3f5 on 60% of the screen, #eadfe1 on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #af7ba0 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 3.4:1). That is why body text goes in #2b221e, a near-neutral ink tinted with the palette's hue: it is not in the book, and it is needed.
The buttonThe accent #af7ba0 stands 3.1:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #2b221e.
TemperatureAll warm: close and unified, but to make something stand out don't rely on colour, rely on light: the important thing darker or lighter than its surroundings.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #eadfe1 and #986049 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: #faf3f5;
  --superficie: #eadfe1;
  --texto: #2b221e;
  --tinta: #2b221e;
  --texto-suave: #6d615c;
  --titular: #986049;
  --acento: #af7ba0;
  --acento-texto: #2b221e;
  --enlace: #8f5d81;
  --borde: #d6d0d1;
  --apoyo-1: #dd8fa0;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #f3bbe2;
  --lamina-2: #dd8fa0;
  --lamina-3: #ae745c;
  --lamina-4: #fbf0f2;

  --acento-50: #fdf4fa;
  --acento-100: #f7e7f1;
  --acento-200: #ead0e2;
  --acento-300: #d8b4cd;
  --acento-400: #c395b6;
  --acento-500: #af7ba0;
  --acento-600: #916083;
  --acento-700: #744a68;
  --acento-800: #57354d;
  --acento-900: #3b2234;
  --neutro-50: #f8f6f7;
  --neutro-100: #edeaec;
  --neutro-200: #dad6d9;
  --neutro-300: #c3bcc1;
  --neutro-400: #a9a1a6;
  --neutro-500: #8f868c;
  --neutro-600: #766d73;
  --neutro-700: #5c555a;
  --neutro-800: #443e42;
  --neutro-900: #2d292c;

  --boton: #af7ba0;
  --boton-encima: #9c698e;
  --boton-pulsado: #855a79;
  --boton-apagado: #d8cfd5;
  --foco: #c46ead;

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

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #281f25;
    --superficie: #362b33;
    --borde: #51434c;
    --texto: #f2ecf0;
    --tinta: #f2ecf0;
    --texto-suave: #b5afb3;
    --acento: #ba86ab;
    --acento-texto: #282226;
  }
}

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 · 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 · 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

Adjacent #f3bbe2 · #dd8fa0
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
Characteristic #f3bbe2 · #ae745c
Orange and violet, with red skipped. It excites because it hints at pure red without ever showing it. § 822
With a neutral #f3bbe2 · #fbf0f2
Next to white, a colour from the passive side gains in liveliness. § 831
Adjacent #dd8fa0 · #ae745c
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 #dd8fa0 · #fbf0f2
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831
With a neutral #ae745c · #fbf0f2
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 05 of 05 · Monochrome with accent

All five ↑

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

Monochrome with accent

Text#46202a
Support#dd8fa0
Background#fae0e5
Accent#197768

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 #46202a1 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #fae0e5
3 parts #fae0e51 part #197768
3 parts #1977681 part #46202a
3 parts #46202a1 part #fae0e5
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #197768
3 parts #fae0e51 part #46202a
3 parts #1977681 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #46202a1 part #197768
3 parts #dd8fa01 part #46202a
3 parts #fae0e51 part #dd8fa0
3 parts #1977681 part #fae0e5

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 #fae0e5, lightened.
30% SurfaceCards, bands, headers. This is where the book's colour lives. From the plate, as is (#fae0e5).
10% AccentOnly what gets clicked. From the plate, as is (#197768).

The roles the plate doesn’t carry

Measured, before and after

On the plate, the best pair of colours reads at 11.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare.Passes
On screen, the text #292223 on the background #fff2f4 gives 14.2:1: AAA, reads with room to spare. APCA gives Lc 97: good for small text, the kind you read a paragraph of.Passes
The accent #197768 stands 4.9:1 from the background (a button needs 3:1) and as a link reaches 4.9:1 (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: #fff2f4 on 60% of the screen, #fae0e5 on 30% (cards, bands, headers) and #197768 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 #292223, 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 #46202a, where size forgives.
The buttonThe accent #197768 stands 4.9:1 apart from the background: it works as a button, with text in #faf5f6.
TemperatureWarm and cool together: let one lead and the other point. Here the background #fae0e5 leads, and the accent #197768 is the first thing the eye will look for.
How manyFour colours demand discipline: #fae0e5 and #46202a 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: #fff2f4;
  --superficie: #fae0e5;
  --texto: #292223;
  --tinta: #292223;
  --texto-suave: #6a6163;
  --titular: #46202a;
  --acento: #197768;
  --acento-texto: #faf5f6;
  --enlace: #197768;
  --borde: #dbced1;
  --apoyo-1: #dd8fa0;

  /* la lámina, tal cual */
  --lamina-1: #46202a;
  --lamina-2: #dd8fa0;
  --lamina-3: #fae0e5;
  --lamina-4: #197768;

  --acento-50: #ecf9f6;
  --acento-100: #d9f0ea;
  --acento-200: #badfd6;
  --acento-300: #93c9bd;
  --acento-400: #69b0a1;
  --acento-500: #409787;
  --acento-600: #197768;
  --acento-700: #116255;
  --acento-800: #05493e;
  --acento-900: #013029;
  --neutro-50: #f5f7f6;
  --neutro-100: #e8eceb;
  --neutro-200: #d2d8d7;
  --neutro-300: #b8c0be;
  --neutro-400: #9ba5a3;
  --neutro-500: #7f8b88;
  --neutro-600: #66726f;
  --neutro-700: #4f5957;
  --neutro-800: #3a4240;
  --neutro-900: #252b2a;

  --boton: #197768;
  --boton-encima: #006557;
  --boton-pulsado: #005347;
  --boton-apagado: #a4b0ad;
  --foco: #147768;

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

@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --fondo: #172421;
    --superficie: #21312e;
    --borde: #374b46;
    --texto: #e8f0ed;
    --tinta: #e8f0ed;
    --texto-suave: #a9b2b0;
    --acento: #4ea494;
    --acento-texto: #1d2523;
  }
}

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 active side of the circle: the colours that advance, warm and push outward.

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 · red
Red is the high point of the active side. In a small patch it does exactly what an accent is for: stopping the eye once. § 793

How each pair readsZur Farbenlehre · 1810

How each pair reads on the circle

Same sector #46202a · #dd8fa0
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 #46202a · #fae0e5
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831
Opposite #46202a · #197768
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 #dd8fa0 · #fae0e5
Next to white, a colour from the active side loses force. § 831
Opposite #dd8fa0 · #197768
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 #fae0e5 · #197768
A neutral with a colour that has no side on the circle. Goethe has nothing to say here. § 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 pink

Five palettes with pink, each with a reason.

Corinthian Pink, Sulphur Yellow, Olive, Laelia Pink

Eugenia Red | B, Lincoln Green, Laelia Pink, Taupe Brown

Complementary

Analogous

Monochrome with accent

Wada combination 254

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

Wada combination 280

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

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

Take it with you