Clay Color Palette
Clay Color Palette built around #B66A50, a dark warm brown anchor (WCAG contrast 5.17:1 against black). The set combines a light tint + a deep shade + a softened complement + a neutral ground so any palette position has a text-safe pairing.
Semantic roles
Assigned deterministically: lightest = background, darkest = text, most saturated = primary.
| background | #F0C5B7 | |
| surface | #67919F | |
| text | #653423 | |
| text-muted | #B66A50 | |
| primary | #B66A50 | |
| secondary | #67919F | |
| accent | #BF7860 |
CSS variables
:root {
--background: #f0c5b7;
--surface: #67919f;
--text: #653423;
--text-muted: #b66a50;
--primary: #b66a50;
--secondary: #67919f;
--accent: #bf7860;
}Accessibility matrix
Text color (rows) on background (columns). Green = WCAG AA pass for normal text (≥4.5:1).
| Text \ BG | #B66A50 | #F0C5B7 | #653423 | #67919F | #BF7860 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #B66A50 | 1.0 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 1.2 |
| #F0C5B7 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 6.5 | 2.2 | 2.2 |
| #653423 | 2.5 | 6.5 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 2.9 |
| #67919F | 1.2 | 2.2 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| #BF7860 | 1.2 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Under deuteranopia
Machado et al. (2009) simulation, severity 1.0 — approximation, not a medical tool.
Colors in this palette
Similar palettes
FAQ
How do I use the clay color palette in CSS?
Copy the CSS variables below into :root and use var(--primary), var(--background) etc. Full palette: #B66A50, #F0C5B7, #653423, #67919F, #BF7860.
Do these colors pass accessibility checks?
See the WCAG matrix on this page: every text-on-background pairing with ratio ≥ 4.5 passes AA for normal text; ≥ 3 passes AA for large text and UI components.