Crimson Color Palette
Crimson Color Palette built around #DC143C, a dark warm red anchor (WCAG contrast 4.21:1 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 | #FFB0AD | |
| surface | #41AF99 | |
| text | #810019 | |
| text-muted | #DC143C | |
| primary | #DC143C | |
| secondary | #41AF99 | |
| accent | #E43E4D |
CSS variables
:root {
--background: #ffb0ad;
--surface: #41af99;
--text: #810019;
--text-muted: #dc143c;
--primary: #dc143c;
--secondary: #41af99;
--accent: #e43e4d;
}Accessibility matrix
Text color (rows) on background (columns). Green = WCAG AA pass for normal text (≥4.5:1).
| Text \ BG | #DC143C | #FFB0AD | #810019 | #41AF99 | #E43E4D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #DC143C | 1.0 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 1.2 |
| #FFB0AD | 2.9 | 1.0 | 6.2 | 1.5 | 2.4 |
| #810019 | 2.2 | 6.2 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 2.6 |
| #41AF99 | 1.9 | 1.5 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 1.5 |
| #E43E4D | 1.2 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 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 crimson color palette in CSS?
Copy the CSS variables below into :root and use var(--primary), var(--background) etc. Full palette: #DC143C, #FFB0AD, #810019, #41AF99, #E43E4D.
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.