Tan Color Palette
Tan Color Palette built around #D2B48C, a dark warm brown anchor (WCAG contrast 10.65:1 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 | #F3E3CF | |
| surface | #D7BB97 | |
| text | #6D5A40 | |
| text-muted | #9CACC2 | |
| primary | #D2B48C | |
| secondary | #9CACC2 | |
| accent | #D7BB97 |
CSS variables
:root {
--background: #f3e3cf;
--surface: #d7bb97;
--text: #6d5a40;
--text-muted: #9cacc2;
--primary: #d2b48c;
--secondary: #9cacc2;
--accent: #d7bb97;
}Accessibility matrix
Text color (rows) on background (columns). Green = WCAG AA pass for normal text (≥4.5:1).
| Text \ BG | #D2B48C | #F3E3CF | #6D5A40 | #9CACC2 | #D7BB97 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #D2B48C | 1.0 | 1.6 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 1.1 |
| #F3E3CF | 1.6 | 1.0 | 5.2 | 1.8 | 1.5 |
| #6D5A40 | 3.3 | 5.2 | 1.0 | 2.9 | 3.6 |
| #9CACC2 | 1.2 | 1.8 | 2.9 | 1.0 | 1.3 |
| #D7BB97 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 3.6 | 1.3 | 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 tan color palette in CSS?
Copy the CSS variables below into :root and use var(--primary), var(--background) etc. Full palette: #D2B48C, #F3E3CF, #6D5A40, #9CACC2, #D7BB97.
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.