# #281c2c

A color — cool, muted, dark, luxury, bold. Deterministic analysis from BrandSweets (no inference).

## Values

- Hex: `#281c2c`
- RGB: rgb(40, 28, 44)
- HSL: hsl(285, 22%, 14%)
- OKLCH: oklch(0.248 0.034 317.5)
- Relative luminance: 0.0146
- Nearest named color: Black Velvet (#222233, Δ 2.246) — https://brandsweets.com/colors/black-velvet
- Moods: cool, muted, dark, luxury, bold
- Page: https://brandsweets.com/colors/281c2c

## Tints & shades

- Tints (toward white): #3e2c44, #583e60, #6e4e79, #885f95, #9b76a7, #ad8fb7, #c2abc9, #d4c4d9, #e8e0eb, #faf9fb
- Shades (toward black): #251a28, #221825, #1f1622, #1c141f, #19121c, #171019, #140e16, #110c13, #0e0a10, #0b080c

## Harmonies

- Complementary: #202c1c
- Analogous: #201c2c, #2c1c28
- Triadic: #2c281c, #1c2c28
- Split-complementary: #282c1c, #1c2c20
- Tetradic: #2c201c, #202c1c, #1c282c

## Colors that go with #281c2c

Named partners (harmony on the OKLCH wheel, co-occurrence in curated palettes and brand systems, and the neutrals that carry it), best first:

- **Charcoal** #36454f [role, pool] — Charcoal is the text near-black for #281c2c: softer than #000 and cool enough to feel like part of the same palette. Seen in: Tide Pool (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#tide-pool), Volkswagen (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/vw-com), Lamborghini (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/lamborghini-com), Audi (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/audi-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/charcoal
- **Dark Olive Green** #556b2f [harmony, pool: split] — Dark Olive Green is a split-complement of #281c2c: nearly opposite, so it still pops against it, without the vibrating edge of a true complement. Seen in: Cohere (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/cohere-com), 7-Eleven (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/7-eleven-com), Warp (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/warp-dev), Clay & Linen (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/warm#clay-and-linen). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/darkolivegreen
- **Sea Green** #2e8b57 [harmony, pool: complementary] — Sea Green sits directly opposite #281c2c on the wheel — the strongest contrast one hue can give another, so use it small: a button, a link colour, one highlight. Seen in: Subaru (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/subaru-com), Wellness (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/warm#wellness), Asana (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/asana-com), Next.js (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/nextjs-org). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/seagreen
- **Sienna** #a0522d [harmony, pool: triadic] — Sienna completes a triad with #281c2c — three hues spaced evenly round the wheel, the classic way to get energy into a palette without a clash. Seen in: Woodsmoke (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/dark#woodsmoke), BrandSweets (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/brandsweets), Harvest (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/warm#harvest), Coffee Bar (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/dark#coffee-bar). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/sienna
- **Slate Blue** #6a5acd [harmony, pool: analogous] — Slate Blue is #281c2c's neighbour on the wheel, so the two read as one family — use it for hover states, gradients and secondary surfaces. Seen in: GitLab (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/gitlab), Superhuman (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/superhuman-com), Indigo SaaS (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/modern#indigo-saas), Sentry (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/sentry-io). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/slateblue
- **Teal** #008080 [harmony, pool: split] — Teal is a split-complement of #281c2c: nearly opposite, so it still pops against it, without the vibrating edge of a true complement. Seen in: Alpine (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#alpine), N26 (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/n26-com), Gusto (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/gusto-com), Mid-Century (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/warm#mid-century). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/teal
- **Amber** #ffbf00 [pool] — Amber is paired with #281c2c in 18 real palettes, including Wikipedia's brand system and Google's brand system, as the accent. Seen in: Wikipedia (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/wikipedia-org), Google (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/google-com), Warner Bros. (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/warnerbros-com), McDonald's (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/mcdonalds-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/amber
- **Blue** #0000ff [pool] — 23 real palettes, including Sketch's brand system and Rolex's brand system put Blue beside #281c2c, as the accent. Seen in: Sketch (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/sketch-com), Rolex (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/rolex-com), Bumble (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/bumble-com), Warp (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/warp-dev). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/blue

## Contrast (WCAG 2.x, as text)

- On white (#ffffff): 16.25:1 — AA pass, AA-large pass, AAA pass
- On black (#000000): 1.29:1 — AA fail, AA-large fail, AAA fail. Fix: AA: text → #90679e (4.62:1); AA: background → #878787 (4.52:1); AAA: text → #ab8cb5 (7.15:1); AAA: background → #ababab (7.07:1)

## Brands using this color

- **Allbirds** — primary #241c24 (Δ 1.796) — https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/allbirds-com

## Curated palettes containing it

- **Pastel Pop** (pastel, playful, vivid, light) — #ff9fb2, #9ad0ec, #ffe08a, #ffffff, #1f1f2e — Pastels pushed to the saturated end — pink, sky and lemon — for brands that want soft AND loud. — tool: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/ff9fb2-9ad0ec-ffe08a-ffffff-1f1f2e — collection: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/pastel
- **Golden Hour** (sunset, warm, vivid, light) — #f4a259, #f25f5c, #5b3758, #fff7ec, #2b1a2b — Apricot into coral into plum — a sunset flattened to three tokens, with the plum doubling as the twilight text colour. — tool: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/f4a259-f25f5c-5b3758-fff7ec-2b1a2b — collection: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/sunset

## Fonts for this mood

- luxury: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/luxury
- bold: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/bold

## Palette tool

Open this color locked as the lead with four explored companions: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/281c2c-bc9fc1-afcb62-2d1f2b-ebe9f1?lock=0&style=vibrant
(Humans lock/regenerate in the tool; the URL is the state — read `lock=` back to see what they kept.)

## Connect an agent

Point any MCP client at the BrandSweets colors endpoint for the same engine:

- Endpoint: https://mcp.brandsweets.com/colors/mcp
- Tools: `analyze_color` (e.g. `analyze_color({ color: "#281c2c" })`), `check_contrast` (with fixes), `generate_palette` (explore around locks), `suggest_palette` (mood/industry → curated-first), `list_palettes`.