Brand gradient

American Eagle gradient

The gradient American Eagle's published colour tokens imply, derived by a pure function of the palette: primary → secondary in OKLab (OKLCH shorter hue when the hues are more than 140° apart; a tonal ramp when they are within ΔE 0.15), then a hero background with an ink that passes AA at the worst point along the line, a button surface with hover and active states, and the variant contact sheet. Same inputs, same gradients, forever — which is what makes them citable; the same values are served as --brand-gradient in the brand's brand.css.

#24272a #182c52 #e9db9e

Open in the maker American Eagle colors →Full brand page →fashion

Source: ae.com
Extracted: 2 September 2026
Version: 3

American Eagle

white text · worst 7.39:1 · AA

white 7.39 AAblack 1.02 failsbanding high

Hero and button

Hero background

Open in maker →

Chroma ×0.35 so it can carry text; ink white (inkFor at the midpoint). Passes AA for that ink at the worst point (7.36:1) without adjusting L.

white 7.36 AAblack 1.02 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #555657 0%, #262728 50%, #030303 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#555657] via-[#262728] to-[#030303]

Button / CTA

Open in maker →

ΔL 0.08 top→bottom in the primary's hue (a lit surface, not a rainbow); hover L +0.03, active L −0.03. White ink passes AA on the surface and both states (worst 11.65:1).

white 13.08 AAblack 1.24 failsbanding high

Get started

hover

active

label ink passes AA on all three

css

linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #2e3134 0%, #1b1d20 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-b/oklch from-[#2e3134] to-[#1b1d20]

Variants

Tonal ramp

Open in maker →

white 7.39 AAblack 1.02 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #535659 0%, #24272a 50%, #020304 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#535659] via-[#24272a] to-[#020304]

Analogous

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the analogous rule at the source colour's lightness.

white 15.01 AAblack 1.40 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #24272a 0%, #242728 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#24272a] to-[#242728]

Complementary

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the complementary rule at the source colour's lightness. ΔH 168° > 140° — interpolating in oklch (shorter hue) keeps the midpoint saturated.

white 14.96 AAblack 1.39 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #24272a 0%, #292624 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#24272a] to-[#292624]

Triadic

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the triadic rule at the source colour's lightness.

white 14.95 AAblack 1.39 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #24272a 0%, #2b2526 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#24272a] to-[#2b2526]

Report — brand gradient

white ink: worst 7.39:1 at 0% (AA); black ink: worst 1.02:1 at 100% (fails AA) → use white text.
Black text disappears completely at 100% (1.00:1 crossing).
Banding high: ~19px bands at 1440px — add grain 38 (≈3% soft-light noise) or shorten the ramp.

Export

The custom properties below are byte-identical to the gradient block in brand.css; the DTCG token is what tokens.json carries.

css custom properties · brand.css

:root {
  /* Brand gradient (derived) */
  /* worst-case contrast: white 7.39:1 AA, black 1.02:1 */
  --brand-gradient: linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #535659 0%, #24272a 50%, #020304 100%);
  /* hero — worst-case contrast: white 7.36:1 AA, black 1.02:1; ink passes AA at the worst point */
  --brand-gradient-hero: linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #555657 0%, #262728 50%, #030303 100%);
  --brand-gradient-hero-ink: #ffffff;
  /* button — worst-case contrast: white 13.08:1 AA, black 1.24:1 */
  --brand-gradient-button: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #2e3134 0%, #1b1d20 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-hover: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #35393c 0%, #222528 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-active: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #26292c 0%, #141719 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-ink: #ffffff;
}

svg · brand gradient

<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="1440" height="600" viewBox="0 0 1440 600"><defs><linearGradient id="bs-gradient" gradientUnits="userSpaceOnUse" x1="210" y1="-210" x2="1230" y2="810"><stop offset="0%" stop-color="#535659"/><stop offset="3.57%" stop-color="#4f5255"/><stop offset="7.14%" stop-color="#4c4f52"/><stop offset="10.71%" stop-color="#484b4e"/><stop offset="14.29%" stop-color="#45484b"/><stop offset="17.86%" stop-color="#424548"/><stop offset="21.43%" stop-color="#3e4144"/><stop offset="25%" stop-color="#3b3e41"/><stop offset="28.57%" stop-color="#373a3d"/><stop offset="32.14%" stop-color="#34373a"/><stop offset="35.71%" stop-color="#313437"/><stop offset="39.29%" stop-color="#2e3134"/><stop offset="42.86%" stop-color="#2a2d30"/><stop offset="46.43%" stop-color="#272a2d"/><stop offset="50%" stop-color="#24272a"/><stop offset="53.57%" stop-color="#212427"/><stop offset="57.14%" stop-color="#1e2124"/><stop offset="60.71%" stop-color="#1b1e21"/><stop offset="64.29%" stop-color="#181b1e"/><stop offset="67.86%" stop-color="#15181b"/><stop offset="71.43%" stop-color="#131518"/><stop offset="75%" stop-color="#101315"/><stop offset="78.57%" stop-color="#0d1012"/><stop offset="82.14%" stop-color="#0b0d0f"/><stop offset="85.71%" stop-color="#080b0d"/><stop offset="89.29%" stop-color="#06080a"/><stop offset="92.86%" stop-color="#040608"/><stop offset="96.43%" stop-color="#030406"/><stop offset="100%" stop-color="#020304"/></linearGradient></defs><rect width="1440" height="600" fill="url(#bs-gradient)"/></svg>

dtcg · tokens.json

{
  "gradient": {
    "brand": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.325,
              0.337,
              0.349
            ],
            "hex": "#535659"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.141,
              0.153,
              0.165
            ],
            "hex": "#24272a"
          },
          "position": 0.5
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.008,
              0.012,
              0.016
            ],
            "hex": "#020304"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #535659 0%, #24272a 50%, #020304 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "brand",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 7.386,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.017,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "The canonical brand gradient (--brand-gradient)."
    },
    "hero": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.333,
              0.337,
              0.341
            ],
            "hex": "#555657"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.149,
              0.153,
              0.157
            ],
            "hex": "#262728"
          },
          "position": 0.5
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.012,
              0.012,
              0.012
            ],
            "hex": "#030303"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #555657 0%, #262728 50%, #030303 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "hero",
          "ink": "#ffffff",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 7.356,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.018,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Low-chroma hero background with a text-safe ink (--brand-gradient-hero)."
    },
    "button": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.18,
              0.192,
              0.204
            ],
            "hex": "#2e3134"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.106,
              0.114,
              0.125
            ],
            "hex": "#1b1d20"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #2e3134 0%, #1b1d20 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 180,
          "name": "button",
          "ink": "#ffffff",
          "states": {
            "hover": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #35393c 0%, #222528 100%)",
            "active": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #26292c 0%, #141719 100%)"
          },
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 13.083,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.243,
              "at": 0.9841,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Button / CTA surface with hover and active states (--brand-gradient-button)."
    }
  }
}

Colours

#24272a #182c52 #e9db9e

mcpConnect your agent — American Eagle's gradients on demand

live endpoint

Point any MCP client at the shared gradients endpoint and your agent gets the same engine as this page — make_gradient returns CSS with the interpolation space, Tailwind v4, SVG, a PNG URL, a DTCG token and the contrast report in one call; brand_gradients derives the whole contact sheet from a brand or a palette. Read-only, no key. Every gradient is a /gradients/new/… link: open it, refine, paste it back.

endpointhttps://mcp.brandsweets.com/gradients/mcp

claude mcp add --transport http brandsweets-gradients https://mcp.brandsweets.com/gradients/mcp

try this prompt

›brand_gradients for ae-com — give me the hero CSS and the ink that passes AA, then a version in oklch

Want the agent to remember your picks and write them into a living brand? Create a free BrandSweets workspace.

American Eagle and its marks belong to their owner. This page uses the name nominatively to describe gradients derived from the brand's published colour values; it does not reproduce logos or other brand assets, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by American Eagle. Owner of this brand? Request a correction or removal → Machine-readable: gradients.md