Brand gradient

Calm gradient

The gradient Calm'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.

#3cb0ec #87b3ee #6461e0

Open in the maker Calm colors →Full brand page →

Source: calm.com
Extracted: 2 September 2026
Version: 4

Calm

black text · worst 4.31:1 · AA large

white 1.35 failsblack 4.31 AA largebanding high

Hero and button

Hero background

Open in maker →

Chroma ×0.35 so it can carry text; ink black (inkFor at the midpoint). L shifted +0.02 until the ink passes AA at the worst point (4.66:1).

white 1.29 failsblack 4.66 AAbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #d2e6ee 0%, #8fafc4 50%, #5f7a8d 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#d2e6ee] via-[#8fafc4] to-[#5f7a8d]

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. Black ink passes AA on the surface and both states (worst 6.63:1).

white 2.11 failsblack 7.41 AAbanding high

Get started

hover

active

label ink passes AA on all three

css

linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #4cbdfa 0%, #2ba3df 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-b/oklch from-[#4cbdfa] to-[#2ba3df]

Variants

Tonal ramp

Open in maker →

white 1.35 failsblack 4.31 AA largebanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #a9e7ff 0%, #3cb0ec 50%, #0078b0 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#a9e7ff] via-[#3cb0ec] to-[#0078b0]

Analogous

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

white 2.38 failsblack 8.59 AAbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #3cb0ec 0%, #3eb7c5 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#3cb0ec] to-[#3eb7c5]

Complementary

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the complementary rule at the source colour's lightness. ΔH 180° > 140° — interpolating in oklch (shorter hue) keeps the midpoint saturated.

white 2.29 failsblack 8.09 AAbanding medium

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #3cb0ec 0%, #eb8836 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#3cb0ec] to-[#eb8836]

Triadic

Open in maker →

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

white 2.43 failsblack 7.72 AAbanding medium

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #3cb0ec 0%, #f470a8 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#3cb0ec] to-[#f470a8]

Report — brand gradient

white ink: worst 1.35:1 at 0% (fails AA); black ink: worst 4.31:1 at 100% (AA-large only) → use black text.
Body text fails AA everywhere on this gradient; large text (≥24px / 19px bold) is fine. Add a scrim or lower the chroma for body copy.
Banding high: ~12px bands at 1440px — add grain 25 (≈2% 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 1.35:1, black 4.31:1 AA-large */
  --brand-gradient: linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #a9e7ff 0%, #3cb0ec 50%, #0078b0 100%);
  /* hero — worst-case contrast: white 1.29:1, black 4.66:1 AA; ink passes AA at the worst point */
  --brand-gradient-hero: linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #d2e6ee 0%, #8fafc4 50%, #5f7a8d 100%);
  --brand-gradient-hero-ink: #000000;
  /* button — worst-case contrast: white 2.11:1, black 7.41:1 AA */
  --brand-gradient-button: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #4cbdfa 0%, #2ba3df 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-hover: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #57c7ff 0%, #38ade9 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-active: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #40b3ef 0%, #1a9ad5 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-ink: #000000;
}

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="#a9e7ff"/><stop offset="3.57%" stop-color="#a2e3fd"/><stop offset="7.14%" stop-color="#9ae0fc"/><stop offset="10.71%" stop-color="#93dcfb"/><stop offset="14.29%" stop-color="#8bd8f9"/><stop offset="17.86%" stop-color="#84d4f8"/><stop offset="21.43%" stop-color="#7dd0f6"/><stop offset="25%" stop-color="#75ccf5"/><stop offset="28.57%" stop-color="#6dc8f4"/><stop offset="32.14%" stop-color="#66c4f2"/><stop offset="35.71%" stop-color="#5ec0f1"/><stop offset="39.29%" stop-color="#56bcf0"/><stop offset="42.86%" stop-color="#4eb8ef"/><stop offset="46.43%" stop-color="#45b4ed"/><stop offset="50%" stop-color="#3cb0ec"/><stop offset="53.57%" stop-color="#39ace8"/><stop offset="57.14%" stop-color="#35a8e3"/><stop offset="60.71%" stop-color="#32a4df"/><stop offset="64.29%" stop-color="#2ea0db"/><stop offset="67.86%" stop-color="#2b9cd6"/><stop offset="71.43%" stop-color="#2798d2"/><stop offset="75%" stop-color="#2494ce"/><stop offset="78.57%" stop-color="#2090c9"/><stop offset="82.14%" stop-color="#1c8cc5"/><stop offset="85.71%" stop-color="#1788c1"/><stop offset="89.29%" stop-color="#1284bd"/><stop offset="92.86%" stop-color="#0d80b8"/><stop offset="96.43%" stop-color="#067cb4"/><stop offset="100%" stop-color="#0078b0"/></linearGradient></defs><rect width="1440" height="600" fill="url(#bs-gradient)"/></svg>

dtcg · tokens.json

{
  "gradient": {
    "brand": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.663,
              0.906,
              1
            ],
            "hex": "#a9e7ff"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.235,
              0.69,
              0.925
            ],
            "hex": "#3cb0ec"
          },
          "position": 0.5
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0,
              0.471,
              0.69
            ],
            "hex": "#0078b0"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #a9e7ff 0%, #3cb0ec 50%, #0078b0 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "brand",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 1.349,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 4.314,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#000000"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "The canonical brand gradient (--brand-gradient)."
    },
    "hero": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.824,
              0.902,
              0.933
            ],
            "hex": "#d2e6ee"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.561,
              0.686,
              0.769
            ],
            "hex": "#8fafc4"
          },
          "position": 0.5
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.373,
              0.478,
              0.553
            ],
            "hex": "#5f7a8d"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #d2e6ee 0%, #8fafc4 50%, #5f7a8d 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "hero",
          "ink": "#000000",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 1.289,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 4.655,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#000000"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Low-chroma hero background with a text-safe ink (--brand-gradient-hero)."
    },
    "button": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.298,
              0.741,
              0.98
            ],
            "hex": "#4cbdfa"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.169,
              0.639,
              0.875
            ],
            "hex": "#2ba3df"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #4cbdfa 0%, #2ba3df 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 180,
          "name": "button",
          "ink": "#000000",
          "states": {
            "hover": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #57c7ff 0%, #38ade9 100%)",
            "active": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #40b3ef 0%, #1a9ad5 100%)"
          },
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 2.107,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 7.407,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#000000"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Button / CTA surface with hover and active states (--brand-gradient-button)."
    }
  }
}

Colours

#3cb0ec #87b3ee #6461e0

mcpConnect your agent — Calm'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 calm-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.

Calm 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 Calm. Owner of this brand? Request a correction or removal → Machine-readable: gradients.md