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Shimmering Kashmir

#53aef4
Notes

Shimmering Kashmir (#53AEF4) is a true azure with a neon character. It sits at the high-saturation edge of its family. Use it sparingly, as signage, accent, or highlight against darker surfaces. Its HSL profile (206°, 88%, 64%) places it in the highly saturated band at a mid lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary orange. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#53aef4
RGB
rgb(83, 174, 244)
HSL
hsl(206, 88%, 64%)
HWB
hwb(206 33% 4%)
OKLCH
oklch(72.5% 0.134 244.5)
HSV
hsv(206, 66%, 96%)
LAB
lab(68.49% -5.70 -42.84)
LCH
lch(68.49% 43.22 262.42)
CMYK
cmyk(66%, 29%, 0%, 4%)

Etymology

Shimmering
adjective

Old English scimerian, to glisten — present-participle of shimmer, sharing root with shine. As a color modifier, shimmering implies a saturated-and-soft-flicker-reflective quality, the bright color of moonlit-water-and-silken-fabric surface-reflection. Sits at the bright-and-reflective end of the grid, parallel to glistening and glimmering in usage.

Kashmir
noun

The northwestern Indian-Pakistani Himalayan region — and the saturated deep blue of Kashmir sapphires (the world's most prized sapphire variety, mined in the Padar valley). Kashmir color refers to a faceted Kashmir sapphire: a saturated, slightly violet-shifted deep blue with the gem's signature internal velvet.

Closest matches

The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.

Variations

Click any swatch to explore

Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.

#53aef4
Original
#8fb0f7
Protanopia
#79a0f3
Deuteranopia
#00bfc7
Tritanopia
#a0a0a0
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
Failon White
2.41:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAAon Black
8.73:1

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