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Spirited Sphene

#b5960f
Notes

Spirited Sphene (#B5960F) is a true amber with a jewel character. It carries the deep, saturated richness of a gemstone. Authoritative and slightly formal, it works well for type and heavy UI elements. Its HSL profile (49°, 85%, 38%) 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 blue. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#b5960f
RGB
rgb(181, 150, 15)
HSL
hsl(49, 85%, 38%)
HWB
hwb(49 6% 29%)
OKLCH
oklch(68.2% 0.137 93.7)
HSV
hsv(49, 92%, 71%)
LAB
lab(63.07% -0.20 64.79)
LCH
lch(63.07% 64.79 90.18)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 17%, 92%, 29%)

Etymology

Spirited
adjective

An adjectival form of spirit — used as a color modifier since the seventeenth century for hues that read as animate and characterful. Spirited orange, spirited green: the implication is saturation combined with personality, a color that feels like it has agency. Sits at the bright-bucket center alongside lively and vibrant.

Sphene
noun

A calcium-titanium silicate gem — also called titanite — known for its high dispersion (more than diamond) and its yellow-to-greenish-yellow body color. Mined principally in Madagascar, Brazil, and Pakistan. The color refers to a faceted Madagascar sphene: a saturated, slightly cool yellow-green with the gem's signature internal fire.

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

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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.

#b5960f
Original
#a89300
Protanopia
#af9c1d
Deuteranopia
#c58980
Tritanopia
#939393
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
2.86:1
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
7.33:1

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