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Pastelbluesoftmuted

Pale Periwinkle Sand

#bcbdd0
Notes

Pale Periwinkle Sand (#BCBDD0) is a soft blue with a pastel character. It reads calm and airy, with enough chroma to feel intentional rather than washed out. Its HSL profile (237°, 18%, 78%) places it in the muted band at a light lightness. It works as a background wash, large-area fill, or soft illustration tone. Add a darker ink of the same hue when you need type over it. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary yellow. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#bcbdd0
RGB
rgb(188, 189, 208)
HSL
hsl(237, 18%, 78%)
HWB
hwb(237 74% 18%)
OKLCH
oklch(80.4% 0.027 283.4)
HSV
hsv(237, 10%, 82%)
LAB
lab(77.07% 3.34 -9.64)
LCH
lch(77.07% 10.20 289.13)
CMYK
cmyk(10%, 9%, 0%, 18%)

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.

#bcbdd0
Original
#b9bfd1
Protanopia
#b8becf
Deuteranopia
#b8c0c3
Tritanopia
#bebebe
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
1.85:1
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
11.33:1

Related Colors

Canvas