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Prismatic Ache Goldenrod

#d39b0e
Notes

Prismatic Ache Goldenrod (#D39B0E) is a true amber with a vibrant character. It holds its own as a focal accent, carrying visual weight without tipping into neon territory. Its HSL profile (43°, 88%, 44%) 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 azure. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#d39b0e
RGB
rgb(211, 155, 14)
HSL
hsl(43, 88%, 44%)
HWB
hwb(43 5% 17%)
OKLCH
oklch(72.4% 0.147 82.1)
P3
color(display-p3 0.7941 0.6168 0.2176)
HSV
hsv(43, 93%, 83%)
LAB
lab(67.52% 10.48 69.70)
LCH
lch(67.52% 70.48 81.45)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 27%, 93%, 17%)

Etymology

Prismatic
adjective

Greek prísma, prism — adjectival suffix -ic. As a color modifier, prismatic implies a saturated-and-multi-spectrum-decomposed quality, the bright color of crystal-prism and cut-glass-chandelier light-refraction-spectrum decomposition. Sits at the bright-and-shifting end of the grid, parallel to iridescent and spectral in usage.

Ache
modifier

Old English acan, to-hurt-or-throb. As a color modifier, ache implies a dull-and-lingering-and-throbbing quality, the visual register of Romantic-poet-and-pining-lover-ache hand-dull-and-lingering-and-throbbing Romantic-poet-and-pining-lover-and-bedside-vigil ached-and-dull-and-lingering-and-throbbing surfaces under Romantic-poet-and-pining-lover-and-bedside-vigil long-night-and-melancholy-and-pining candle-and-rain-window-light. Sits at the modifier-and-mood end of the grid, parallel to pang and throb in usage.

Goldenrod
noun

Solidago, the late-summer wildflower of North American meadows whose tall sprays of small yellow flowers signal the end of the growing season. The color refers to the flower head at full bloom: a warm, slightly muted yellow-orange with the matte finish of small clustered florets. Cooler than mustard, deeper than dandelion. The state flower of Kentucky and Nebraska, a pollinator magnet, and the original native dye for early American homespun.

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.

#d39b0e
Original
#b29c00
Protanopia
#bfaa1a
Deuteranopia
#e68a84
Tritanopia
#9d9d9d
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
2.48:1
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
8.46:1

Wide gamut

Display P3 representation

The CSS Color 4 wide-gamut form of this color. Both swatches render the same color on every display — the P3 form only diverges from sRGB when a designer pushes channels outside sRGB's reach.

sRGB hex
sRGB hex
##D39B0E
Display P3
Display P3
color(display-p3 0.7941 0.6168 0.2176)
P3 has subtle headroomOKLCH chroma 0.147

Moderately saturated colors gain a small bump in P3 — the difference is usually visible side-by-side on wide-gamut hardware but won't change the character of the color.

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