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Pulsing Topazio

#d9b921
Notes

Pulsing Topazio (#D9B921) 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 (50°, 74%, 49%) places it in the balanced band at a mid lightness. It works across type, buttons, and borders, saturated enough to feel deliberate but balanced enough to not fight the rest of the palette. 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
#d9b921
RGB
rgb(217, 185, 33)
HSL
hsl(50, 74%, 49%)
HWB
hwb(50 13% 15%)
OKLCH
oklch(79.1% 0.156 95.8)
P3
color(display-p3 0.8305 0.7301 0.2736)
HSV
hsv(50, 85%, 85%)
LAB
lab(75.80% -2.44 72.57)
LCH
lch(75.80% 72.61 91.93)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 15%, 85%, 15%)

Etymology

Pulsing
adjective

The progressive participle of pulse, to throb. Used as a color modifier for hues that read as if they were alternating between two states of luminance — the vibration of a high-saturation color against a contrasting background. Sits in the bright-bucket center alongside electric, with the implication of optical motion rather than static luminance.

Topazio
noun

The Italian word for topaz — used in Renaissance jewelry vocabulary and Italian fashion writing for the warm gold-yellow of imperial topaz. The color refers to a faceted Italian-cut topazio: a saturated, slightly cool deep gold-yellow with the gem's signature internal warmth. The Italian cousin of topaz.

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.

#d9b921
Original
#cdb500
Protanopia
#d6bf2e
Deuteranopia
#ebaa9e
Tritanopia
#b5b5b5
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
1.92:1
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
10.91:1

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
##D9B921
Display P3
Display P3
color(display-p3 0.8305 0.7301 0.2736)
P3 has subtle headroomOKLCH chroma 0.156

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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