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Lustrous Kilt Goldenrod

#e0a616
Notes

Lustrous Kilt Goldenrod (#E0A616) 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°, 82%, 48%) 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
#e0a616
RGB
rgb(224, 166, 22)
HSL
hsl(43, 82%, 48%)
HWB
hwb(43 9% 12%)
OKLCH
oklch(76.0% 0.152 82.5)
P3
color(display-p3 0.8438 0.6602 0.2418)
HSV
hsv(43, 90%, 88%)
LAB
lab(71.68% 10.40 72.02)
LCH
lch(71.68% 72.77 81.78)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 26%, 90%, 12%)

Etymology

Lustrous
adjective

From the Latin lustrare, to illuminate — used as a color word since the seventeenth century for hues with the slight specular shine of polished metal or silk. Lustrous green, lustrous gold: the implication is moderate-to-high saturation combined with surface reflectivity. Sits at the bright-and-glossy corner alongside gleaming.

Kilt
modifier

Scots kilt, Highland-pleated-skirt. As a color modifier, kilt implies a Highland-tartan-and-pleated-skirt quality, the visual register of Highland-tartan-and-Black-Watch-kilt hand-Highland-tartan-and-pleated-skirt Highland-tartan-and-Black-Watch-kilt-and-clan-Macleod kilt-and-Highland-tartan surfaces under Highland-tartan-and-Black-Watch-kilt-and-clan-Macleod Highland-clan-and-Edinburgh-tartan-mill tartan-and-pleated-light. Sits at the modifier-and-textile end of the grid, parallel to sash and tabard 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.

#e0a616
Original
#bea700
Protanopia
#cbb621
Deuteranopia
#f4948e
Tritanopia
#a8a8a8
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
2.18:1
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
9.64:1

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
##E0A616
Display P3
Display P3
color(display-p3 0.8438 0.6602 0.2418)
P3 has subtle headroomOKLCH chroma 0.152

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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