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Frantic Goldfinch

#e7a914
Notes

Frantic Goldfinch (#E7A914) 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 (42°, 84%, 49%) 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
#e7a914
RGB
rgb(231, 169, 20)
HSL
hsl(42, 84%, 49%)
HWB
hwb(42 8% 9%)
OKLCH
oklch(77.3% 0.156 81.4)
HSV
hsv(42, 91%, 91%)
LAB
lab(73.17% 11.81 73.85)
LCH
lch(73.17% 74.79 80.91)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 27%, 91%, 9%)

Etymology

Frantic
adjective

Greek phrenitikós, frenzied — adjectival suffix, sharing root with phrenitis (delirium). As a color modifier, frantic implies a saturated-and-rushed-and-overactive quality, the bright color of Memphis-Group 1980s-design over-the-top saturated visual-rhythm. Sits at the bright-and-active end of the grid, parallel to frenetic and manic in usage.

Goldfinch
noun

Carduelis carduelis, the European goldfinch whose male plumage features bright yellow wing bars and a red face mask. The color refers to the yellow wing bar of a fresh-molted goldfinch: a saturated, slightly red yellow with the matte finish of carotenoid-pigmented feathers. Brighter than canary.

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.

#e7a914
Original
#c2aa00
Protanopia
#d0ba20
Deuteranopia
#fc9790
Tritanopia
#ababab
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
2.08:1
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
10.08:1

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