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Spirited Mimosa

#f2c256
Notes

Spirited Mimosa (#F2C256) is a true amber with a neon character. It sits at the high-saturation edge of its family. Use it sparingly, as signage, accent, or highlight against darker surfaces. Its HSL profile (42°, 86%, 64%) 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
#f2c256
RGB
rgb(242, 194, 86)
HSL
hsl(42, 86%, 64%)
HWB
hwb(42 34% 5%)
OKLCH
oklch(83.7% 0.136 84.9)
HSV
hsv(42, 64%, 95%)
LAB
lab(80.81% 5.80 59.25)
LCH
lch(80.81% 59.53 84.41)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 20%, 64%, 5%)

Etymology

Spirited
adjective

An adjectival form of spirit — used as a color modifier since the seventeenth century for hues that read as animate and characterful. Spirited orange, spirited green: the implication is saturation combined with personality, a color that feels like it has agency. Sits at the bright-bucket center alongside lively and vibrant.

Mimosa
noun

Two unrelated yellow flowers share this name: the European Acacia dealbata (silver wattle), whose tiny yellow puffballs cover entire trees in late winter, and the cocktail of champagne and orange juice. The color refers to a wattle inflorescence at full bloom: a soft, slightly green-shifted yellow with the powdery finish of pollen-rich flowers. The same name covers the yellow of the brunch drink — a happy etymological coincidence.

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.

#f2c256
Original
#d8c14a
Protanopia
#e3ce5a
Deuteranopia
#ffb2ab
Tritanopia
#c4c4c4
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
1.66:1
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
12.63:1

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