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Spangled Flame

#fd9f51
Notes

Spangled Flame (#FD9F51) is a true orange 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 (27°, 98%, 65%) 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
#fd9f51
RGB
rgb(253, 159, 81)
HSL
hsl(27, 98%, 65%)
HWB
hwb(27 32% 1%)
OKLCH
oklch(78.4% 0.145 57.9)
HSV
hsv(27, 68%, 99%)
LAB
lab(73.73% 28.38 54.11)
LCH
lch(73.73% 61.10 62.33)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 37%, 68%, 1%)

Etymology

Spangled
adjective

Middle Dutch spange, clasp / metal-disc — past-participle of spangle. As a color modifier, spangled implies a saturated-and-multi-point-reflective quality, the bright color of American-flag-stars and sequined-fabric metallic-disc-and-jewel-decoration. Sits at the bright-and-reflective end of the grid, parallel to glittering and sequined in usage.

Flame
noun

The luminous combustion zone of a fire — the visible portion of incandescent gas, where temperature determines color. The orange of a wood flame sits around 1,100°C; hotter and it shifts to yellow, hotter still to white. The color is a saturated, slightly red orange with the suggestion of internal motion. Hotter than ember, brighter than rust, alive in a way pigment never quite captures.

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.

#fd9f51
Original
#bba849
Protanopia
#d1be51
Deuteranopia
#ff8b8e
Tritanopia
#adadad
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
2.05:1
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
10.25:1

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