#dfc9eb
a pale, vivid violet · cool · closest name: Thistle
Token name suggestion: Mist Amethyst
#dfc9eb is a pale vivid violet, 279° on the wheel and 62/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (13.69:1). As text it scores 1.53:1 on white — use #9D59C2 instead. Nearest name is Thistle, nearest Tailwind family is fuchsia.
At a glance
Every number on this page in one read: what #dfc9eb is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.
Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #dfc9eb.
Reads cool. Warm and cool siblings keep the same lightness, so you can swap one in without redoing your contrast maths.
Green carries most of what the eye calls brightness — that is why WCAG weights it 0.7152.
Every format
| HEX | #dfc9eb |
| HEX (8-digit) | #dfc9ebff |
| RGB | rgb(223, 201, 235) |
| RGBA | rgba(223, 201, 235, 1) |
| HSL | hsl(279, 46%, 86%) |
| HSV / HSB | hsv(279, 14%, 92%) |
| HWB | hwb(279 79% 8%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(5%, 15%, 0%, 8%) |
| LAB | lab(83.7 13.8 -14.0) |
| LCH | lch(83.7 19.6 314.6) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.865 0.052 313.8) |
| XYZ (D65) | xyz(66.31, 63.46, 87.34) |
| Decimal | 14666219 |
| Display P3 | color(display-p3 0.875 0.788 0.922) |
| Web-safe | #CCCCFF |
Copy-ready code
/* CSS */
color: #dfc9eb;
background-color: #dfc9eb;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #dfc9eb;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#dfc9eb] bg-[#dfc9eb]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #dfc9eb;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.875, green: 0.788, blue: 0.922)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.875, green: 0.788, blue: 0.922, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#DFC9EB</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFDFC9EB)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFDFC9EB)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(235, 201, 223)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(223, 201, 235)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(223, 201, 235)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 223, 201, 235)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.8745f, 0.7882f, 0.9216f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{223,201,235}/* mix without leaving CSS */ background: color-mix(in oklab, #dfc9eb 85%, white); border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #dfc9eb 40%, transparent); /* theme-aware in one line */ color: light-dark(#48225D, #E4D3EE); /* relative colour syntax */ --hover: hsl(from #dfc9eb h s calc(l - 7));
Design tokens
The same ramp in the four formats a team actually needs. Paste one and the whole palette lands with it.
:root {
--brand-50: #F8F5FA;
--brand-100: #F1EAF5;
--brand-200: #dfc9eb;
--brand-300: #CEADE1;
--brand-400: #B684D1;
--brand-500: #9E5BC2;
--brand-600: #8B42B3;
--brand-700: #743795;
--brand-800: #5D2C77;
--brand-900: #452357;
--brand-950: #2B1636;
--brand: #dfc9eb;
--brand-ink: #000000;
--brand-surface: #F8F4FA;
--brand-border: #DCC3E9;
--brand-hover: #D0AFE1;
--brand-pressed: #C095D8;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
:root {
--brand-surface: #1F1424;
--brand-ink: #E4D3EE;
}
}theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
brand: {
50: '#F8F5FA',
100: '#F1EAF5',
200: '#dfc9eb',
300: '#CEADE1',
400: '#B684D1',
500: '#9E5BC2',
600: '#8B42B3',
700: '#743795',
800: '#5D2C77',
900: '#452357',
950: '#2B1636',
DEFAULT: '#dfc9eb',
},
},
},
}$brand: (
'50': #F8F5FA,
'100': #F1EAF5,
'200': #dfc9eb,
'300': #CEADE1,
'400': #B684D1,
'500': #9E5BC2,
'600': #8B42B3,
'700': #743795,
'800': #5D2C77,
'900': #452357,
'950': #2B1636,
);
$brand-base: #dfc9eb;
$brand-ink: #000000;
@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }{
"color": {
"brand": {
"50": { "$value": "#F8F5FA", "$type": "color" },
"100": { "$value": "#F1EAF5", "$type": "color" },
"200": { "$value": "#dfc9eb", "$type": "color" },
"300": { "$value": "#CEADE1", "$type": "color" },
"400": { "$value": "#B684D1", "$type": "color" },
"500": { "$value": "#9E5BC2", "$type": "color" },
"600": { "$value": "#8B42B3", "$type": "color" },
"700": { "$value": "#743795", "$type": "color" },
"800": { "$value": "#5D2C77", "$type": "color" },
"900": { "$value": "#452357", "$type": "color" },
"950": { "$value": "#2B1636", "$type": "color" }
},
"brandInk": { "$value": "#000000", "$type": "color" }
}
}Best text color
Only one of black and white can be right. This is the one, with the number that proves it.
Make it accessible
A contrast checker tells you that you failed. This tells you what to ship instead — same hue, same saturation, lightness moved only as far as WCAG demands.
Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #B37FCF is enough for headings on white. Non-text elements such as icons, chart strokes and focus rings also sit at 3:1 under WCAG 2.2 (1.4.11).
Accessibility — WCAG contrast
Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #dfc9eb as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #dfc9eb.
| Neutral | Ratio | Verdict | Both directions |
|---|---|---|---|
| White#ffffff | 1.53:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 50#f8fafc | 1.47:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 100#f1f5f9 | 1.40:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 200#e2e8f0 | 1.24:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 300#cbd5e1 | 1.03:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 400#94a3b8 | 1.67:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 500#64748b | 3.10:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 600#475569 | 4.94:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 700#334155 | 6.75:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 800#1e293b | 9.54:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 900#0f172a | 11.64:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Black#000000 | 13.69:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
Roughly one man in twelve has some form of colour vision deficiency. If any of the three panels above is hard to tell apart from a neighbouring colour in your palette, add a shape, an icon or a label so the meaning does not rest on hue alone.
Color scale — 50 to 950
A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #dfc9eb is pinned to step 200; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.
The same eleven steps expressed in OKLCH, where equal lightness numbers actually look equally spaced. HSL ramps go muddy in the yellows and washed out in the blues; this one does not. Modern browsers render it natively — the hex ramp above is the fallback.
:root {
--brand-50: oklch(0.97 0.013 313.8);
--brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.021 313.8);
--brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.031 313.8);
--brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.040 313.8);
--brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.048 313.8);
--brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.052 313.8);
--brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.052 313.8);
--brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.049 313.8);
--brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.044 313.8);
--brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.036 313.8);
--brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.029 313.8);
}Colors that work with #dfc9eb
Not a palette — a role sheet. Each swatch answers one question you will hit while building the component.
Surface, border, heading and body all derive from this one hue, so the screen stays coherent without a second palette.
Lightness flips, hue holds. The accent stays the anchor in both themes.
In real components
The same eight roles, wired into the interface patterns you will actually build with them. Every state below is a computed value, not a mock-up.
Focus ring uses the light variant so the field still reads as one shape.
The file stays available for seven days. Download it before it expires.
How to use #dfc9eb
Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.
- ✓Text and icons on dark surfaces
- ✓Primary buttons and calls to action
- ✓Focus rings, active and selected states
- ✓Card and section backgrounds
- ✓Brand accents, badges and data highlights
- ⚠Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
- ⚠Full-page backgrounds — tiring over long sessions
- ⚠White text placed on it
- ⚠Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Meaning and mood
What a colour in this family tends to signal, and how this particular chroma and lightness change the reading.
Violet sits between the warmth of red and the calm of blue, so it reads as inventive without reading as risky. Current shorthand for software craft.
This is a confident chroma: strong enough to lead a brand, restrained enough to live in an interface all day. The high lightness makes it recede — a surface colour rather than a statement.
Deep violets swallow detail on screens with poor gamma; check it on a cheap laptop panel.
- FormalityMedium
- EnergyMedium-high
- Weight15/100
- TemperatureCool
- ApproachabilityBalanced
Colour associations are cultural and vary by market. Treat these as a starting point for a conversation with your audience, not a finding about them.
Similar colors
One move away from this hex in each direction. Every swatch is its own page.
Color relationships
The wheel positions with their names attached, so you can grab the one you actually need.
| Complementary | #D5EBC9 | Directly opposite — maximum tension | |
| Analogous left | #CEC9EB | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Analogous right | #EBC9E6 | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Split-complement 1 | #E6EBC9 | Contrast without the clash | |
| Split-complement 2 | #C9EBCE | Contrast without the clash | |
| Triadic 1 | #EBDFC9 | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Triadic 2 | #C9EBDF | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Tetradic | #EBCEC9 | Fourth corner of the square scheme |
#dfc9eb sits at 279°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.
RGB percentages
CMYK percentages
Total ink coverage is 27%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.
Color previews
#dfc9eb text on a black background
contrast 13.69:1
#dfc9eb text on a white background
contrast 1.53:1
#dfc9eb on grey
1.40:1
#dfc9eb on its own surface
1.41:1
#dfc9eb on its dark surface
11.57:1
CSS3 live lab
The quick brown fox
color: #dfc9eb;
background-color: #dfc9eb;
Glowing headline
text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #dfc9eb;
Soft neon halo
text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(223, 201, 235, 0.45);
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(223, 201, 235, 0.45);
border: 3px solid #dfc9eb; background: linear-gradient(135deg, #dfc9eb, #EBC9E0);
Gradient headline
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #dfc9eb, #EBC9D8); -webkit-background-clip: text; color: transparent;
outline: 2px solid #dfc9eb; outline-offset: 3px;
Marked up text
text-decoration-color: #dfc9eb; caret-color: #dfc9eb;
border-left: 4px solid #dfc9eb;
background: #F4ECF8; box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #dfc9eb;
background: conic-gradient(#dfc9eb 68%, #e2e8f0 0);
Transparency
What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #dfc9eb over white; the bottom row is the same alpha over a checkerboard, so you can see what survives on a photo or a video.
Bottom row of hexes is the flattened result over white — use those when a design tool refuses transparency, or when you need a solid fallback.
rgba(223, 201, 235, 0.5) rgb(223 201 235 / 50%) #dfc9eb80 hsl(279 46% 86% / 50%) color-mix(in srgb, #dfc9eb 50%, transparent)
| Alpha | 8-digit hex | Flat on white |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | #dfc9eb1a | #FCFAFD |
| 20% | #dfc9eb33 | #F9F4FB |
| 40% | #dfc9eb66 | #F2E9F7 |
| 60% | #dfc9eb99 | #ECDFF3 |
| 80% | #dfc9ebcc | #E5D4EF |
Gradients from #dfc9eb
Six recipes, each built from this hex and shown with the exact CSS that produced it.
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #F6F0F9, #dfc9eb 45%, #48225D);
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #dfc9eb, #E3B3D0);
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #dfc9eb, #D5EBC9);
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #F8F4FB 0%, #dfc9eb 45%, #48225D 100%);
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F8F4FA, #ffffff);
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #EFEEF9 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #F3DFEF 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #48225D 0%, transparent 65%), #dfc9eb;
Monochromatic scale
Palettes built from #dfc9eb
Shades — darker
Tints — lighter
Tones — desaturated
Color harmonies
Nearest named colors
Ranked with CIEDE2000 across all 139 CSS keywords. Under ΔE 2 the eye stops telling them apart; over ΔE 10 they are plainly different colors.
Closest color with a full write-up: Thistle (#d8bfd8) — ΔE2000 3.9 away, with its history, psychology and brand usage.
#dfc9eb in the real world
Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.
Very light tints can drop out on uncoated stock; check it at 100% size before signing off.
Holds up across typical panel gamma. Still worth checking on an uncalibrated laptop, where mid-tones shift most.
Usable as-is on a dark surface at 13.69:1.
Explore nearby colors
Small, deliberate steps away from this hex — useful when you are hunting for the version of a colour that finally feels right.
#dfc9eb, answered
What color is #dfc9eb?
#dfc9eb is a pale vivid violet, closest to Thistle (ΔE2000 3.9). It sits at 279° on the hue wheel with 46% saturation and 86% lightness, which reads as cool.
What is the RGB value of #dfc9eb?
rgb(223, 201, 235) — 223 red, 201 green and 235 blue out of 255, or 87.5% / 78.8% / 92.2% by channel.
What is #dfc9eb in HSL and HSV?
hsl(279, 46%, 86%) and hsv(279, 14%, 92%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.
Is #dfc9eb a light or a dark color?
It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.6346 and perceived brightness is 83%, so black text on it reaches 13.69:1.
Should I use black or white text on #dfc9eb?
Black. It scores 13.69:1 against #dfc9eb, versus 1.53:1 for white — AAA at any size.
Is #dfc9eb accessible on a white background?
#dfc9eb on white scores 1.53:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #9D59C2 to reach 4.5:1, or #7B3B9E for 7:1.
What is the complementary color of #dfc9eb?
#D5EBC9 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #E6EBC9 and #C9EBCE, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.
What colors go well with #dfc9eb?
For interface work: #F8F4FA as the surface, #DCC3E9 for borders, #7F4B9B for secondary text, #719834 as an accent and #48225D for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #CEC9EB and #EBC9E6 stays calm, while #D5EBC9 is the loudest partner.
What is #dfc9eb in CMYK for printing?
cmyk(5%, 15%, 0%, 8%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.
Is #dfc9eb warm or cool?
Cool — it scores 62 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #EBC9EB; nudged cooler, #D2C8EC.
Which Tailwind color is closest to #dfc9eb?
The fuchsia family — its 500 step is #d946ef, ΔE2000 29.4 away. That is a visible difference, so define #dfc9eb as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.
How do I use #dfc9eb in Tailwind CSS?
Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#dfc9eb] or text-[#dfc9eb], or register the whole ramp under theme.extend.colors.brand so you get bg-brand-500 and friends. The generated 50–950 scale on this page is ready to paste into your config.
What is #dfc9eb with 50% opacity?
rgba(223, 201, 235, 0.5), or #dfc9eb80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #EFE4F5; over black, #706576.
Is #dfc9eb a web-safe color?
No. The nearest web-safe colour is #CCCCFF, ΔE2000 8.9 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.
What does the color #dfc9eb mean?
As a violet, it reads creative, premium, modern. Violet sits between the warmth of red and the calm of blue, so it reads as inventive without reading as risky. Current shorthand for software craft. At this chroma the effect is amplified — it will dominate whatever sits beside it.
What gradient works with #dfc9eb?
The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #F6F0F9, #dfc9eb 45%, #48225D). For more colour, a short hue run to #E3B3D0 keeps it rich without turning muddy.
Work with #dfc9eb in the Color Lab
Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.
Every value on this page is computed from #dfc9eb at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.