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Scarlet Core Dust
Color detail

Scarlet Core Dust

Red · Hue 5
Metrics
S 26% · L 48%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white5:1AAon black4.2:1AA Large
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Scarlet Core Dust (#9A605B) belongs to the red family — hue 5°, 26% saturation, 48% lightness. Copy the hex, RGB, or HSL value above, or paste the CSS custom property below into your stylesheet to reference this color directly.

CSS
:root {
  --colorarchive-scarlet-core-dust: #9A605B;
  --colorarchive-scarlet-core-dust-hsl: hsl(5, 26%, 48%);
  --colorarchive-scarlet-core-dust-rgb: rgb(154, 96, 91);
}

AI Color Names

Let AI suggest alternative poetic names for this color in English and Chinese.

Design Context

PassionateEnergeticUrgent
Common in

Food & Beverage · Entertainment · Retail

Pairs well with

White for high contrast CTAs, dark navy for sophistication, or gold for luxury

Design tip

Best for call-to-action buttons and sale banners. Use sparingly — red as a primary color can feel aggressive; as an accent, it commands attention.

Cultural context ▶

Red is universally associated with energy and action. In China, it signifies luck and prosperity. In Western markets, it drives urgency in sales.

Color Origins

Red family

Among the oldest pigments, and still the loudest signal.

Heritage

Red ochre is among the oldest pigments in the human visual record. Ochre reds lie beside burials at Qafzeh, Israel, about 100,000 years old; red ochre and costly cinnabar lit Pompeian walls; cinnabar was prized from Rome to China. Madder, kermes, and later New World cochineal built fortunes before synthetic alizarin arrived in 1869 and collapsed the madder market almost overnight.

Across cultures

In China red signals fortune and weddings, painted on doors and lanterns and given in money envelopes. In much of South Asia red is the bridal color (saris, sindoor) for the same reason. Western traditions split red between love (Valentine's) and danger (stoplights, balance sheets). Across the Christian liturgy red marks martyrdom and Pentecost; across cinema it has long marked the femme fatale.

In the wild

Coca-Cola has used red since its earliest signage. Netflix and YouTube both build their identities around a single saturated red. Christian Louboutin trademarked a single red — Pantone 18-1663 — on the soles of his shoes. Ferrari's racing red began as the Italian national racing color (Rosso Corsa). Emergency stop buttons are red on a yellow background under international machinery-safety standards, a convention so widespread it functions as international iconography.

How it reads

Red advances. On a page it draws the eye first; in a UI it implies destructive action or urgent state. Increasing saturation pushes it toward warning; reducing saturation moves it toward earthen, terra-cotta, comfort. Pairing red with white reads as energetic and consumer-facing; pairing it with black reads cinematic and luxurious; pairing it with cream reads as heritage or hospitality.

This particular tone

A grounded mid-tone — sober, considered, well-suited to body text accents, editorial layouts, or any context where restraint reads as quality.

Lightness band: At mid-lightness the hue carries its full character. This is the band where many identity colors live: bright enough to be distinctive at small sizes, deep enough to sit cleanly on a white canvas.

Saturation band: The low saturation pulls this color toward earthen, vintage, or editorial palettes. It reads as confident and grown-up rather than playful, and it tolerates being used in large blocks without becoming visually noisy.

Brands using a similar color

Within the public brand-guidelines reference catalog, these are the closest matches to #9A605B.

  • Notionaccent
    Default Brown · #9F6B53
    →
  • Microsoftneutral
    Slate Gray · #737373
    →
  • Anthropicaccent
    claude.ai Accent (2024) · #C96442
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #9A605B.

  • Greece (Aegean)Terracotta Tile
    #B85B40 · Fired earthenware roof tiles
    →
  • BrazilSalvador Terracotta
    #B85B40 · Colonial Pelourinho district
    →
  • England (London)Garden Brick
    #9F4A3C · Victorian red-brick terraces and mansion blocks
    →

Color guides

Go deeper on using red and color in design.

UI DesignColor in Financial UI: Trust, Data Visualization, and the Red/Green ConventionColor TheoryWarm Color Palette Guide: Reds, Oranges, Yellows, and Their NeutralsColor TheoryEarthy Color Palettes: Building with Natural Tones

Tonal strip

All lightness levels at this hue and saturation. Click any to navigate.

Palette moves

Instead of stopping at one swatch, use nearby, opposite, and tonal neighbors to branch into a broader palette.

Lighter companion
Scarlet Radiant Dust
#A8706B · hsl(5, 26%, 54%)
Darker companion
Scarlet Velvet Dust
#87544F · hsl(5, 26%, 42%)
Complementary counterpoint
Aqua Core Dust
#5B9A9A · hsl(180, 26%, 48%)
Analogous lead
Coral Core Dust
#9A7A5B · hsl(30, 26%, 48%)
Analogous echo
Garnet Core Dust
#9A5B70 · hsl(340, 26%, 48%)
Triadic +120°
Emerald Core Dust
#5B9A5B · hsl(120, 26%, 48%)
Triadic +240°
Amethyst Core Dust
#605B9A · hsl(245, 26%, 48%)
Split-comp +150°
Jade Core Dust
#5B9A7A · hsl(150, 26%, 48%)
Split-comp +210°
Sapphire Core Dust
#5B7A9A · hsl(210, 26%, 48%)
Export preview
Base: Scarlet Core Dust #9A605B
Lighter companion: Scarlet Radiant Dust #A8706B
Darker companion: Scarlet Velvet Dust #87544F
Complementary counterpoint: Aqua Core Dust #5B9A9A
Analogous lead: Coral Core Dust #9A7A5B
Analogous echo: Garnet Core Dust #9A5B70
Triadic +120°: Emerald Core Dust #5B9A5B
Triadic +240°: Amethyst Core Dust #605B9A
Split-comp +150°: Jade Core Dust #5B9A7A
Split-comp +210°: Sapphire Core Dust #5B7A9A

Compare

See how Scarlet Core Dust compares side by side with related colors.

vsScarlet Radiant DustvsScarlet Velvet DustvsAqua Core DustvsCoral Core DustvsGarnet Core DustvsEmerald Core Dust

Nearest neighbors

The closest archive matches by hue, saturation, and lightness.

Search by hex
Nearby match
Scarlet Core Muted
#906864 · hsl(5, 18%, 48%)
Nearby match
Scarlet Core Soft
#A45851 · hsl(5, 34%, 48%)
Nearby match
Scarlet Velvet Dust
#87544F · hsl(5, 26%, 42%)
Nearby match
Scarlet Radiant Dust
#A8706B · hsl(5, 26%, 54%)
Nearby match
Crimson Core Dust
#9A5B5B · hsl(0, 26%, 48%)
Nearby match
Ruby Core Dust
#9A655B · hsl(10, 26%, 48%)

Accessible pairings

Archive colors that meet WCAG contrast standards when paired with this color. Use as text-on-background or background-on-text.

Contrast checker
AA4.8:1
Aqua Veil Faint
#F9FAFA
AA4.8:1
Aqua Veil Muted
#F9FBFB
AA4.8:1
Aqua Veil Dust
#F9FBFB
AA4.8:1
Aqua Veil Soft
#F8FCFC
AA4.9:1
Aqua Veil Clear
#F7FDFD
AA4.9:1
Aqua Veil Vivid
#F6FEFE

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#888C5D
Protanopia
#85845C
Tritanopia
#985D5D
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Saturation ladder

Same hue and lightness, from gray to pure

Search
Scarlet Core Faint#87706E · hsl(5, 10%, 48%)Scarlet Core Muted#906864 · hsl(5, 18%, 48%)Scarlet Core Dust#9A605B · hsl(5, 26%, 48%)Scarlet Core Soft#A45851 · hsl(5, 34%, 48%)Scarlet Core Clear#BC4338 · hsl(5, 54%, 48%)Scarlet Core Vivid#D52F20 · hsl(5, 74%, 48%)Scarlet Core Bright#E12514 · hsl(5, 84%, 48%)Scarlet Core Pure#EB1D0A · hsl(5, 92%, 48%)
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