Showa era
Ecru & Pale King's Blue +1
Plate 167 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Ecru, Pale King's Blue, Vandar Poel's Blue.
#c2ae93
orange · 8 palettes
Ecru
About Ecru
Ecru is a mid-tone, muted orange tone. Its hex value is #c2ae93 — that is
RGB 194, 174, 147, or HSL 34°, 28%, 67%.
It holds 9.8:1 contrast against dark, so Ecru works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 2.1:1; on black 9.8:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Ecru appears in 8 combinations — most often paired with Raw Sienna, Pale King's Blue and Vandar Poel's Blue.
Colours that go with Ecru
From a standard colour wheel, Ecru anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#c2ae93 #93A7C2
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#c2ae93 #C29793 #BEC293
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#c2ae93 #93C2AE #AE93C2
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#c2ae93 #93BEC2 #9793C2
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Ecru
Ecru is a mid-tone, muted tone (HSL 34°, 28%, 67%), which makes it a versatile mid-tone for accents, buttons or blocks. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a dark background (9.8:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#93A7C2) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#C29793 and #BEC293) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Palettes with Ecru
Ecru appears in 8 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
From the archive
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