Heian era
Cherry Blossom & Young Bamboo— 桜と若竹
The softest pink of cherry blossoms set beside young bamboo green — spring, captured.
#A3C293
green · 1 palette
Wakatake
若竹
Young bamboo green
About Wakatake
Wakatake (若竹) is a mid-tone, muted green tone. Its hex value is #A3C293 — that is
RGB 163, 194, 147, or HSL 100°, 28%, 67%.
Young bamboo green.
It holds 10.7:1 contrast against dark, so Wakatake works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 2.0:1; on black 10.7:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Wakatake appears in 1 combination — most often paired with Sakura, Kinari and Matsuba.
Colours that go with Wakatake
From a standard colour wheel, Wakatake anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#A3C293 #B293C2
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#A3C293 #BBC293 #93C29B
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#A3C293 #93A3C2 #C293A3
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#A3C293 #9B93C2 #C293BA
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Wakatake
Wakatake is a mid-tone, muted tone (HSL 100°, 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 (10.7:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#B293C2) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#BBC293 and #93C29B) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Studio
Taking Wakatake off the screen
A hex code is an instruction to a screen, not a colour. Where this one is going decides what it needs next.
Affiliate links — as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
-
...onto paper
Start here if the palette gets printed. Screen colour and ink colour are not the same colour, and this is the deck that translates between them.
Listed on Amazon as Pantone GP6102B Color Bridge Guide Set Coated & Uncoated, Multi-Colour
See price on Amazon -
...onto a screen you can trust
Start here if it stays digital. An uncalibrated monitor is the single most common reason a palette that looked right on your desk looks wrong everywhere else.
Calibrite
ColorChecker Studio spectrophotometer
Listed on Amazon as Calibrite ColorChecker Studio Spectrophotometer for Complete Color Management for Display, Projector, Printer and Scanner Profiling
See price on Amazon -
...by hand
Start here if you are mixing it. Wada's plates were flat printed colour; gansai pans are the closest everyday medium to them.
Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 36
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 36 Colors
See price on Amazon
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Palettes with Wakatake
Wakatake appears in 1 combination from the archive. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
Questions about Wakatake
- What is the hex code for Wakatake?
- Wakatake (若竹) is #A3C293. Young bamboo green It appears in 1 historical color combination from Sanzo Wada's 1933 "A Dictionary of Color Combinations".
- What does Wakatake look like on white and black backgrounds?
- Wakatake (#A3C293) has a WCAG contrast ratio of 1.96:1 against white (#FFFFFF) and 10.70:1 against black (#000000). WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
- Where does the color Wakatake come from?
- Wakatake is documented in Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933, Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). Wada catalogued green pigments and historical Japanese color terms. The source work is in the public domain.
- Can I use Wakatake in my own design or brand?
- Yes. The color name and hex value (#A3C293) are factual data — not copyrightable. Our curation and descriptions are CC BY 4.0 licensed.
From the archive
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