Sandstone Color Palette – HEX, RGB & Design Inspiration
Color Details
HEX: #C9AE74
RGB: 201, 174, 116
HEX: #D4BE90
RGB: 212, 190, 144
HEX: #DFCEAC
RGB: 223, 206, 172
HEX: #E9DFC7
RGB: 233, 223, 199
HEX: #F4EFE3
RGB: 244, 239, 227
Text on White/Black Backgrounds
Color Pair Combinations (10 total)
WCAG Contrast Standards:
- AAA (7:1): Enhanced contrast for maximum readability
- AA (4.5:1): Minimum for normal text (under 18pt)
- AA Large (3:1): Acceptable for large text (18pt+ or 14pt+ bold)
- Fail: Below WCAG standards, not recommended for text
Recommended Text Colors
Horizontal (Left to Right)
background: linear-gradient(to right, #C9AE74 0%, #D4BE90 25%, #DFCEAC 50%, #E9DFC7 75%, #F4EFE3 100%);Vertical (Top to Bottom)
background: linear-gradient(to bottom, #C9AE74 0%, #D4BE90 25%, #DFCEAC 50%, #E9DFC7 75%, #F4EFE3 100%);Diagonal (Top Left to Bottom Right)
background: linear-gradient(to bottom right, #C9AE74 0%, #D4BE90 25%, #DFCEAC 50%, #E9DFC7 75%, #F4EFE3 100%);Usage Tips:
- Copy the CSS code and paste directly into your stylesheets
- Linear gradients work great for backgrounds and hero sections
- Radial gradients are perfect for spotlights and focus effects
- Conic gradients create eye-catching loading spinners and progress indicators
- Smooth transitions ensure seamless color blending
Normal Vision
No color vision deficiency
Color Swatches
#C9AE74
#D4BE90
#DFCEAC
#E9DFC7
#F4EFE3
Full Palette View
How people with Normal Vision see it:
Overall Mood & Feel
Energetic, warm, and inviting, with an airy and optimistic feel
Emotional Impact
Stimulating and energetic, evoking feelings of excitement, warmth, and action. The light tones create an uplifting, optimistic atmosphere perfect for approachable brands
Psychological Effect
This 5-color palette creates a energetic, warm, and inviting, with an airy and optimistic feel. It stimulates activity and engagement, increasing heart rate and mental alertness. The combination works together to create memorable visual experiences that influence consumer perception, decision-making, and brand recall. The rich variety provides versatility while maintaining cohesive emotional messaging across touchpoints.
Brand Personality Traits
Perfect For These Industries
Target Audience
Young, trend-conscious consumers (18-35) who value creativity and self-expression. Appeals to those seeking approachable, positive, and optimistic brands
Individual Color Psychology
#C9AE74
Cheerful and inviting
Emotions Evoked
Personality Traits
Brand Traits
Ideal Industries
Marketing Use
Stimulates activity and socialization, creates a sense of fun and affordability. Excellent for CTAs, impulse purchases, and youth marketing.
Cultural Meanings
Color Harmony Analysis
Palette Mood
Temperature
This palette combines balanced and light & airy moods with warm tones, making it versatile for various design applications.
Professional Implementation Guide
This monochromatic sandstone palette features 5 carefully selected warm tones that create a light and airy aesthetic. With low contrast levels and moderate saturation, this palette is optimized for minimalist designs and health & wellness.
Web Design & Development
For web development, implement this palette with CSS variables for easy theme switching. Consider adding darker variants for better text readability.
- Apply the 60-30-10 rule for visual hierarchy
- Use accent colors for CTAs and hover states
- Maintain consistent color usage across all pages
- Test responsive behavior on multiple devices
Mobile App Interfaces
In mobile applications, these warm tones provide excellent readability in bright conditions. Use the subtle color variations to define clear touch targets.
- Design both light and dark mode variants
- Consider thumb-reach zones for color placement
- Test under direct sunlight and low light
- Use color to indicate interactive elements
Brand Identity Systems
Build a cohesive brand identity by designating specific colors for specific purposes. Establish your primary brand color from the most distinctive shade and create comprehensive brand guidelines specifying exact usage scenarios.
- Define primary, secondary, and accent colors
- Create usage rules for marketing materials
- Specify minimum sizes and clear space
- Document do's and don'ts for consistency
Frontend Development
Developers can integrate this palette efficiently using modern CSS techniques. Export as CSS variables for maximum flexibility, allowing theme switching and dynamic color updates without rewriting stylesheets.
- Use CSS custom properties for theming
- Implement semantic color naming conventions
- Create utility classes for rapid prototyping
- Consider CSS-in-JS for component-scoped colors
Print Design
For print materials, convert to CMYK using #C9AE74 as the dominant color for headers and #F4EFE3 for accents. These colors translate well to print with minimal adjustment.
- Add to your design software color library
- Create swatches for quick color access
- Use CMYK values for print production
- Request color proofs before final print
Marketing Campaigns
Marketing materials benefit from consistent color usage that reinforces brand recognition. Apply this palette across email campaigns, landing pages, advertisements, and social media for maximum impact and memorability.
- Maintain color consistency across channels
- A/B test color variations for conversion
- Consider cultural color associations
- Align colors with campaign messaging
Strategic Color Distribution
Professional designers follow the 60-30-10 rule for balanced color distribution. Here's how to apply this principle with the Sandstone:
Dominant Color
#C9AE74Use #C9AE74 as your primary color for backgrounds, main content areas. This orange tone should occupy about 60% of your design space.
Secondary Color
#DFCEACApply #DFCEAC as your secondary color for subtle backgrounds and card components. Allocate approximately 30% of your layout to this color.
Accent Color
#F4EFE3Reserve #F4EFE3 for accent elements like buttons, links, and important highlights. This orange accent should be used sparingly (10% of design) to draw attention to key actions.
Professional Best Practices
✓ Smart Usage Tips
- •Add white or black text overlays to improve readability on colored backgrounds
- •Balance warm tones with neutral whites or grays to create visual breathing room
- •Test your palette across different devices and lighting conditions before finalizing
✗ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- •Don't use all colors equally—establish clear visual hierarchy through color weight
- •Avoid low-contrast text combinations that strain readability
- •Don't rely solely on color to convey meaning (use icons, text, and patterns too)
- •Avoid inconsistent color usage across different pages or screens
- •Don't assume screen colors match print output—always request physical proofs
Palette Overview & Statistics
5
Total Colors
2
Associated Tags
6
Categories
3800
Community Likes
Color Analysis & Technical Guide
Detailed breakdown of each color's role, characteristics, and optimal applications. This monochromatic palette creates a light and airy aesthetic perfect for minimalist designs and health & wellness.
Individual Color Breakdown
Each color in this warm palette has been analyzed for its properties and ideal usage scenarios. The low contrast and moderate saturation ensure harmonious visual relationships.
#C9AE74
ORANGE
#C9AE74 serves as the primary/dominant color in this palette. This medium orange (moderately saturated) brings creativity and enthusiasm Use it for headers, navigation bars, and brand elements.
Light toneH: 41°S: 44%L: 62%#D4BE90
ORANGE
#D4BE90 serves as the secondary/supporting color in this palette. This medium orange (moderately saturated) brings creativity and enthusiasm Use it for cards, borders, section dividers, and supporting UI components.
Light toneH: 41°S: 44%L: 70%#DFCEAC
ORANGE
#DFCEAC serves as the secondary/supporting color in this palette. This light orange (moderately saturated) brings creativity and enthusiasm Use it for cards, borders, section dividers, and supporting UI components.
Light toneH: 40°S: 44%L: 77%#E9DFC7
ORANGE
#E9DFC7 serves as the secondary/supporting color in this palette. This light orange (moderately saturated) brings creativity and enthusiasm Use it for cards, borders, section dividers, and supporting UI components.
Light toneH: 42°S: 44%L: 85%#F4EFE3
ORANGE
#F4EFE3 serves as the accent/highlight color in this palette. This light orange (moderately saturated) brings creativity and enthusiasm Use it for call-to-action buttons, links, important notifications, and interactive elements.
Light toneH: 42°S: 44%L: 92%
Palette Characteristics
This palette exhibits distinct characteristics that make it particularly suitable for specific design applications and industries.
Warm colors create energy, excitement, and approachability. Perfect for brands targeting emotional connection.
Low contrast creates subtle, sophisticated aesthetics but requires careful attention to text legibility.
Moderate saturation balances visual interest with professional restraint.
Light palette creates airy, open designs with excellent readability for dark text overlays.
💡 Pro Tips for This Palette
- Perfect for: minimalist designs, health & wellness. The monochromatic color relationship creates natural visual flow.
- Mood & Psychology: This palette evokes a light and airy feeling, making it ideal for brands seeking to convey those qualities.
- Accessibility: Test text combinations carefully with contrast checkers to ensure accessibility compliance.
- Extensions: Create tints (add white) and shades (add black) to expand this 5-color palette into a comprehensive design system.
- Cultural Context: Warm colors may have different meanings across cultures—verify associations with your target market.
Export Formats
Explore Sandstone Palette
The Sandstone palette is a masterful blend of warm, light hues that evoke the soft, serene beauty of a desert landscape at sunrise. This monochromatic palette has a profound emotional impact, as it transports viewers to a place of tranquility and warmth, perfect for designs that aim to soothe and inspire. The palette's core colors, ranging from the soft peach tones of C9AE74 to the gentle gray undertones of D4BE90, work in harmony to create a sense of balance and cohesion, making it an ideal choice for designers seeking a palette that exudes warmth without being overpowering.
As we delve deeper into the palette, we find that each color plays a unique role in creating this sense of harmony. The pale peach tone of C9AE74 sets the foundation for the palette, providing a warm and inviting base that draws the viewer in. The slightly darker D4BE90 adds depth and nuance, its gray undertones subtly grounding the palette and preventing it from feeling too sweet or overly sentimental. The middle tones, DFCEAC and E9DFC7, serve as a bridge between the lighter and darker shades, their soft, pastel quality adding a touch of elegance and sophistication to the palette. Finally, the lightest shade, F4EFE3, provides a sense of airiness and freedom, lifting the palette and preventing it from feeling too heavy or dense.
The Sandstone palette is incredibly versatile, making it suitable for a wide range of design applications, from websites and apps to branding and marketing materials. Its warm, light tones make it an excellent choice for spring-themed designs, or for any project that requires a sense of optimism and renewal. Designers can use this palette to create a cohesive visual identity for a brand, or to add a touch of warmth and personality to a digital product. Whether used as a primary color scheme or as an accent palette, Sandstone is sure to bring a sense of calm and serenity to any design, making it an excellent choice for projects that aim to promote relaxation, wellness, or creativity.
The psychology behind the Sandstone palette is fascinating, as its warm, light tones have a profound impact on viewer perception and behavior. Research has shown that warm colors like peach and gray can evoke feelings of comfort, trust, and approachability, making this palette an excellent choice for designs that aim to build a sense of community or connection with the viewer. Additionally, the palette's soft, pastel quality can help to reduce stress and anxiety, making it an ideal choice for designs that aim to promote relaxation or wellness. By using the Sandstone palette, designers can create a sense of emotional connection with their audience, drawing them in and inviting them to engage with the design on a deeper level.
For designers looking to get the most out of the Sandstone palette, there are a few pro tips to keep in mind. To add depth and contrast to the design, consider pairing the palette with complementary colors like rich blues or deep greens, which will create a stunning visual contrast that draws the viewer in. Alternatively, designers can use the palette as a starting point and add their own unique twist by introducing additional colors or textures, such as natural fibers or organic patterns. By experimenting with different pairing suggestions and design techniques, designers can unlock the full potential of the Sandstone palette, creating designs that are not only visually stunning but also emotionally resonant and engaging.
Palette Image
Below is the generated palette image showing all colors in a vertical layout. Perfect for sharing on social media or using as a reference.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about using and implementing the sandstone palette effectively in your projects.