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Crimson Dusk Dust
Color detail

Crimson Dusk Dust

Red · Hue 0
Hex
#6D4040
RGB
rgb(109, 64, 64)
HSL
hsl(0, 26%, 34%)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 41%, 41%, 57%)
Metrics
S 26% · L 34%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
8.5:1AA
on black
2.5:1Fail
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Crimson Dusk Dust (#6D4040) belongs to the red family — hue 0°, 26% saturation, 34% 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-crimson-dusk-dust: #6D4040;
  --colorarchive-crimson-dusk-dust-hsl: hsl(0, 26%, 34%);
  --colorarchive-crimson-dusk-dust-rgb: rgb(109, 64, 64);
}

AI Color Names

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

Design Context

PowerfulSophisticatedDramatic
Common in

Wine & Spirits · Luxury Fashion · Fine Dining

Pairs well with

Gold accents, ivory backgrounds, or deep charcoal for editorial elegance

Design tip

Ideal for dark themes and premium product pages. Pair with generous whitespace to let the richness breathe.

Cultural context ▶

Deep reds like burgundy and maroon evoke maturity, wealth, and tradition. Common in academic institutions and heritage brands.

Color Origins

Red family

The first pigment, the loudest signal.

Heritage

Red is the oldest pigment in the human visual record. Ochre reds appear in burial sites from 75,000+ years ago; Roman red lead (minium) lit Pompeian walls; cinnabar drove a millennium of trade across Asia and the Mediterranean. Madder, kermes, and cochineal — the three classical reds — built fortunes and emptied empires before synthetic alizarin arrived in 1869 and collapsed the price 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 essentially the same red since 1886. Netflix and YouTube engineered their reds to pop maximally on dark UI. 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). Nearly every emergency stop button on every machine ever made is red, and the convention is so universal 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 dim, atmospheric reading — closer to a colored shadow than a stated hue. Excellent as a near-black on dark UI or as a moody background.

Lightness band: At this depth the hue starts behaving like a neutral — it can substitute for black in many contexts while still carrying a faint chromatic temperature. It pairs especially well with off-whites and warm metallics.

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 #6D4040.

  • Aesopprimary
    Aesop Amber · #5C2E1F
    →
  • Airbnbneutral
    Hof Gray · #484848
    →
  • Coca-Colaneutral
    Pantone 484 (depth) · #9C2A2C
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #6D4040.

  • IrelandPeat Brown
    #604024 · Cut turf bog, Mayo + Connemara
    →
  • Italy (Tuscany)Chianti Wine
    #722F37 · Sangiovese grape
    →
  • VietnamPho Broth Brown
    #5C3A21 · Anise-and-cinnamon star, slow simmer
    →

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
Crimson Velvet Dust
#874F4F · hsl(0, 26%, 42%)
Darker companion
Crimson Shadow Dust
#5A3535 · hsl(0, 26%, 28%)
Complementary counterpoint
Aqua Dusk Dust
#406D6D · hsl(180, 26%, 34%)
Analogous lead
Tangerine Dusk Dust
#6D5340 · hsl(25, 26%, 34%)
Analogous echo
Garnet Dusk Dust
#6D404F · hsl(340, 26%, 34%)
Triadic +120°
Emerald Dusk Dust
#406D40 · hsl(120, 26%, 34%)
Triadic +240°
Iris Dusk Dust
#40406D · hsl(240, 26%, 34%)
Split-comp +150°
Jade Dusk Dust
#406D57 · hsl(150, 26%, 34%)
Split-comp +210°
Sapphire Dusk Dust
#40576D · hsl(210, 26%, 34%)
Export preview
Base: Crimson Dusk Dust #6D4040
Lighter companion: Crimson Velvet Dust #874F4F
Darker companion: Crimson Shadow Dust #5A3535
Complementary counterpoint: Aqua Dusk Dust #406D6D
Analogous lead: Tangerine Dusk Dust #6D5340
Analogous echo: Garnet Dusk Dust #6D404F
Triadic +120°: Emerald Dusk Dust #406D40
Triadic +240°: Iris Dusk Dust #40406D
Split-comp +150°: Jade Dusk Dust #406D57
Split-comp +210°: Sapphire Dusk Dust #40576D

Compare

See how Crimson Dusk Dust compares side by side with related colors.

vsCrimson Velvet DustvsCrimson Shadow DustvsAqua Dusk DustvsTangerine Dusk DustvsGarnet Dusk DustvsEmerald Dusk Dust

Nearest neighbors

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

Search by hex
Nearby match
Crimson Dusk Muted
#664747 · hsl(0, 18%, 34%)
Nearby match
Crimson Dusk Soft
#743939 · hsl(0, 34%, 34%)
Nearby match
Crimson Shadow Dust
#5A3535 · hsl(0, 26%, 28%)
Nearby match
Scarlet Dusk Dust
#6D4440 · hsl(5, 26%, 34%)
Nearby match
Crimson Velvet Dust
#874F4F · hsl(0, 26%, 42%)
Nearby match
Crimson Dusk Faint
#5F4E4E · hsl(0, 10%, 34%)

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
AAA8.2:1
Aqua Veil Faint
#F9FAFA
AAA8.2:1
Aqua Veil Muted
#F9FBFB
AAA8.2:1
Aqua Veil Dust
#F9FBFB
AAA8.3:1
Aqua Veil Soft
#F8FCFC
AAA8.3:1
Aqua Veil Clear
#F7FDFD
AAA8.4:1
Aqua Veil Vivid
#F6FEFE

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#5F6240
Protanopia
#5D5C40
Tritanopia
#6B4040
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