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Honey Shadow Dust
Color detail

Honey Shadow Dust

Lime · Hue 70
Hex
#545A35
RGB
rgb(84, 90, 53)
HSL
hsl(70, 26%, 28%)
CMYK
cmyk(7%, 0%, 41%, 65%)
Metrics
S 26% · L 28%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
7.3:1AA
on black
2.9:1Fail
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Honey Shadow Dust (#545A35) belongs to the lime family — hue 70°, 26% saturation, 28% 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-honey-shadow-dust: #545A35;
  --colorarchive-honey-shadow-dust-hsl: hsl(70, 26%, 28%);
  --colorarchive-honey-shadow-dust-rgb: rgb(84, 90, 53);
}

AI Color Names

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

Design Context

OrganicSustainableGrounded
Common in

Agriculture · Sustainable Fashion · Landscape Architecture

Pairs well with

Earth tones (brown, tan), warm whites, or muted terracotta

Design tip

Ideal for brands emphasizing sustainability. Olive tones work well in navigation and secondary UI elements.

Cultural context ▶

Olive and dark lime connect to nature, military, and sustainability. Evokes resilience and growth.

Color Origins

Lime family

Half spring leaf, half pop-art neon.

Heritage

Lime — the yellow-green region of the spectrum — has no classical pigment of its own; painters historically achieved it by mixing yellow ochre with terre verte or lead-tin yellow with verdigris. The brilliant phthalo greens and arylide yellows of the 20th century made saturated lime achievable for the first time, which is why lime feels visually 'modern' even though grass and leaves have always lived there.

Across cultures

In Japan, the moss greens of traditional gardens (yamabuki, moegi) sit at the muted edge of lime. In American pop culture lime exploded with the 1960s — the 'Day-Glo' palette of psychedelic posters depended on it, and Mountain Dew commercialized it. In sportswear lime carries 'high-visibility' connotations (running gear, safety vests) that have lately come back into fashion as a deliberate aesthetic.

In the wild

Tennis balls have been lime-yellow ('optic yellow') since 1972, when Wimbledon found it most visible on color TV. Spotify's #1DB954 and the Xbox brand green both sit at the lime end. Lacoste and BP both run on saturated lime greens. Mountain Dew owns the brilliant supersaturated lime in beverage. In film, The Matrix's coded rain is lime-on-black — the choice was originally about the look of phosphor CRT terminals.

How it reads

Lime is the youngest-feeling green: it reads as fresh, citric, energetic, and slightly synthetic. At low saturation it becomes olive or moss, both heavily associated with craft, sustainability, and slow design. At high saturation it reads as sport, beverage, or technology. Lime is one of the harder hues to use as a primary brand color without trending toward 'energy drink' — many brands therefore use it as an accent against deep neutrals.

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 #545A35.

  • Airbnbneutral
    Hof Gray · #484848
    →
  • Microsoftneutral
    Slate Gray · #737373
    →
  • Aesopprimary
    Aesop Amber · #5C2E1F
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #545A35.

  • Italy (Tuscany)Cypress Green
    #3F5E47 · Tuscan hilltop cypresses
    →
  • ScandinaviaForest Green
    #3D5B49 · Spruce / fir forest in winter light
    →
  • Greece (Aegean)Cypress Green
    #3E6B47 · Cupressus sempervirens
    →

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
Honey Dusk Dust
#666D40 · hsl(70, 26%, 34%)
Darker companion
Honey Nocturne Dust
#3C4026 · hsl(70, 26%, 20%)
Complementary counterpoint
Violet Shadow Dust
#3B355A · hsl(250, 26%, 28%)
Analogous lead
Lime Shadow Dust
#475A35 · hsl(90, 26%, 28%)
Analogous echo
Saffron Shadow Dust
#5A5135 · hsl(45, 26%, 28%)
Triadic +120°
Cerulean Shadow Dust
#35545A · hsl(190, 26%, 28%)
Triadic +240°
Peony Shadow Dust
#5A3554 · hsl(310, 26%, 28%)
Split-comp +150°
Cobalt Shadow Dust
#35415A · hsl(220, 26%, 28%)
Split-comp +210°
Mulberry Shadow Dust
#4E355A · hsl(280, 26%, 28%)
Export preview
Base: Honey Shadow Dust #545A35
Lighter companion: Honey Dusk Dust #666D40
Darker companion: Honey Nocturne Dust #3C4026
Complementary counterpoint: Violet Shadow Dust #3B355A
Analogous lead: Lime Shadow Dust #475A35
Analogous echo: Saffron Shadow Dust #5A5135
Triadic +120°: Cerulean Shadow Dust #35545A
Triadic +240°: Peony Shadow Dust #5A3554
Split-comp +150°: Cobalt Shadow Dust #35415A
Split-comp +210°: Mulberry Shadow Dust #4E355A

Compare

See how Honey Shadow Dust compares side by side with related colors.

vsHoney Dusk DustvsHoney Nocturne DustvsViolet Shadow DustvsLime Shadow DustvsSaffron Shadow DustvsCerulean Shadow Dust

Nearest neighbors

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

Search by hex
Nearby match
Honey Shadow Muted
#50543B · hsl(70, 18%, 28%)
Nearby match
Honey Shadow Soft
#58602F · hsl(70, 34%, 28%)
Nearby match
Honey Dusk Dust
#666D40 · hsl(70, 26%, 34%)
Nearby match
Chartreuse Shadow Dust
#515A35 · hsl(75, 26%, 28%)
Nearby match
Honey Nocturne Dust
#3C4026 · hsl(70, 26%, 20%)
Nearby match
Honey Shadow Faint
#4C4F40 · hsl(70, 10%, 28%)

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
AAA7:1
Cobalt Veil Muted
#F9FAFB
AAA7:1
Sapphire Veil Muted
#F9FAFB
AAA7:1
Sapphire Veil Dust
#F9FAFB
AAA7:1
Cool Gray Veil
#FAFAFA
AAA7:1
Steel Veil Muted
#F9FAFB
AAA7:1
Steel Veil Dust
#F9FAFB

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#565643
Protanopia
#575740
Tritanopia
#544849
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