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Merlot Velvet Faint
Color detail

Merlot Velvet Faint

Red · Hue 350
Hex
#766064
RGB
rgb(118, 96, 100)
HSL
hsl(350, 10%, 42%)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 19%, 15%, 54%)
Metrics
S 10% · L 42%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
5.8:1AA
on black
3.6:1AA Large
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Merlot Velvet Faint (#766064) belongs to the red family — hue 350°, 10% saturation, 42% 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-merlot-velvet-faint: #766064;
  --colorarchive-merlot-velvet-faint-hsl: hsl(350, 10%, 42%);
  --colorarchive-merlot-velvet-faint-rgb: rgb(118, 96, 100);
}

AI Color Names

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

Design Context

PassionateEnergeticUrgent
Common in

Food & Beverage · Entertainment · Retail

Pairs well with

White for high contrast CTAs, dark navy for sophistication, or gold for luxury

Design tip

Best for call-to-action buttons and sale banners. Use sparingly — red as a primary color can feel aggressive; as an accent, it commands attention.

Cultural context ▶

Red is universally associated with energy and action. In China, it signifies luck and prosperity. In Western markets, it drives urgency in sales.

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 grounded mid-tone — sober, considered, well-suited to body text accents, editorial layouts, or any context where restraint reads as quality.

Lightness band: At mid-lightness the hue carries its full character. This is the band where most identity colors live: bright enough to be distinctive at small sizes, deep enough to sit cleanly on a white canvas.

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 #766064.

  • Microsoftneutral
    Slate Gray · #737373
    →
  • Notionneutral
    Notion Gray · #787774
    →
  • Airbnbneutral
    Hof Gray · #484848
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #766064.

  • France (Paris)Zinc Roof Grey
    #5E6566 · Oxidized zinc roof tiles, central Paris
    →
  • IcelandLopapeysa Sheep Brown
    #7C5A3A · Natural-dye Icelandic wool
    →
  • IrelandAtlantic Slate
    #5A6770 · Cliff face + winter sea
    →

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
Merlot Core Faint
#876E72 · hsl(350, 10%, 48%)
Darker companion
Merlot Dusk Faint
#5F4E51 · hsl(350, 10%, 34%)
Complementary counterpoint
Lagoon Velvet Faint
#607672 · hsl(170, 10%, 42%)
Analogous lead
Vermillion Velvet Faint
#766660 · hsl(15, 10%, 42%)
Analogous echo
Blush Velvet Faint
#76606B · hsl(330, 10%, 42%)
Triadic +120°
Leaf Velvet Faint
#647660 · hsl(110, 10%, 42%)
Triadic +240°
Indigo Velvet Faint
#606476 · hsl(230, 10%, 42%)
Split-comp +150°
Seafoam Velvet Faint
#607668 · hsl(140, 10%, 42%)
Split-comp +210°
Azure Velvet Faint
#606F76 · hsl(200, 10%, 42%)
Export preview
Base: Merlot Velvet Faint #766064
Lighter companion: Merlot Core Faint #876E72
Darker companion: Merlot Dusk Faint #5F4E51
Complementary counterpoint: Lagoon Velvet Faint #607672
Analogous lead: Vermillion Velvet Faint #766660
Analogous echo: Blush Velvet Faint #76606B
Triadic +120°: Leaf Velvet Faint #647660
Triadic +240°: Indigo Velvet Faint #606476
Split-comp +150°: Seafoam Velvet Faint #607668
Split-comp +210°: Azure Velvet Faint #606F76

Compare

See how Merlot Velvet Faint compares side by side with related colors.

vsMerlot Core FaintvsMerlot Dusk FaintvsLagoon Velvet FaintvsVermillion Velvet FaintvsBlush Velvet FaintvsLeaf Velvet Faint

Nearest neighbors

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

Search by hex
Nearby match
Merlot Velvet Muted
#7E585E · hsl(350, 18%, 42%)
Nearby match
Merlot Core Faint
#876E72 · hsl(350, 10%, 48%)
Nearby match
Merlot Dusk Faint
#5F4E51 · hsl(350, 10%, 34%)
Nearby match
Merlot Velvet Dust
#874F59 · hsl(350, 26%, 42%)
Nearby match
Merlot Core Muted
#90646C · hsl(350, 18%, 48%)
Nearby match
Merlot Radiant Faint
#957E82 · hsl(350, 10%, 54%)

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
AA5.5:1
Lagoon Veil Faint
#F9FAFA
AA5.6:1
Lagoon Veil Muted
#F9FBFB
AA5.6:1
Lagoon Veil Dust
#F9FBFB
AA5.6:1
Lagoon Veil Soft
#F8FCFB
AA5.6:1
Lagoon Veil Clear
#F7FDFC
AA5.7:1
Lagoon Veil Vivid
#F6FEFC

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#6E7063
Protanopia
#6D6D63
Tritanopia
#756262
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