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Mulberry Silk Clear
Color detail

Mulberry Silk Clear

Purple · Hue 280
Hex
#BC81D9
RGB
rgb(188, 129, 217)
HSL
hsl(280, 54%, 68%)
CMYK
cmyk(13%, 41%, 0%, 15%)
Metrics
S 54% · L 68%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
2.9:1Fail
on black
7.3:1AA
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Mulberry Silk Clear (#BC81D9) belongs to the purple family — hue 280°, 54% saturation, 68% 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-mulberry-silk-clear: #BC81D9;
  --colorarchive-mulberry-silk-clear-hsl: hsl(280, 54%, 68%);
  --colorarchive-mulberry-silk-clear-rgb: rgb(188, 129, 217);
}

AI Color Names

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

Design Context

MysticalCreativeGentle
Common in

Skincare · Meditation · Indie Music

Pairs well with

Soft gold for elegance, mint for freshness, warm white for purity

Design tip

Use for creative and wellness brands. Light purple backgrounds create a dreamy, contemplative atmosphere.

Cultural context ▶

Lavender and lilac represent spirituality, creativity, and gentleness. Associated with aromatherapy and mindfulness.

Color Origins

Purple family

The color of empire, twilight, and tech-luxury.

Heritage

Tyrian purple, extracted from the murex snail in Phoenicia, took 12,000 snails to dye one toga and was the literal definition of expense — Roman law restricted who could wear it. Mauve, the world's first synthetic dye, was discovered by accident in 1856 by an 18-year-old chemistry student trying to make quinine — the discovery launched the chemical-dye industry that funded the modern pharmaceutical industry. Quinacridone violet is the modern fade-resistant standard.

Across cultures

In Catholic liturgy purple marks Lent and Advent — penance and preparation. In Japan murasaki (a deep violet) was the highest court color in the Heian period; The Tale of Genji's Lady Murasaki takes her name from it. In Thailand purple is the mourning color for widows. Across Western culture purple is associated with royalty (because of Tyrian's cost), creativity (because of its rarity), and from the 1960s onward with rock and psychedelia.

In the wild

Cadbury's purple has been trademarked since 2008 (and hard-fought in court). Yahoo, Twitch, Discord, and Linear all use saturated purples as primary brand colors — the choice signals creative-tech where blue would signal corporate-tech. Prince's purple was so associated with him that his estate has trademark issues with the broader color. Stripe's signature indigo (#635BFF) helped redefine fintech away from trust-blue. The Lakers, the Vikings, and most NBA teams' second jerseys use purple to claim a color lane that no other major team owns.

How it reads

Purple sits at the boundary of warm and cool — biologically, our eyes process it as a blend rather than a single hue, which is why it can feel slightly unstable or magical. It reads as premium, creative, slightly counterculture. Light purples (lavender, lilac) read as gentle and feminine in Western convention. Saturated purples read as luxurious, electronic, or theatrical. Deep purples read as nocturnal, regal, or somber. It is one of the colors most commonly avoided by traditional finance and most embraced by creative tools.

This particular tone

A confident mid-tone — this is the workhorse register of the hue, and the band where most successful brand colors live.

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 clear, mid-saturation register is the most common identity sweet spot — saturated enough to register as a 'real' color, restrained enough not to fight typography or photography placed over it.

Brands using a similar color

Within the public brand-guidelines reference catalog, these are the closest matches to #BC81D9.

  • PlayStationaccent
    Square Purple · #A363D9
    →
  • Figmaprimary
    Figma Purple · #A259FF
    →
  • Bilibili 哔哩哔哩primary
    Bilibili Pink · #FB7299
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #BC81D9.

  • ScandinaviaFaded Rose
    #D3A6A0 · Vintage Swedish wallpaper
    →
  • MexicoBarragán Earth Pink
    #D77176 · Casa Gilardi, Mexico City (1976)
    →
  • Greece (Aegean)Olive Silver
    #9CA38F · Olea europaea leaf undersides
    →

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
Mulberry Bloom Clear
#CDA1E3 · hsl(280, 54%, 76%)
Darker companion
Mulberry Tone Clear
#AB62D0 · hsl(280, 54%, 60%)
Complementary counterpoint
Moss Silk Clear
#9FD981 · hsl(100, 54%, 68%)
Analogous lead
Mauve Silk Clear
#D981D2 · hsl(305, 54%, 68%)
Analogous echo
Orchid Silk Clear
#9F81D9 · hsl(260, 54%, 68%)
Triadic +120°
Apricot Silk Clear
#D9BC81 · hsl(40, 54%, 68%)
Triadic +240°
Teal Silk Clear
#81D9BC · hsl(160, 54%, 68%)
Split-comp +150°
Honey Silk Clear
#CBD981 · hsl(70, 54%, 68%)
Split-comp +210°
Mint Silk Clear
#81D990 · hsl(130, 54%, 68%)
Export preview
Base: Mulberry Silk Clear #BC81D9
Lighter companion: Mulberry Bloom Clear #CDA1E3
Darker companion: Mulberry Tone Clear #AB62D0
Complementary counterpoint: Moss Silk Clear #9FD981
Analogous lead: Mauve Silk Clear #D981D2
Analogous echo: Orchid Silk Clear #9F81D9
Triadic +120°: Apricot Silk Clear #D9BC81
Triadic +240°: Teal Silk Clear #81D9BC
Split-comp +150°: Honey Silk Clear #CBD981
Split-comp +210°: Mint Silk Clear #81D990

Compare

See how Mulberry Silk Clear compares side by side with related colors.

vsMulberry Bloom ClearvsMulberry Tone ClearvsMoss Silk ClearvsMauve Silk ClearvsOrchid Silk ClearvsApricot Silk Clear

Nearest neighbors

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

Search by hex
Nearby match
Mulberry Tone Clear
#AB62D0 · hsl(280, 54%, 60%)
Nearby match
Mulberry Bloom Clear
#CDA1E3 · hsl(280, 54%, 76%)
Nearby match
Mulberry Silk Soft
#B792C9 · hsl(280, 34%, 68%)
Nearby match
Mulberry Silk Vivid
#C271EA · hsl(280, 74%, 68%)
Nearby match
Mulberry Radiant Clear
#9F4AC9 · hsl(280, 54%, 54%)
Nearby match
Plum Silk Clear
#AD81D9 · hsl(270, 54%, 68%)

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
AA5.3:1
Moss Ink Faint
#232720
AA5.1:1
Moss Ink Muted
#222A1D
AA5:1
Moss Ink Dust
#212D1A
AA4.9:1
Moss Ink Soft
#203018
AA4.5:1
Moss Ink Clear
#1D3710
AA5.3:1
Lime Ink Faint
#242720

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#A9ADC4
Protanopia
#A6A5C8
Tritanopia
#BABAB6
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