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Plum Bloom Faint
Color detail

Plum Bloom Faint

Purple · Hue 270
Hex
#C2BCC8
RGB
rgb(194, 188, 200)
HSL
hsl(270, 10%, 76%)
CMYK
cmyk(3%, 6%, 0%, 22%)
Metrics
S 10% · L 76%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
1.9:1Fail
on black
11.3:1AA
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Plum Bloom Faint (#C2BCC8) belongs to the purple family — hue 270°, 10% saturation, 76% 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-plum-bloom-faint: #C2BCC8;
  --colorarchive-plum-bloom-faint-hsl: hsl(270, 10%, 76%);
  --colorarchive-plum-bloom-faint-rgb: rgb(194, 188, 200);
}

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 pale, gentle tone — pastel territory, where the hue acts more like a tinted neutral than a stated color.

Lightness band: At this lightness the hue almost recedes into the surface around it — useful for backgrounds, hover states, and any surface where the color should suggest a mood without competing with content.

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 #C2BCC8.

  • Glossierprimary
    Glossier Pink · #F8D6CD
    →
  • Starbucksneutral
    Warm Neutral · #D4E9E2
    →
  • Aesopneutral
    Cream Paper · #EFE4D2
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #C2BCC8.

  • ScandinaviaOat Beige
    #D5C7A7 · Linseed oil-treated pine
    →
  • China (Traditional)Celadon (青瓷)
    #9CB48F · Song Dynasty Longquan kilns
    →
  • IcelandMidnight Sun Pink
    #F2AEB5 · Horizon light, June
    →

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
Plum Pearl Faint
#D6D2DA · hsl(270, 10%, 84%)
Darker companion
Plum Silk Faint
#ADA5B6 · hsl(270, 10%, 68%)
Complementary counterpoint
Lime Bloom Faint
#C2C8BC · hsl(90, 10%, 76%)
Analogous lead
Magenta Bloom Faint
#C6BCC8 · hsl(290, 10%, 76%)
Analogous echo
Amethyst Bloom Faint
#BDBCC8 · hsl(245, 10%, 76%)
Triadic +120°
Coral Bloom Faint
#C8C2BC · hsl(30, 10%, 76%)
Triadic +240°
Jade Bloom Faint
#BCC8C2 · hsl(150, 10%, 76%)
Split-comp +150°
Citrine Bloom Faint
#C8C8BC · hsl(60, 10%, 76%)
Split-comp +210°
Emerald Bloom Faint
#BCC8BC · hsl(120, 10%, 76%)
Export preview
Base: Plum Bloom Faint #C2BCC8
Lighter companion: Plum Pearl Faint #D6D2DA
Darker companion: Plum Silk Faint #ADA5B6
Complementary counterpoint: Lime Bloom Faint #C2C8BC
Analogous lead: Magenta Bloom Faint #C6BCC8
Analogous echo: Amethyst Bloom Faint #BDBCC8
Triadic +120°: Coral Bloom Faint #C8C2BC
Triadic +240°: Jade Bloom Faint #BCC8C2
Split-comp +150°: Citrine Bloom Faint #C8C8BC
Split-comp +210°: Emerald Bloom Faint #BCC8BC

Compare

See how Plum Bloom Faint compares side by side with related colors.

vsPlum Pearl FaintvsPlum Silk FaintvsLime Bloom FaintvsMagenta Bloom FaintvsAmethyst Bloom FaintvsCoral Bloom Faint

Nearest neighbors

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

Search by hex
Nearby match
Plum Bloom Muted
#C2B7CD · hsl(270, 18%, 76%)
Nearby match
Plum Silk Faint
#ADA5B6 · hsl(270, 10%, 68%)
Nearby match
Plum Pearl Faint
#D6D2DA · hsl(270, 10%, 84%)
Nearby match
Plum Bloom Dust
#C2B2D2 · hsl(270, 26%, 76%)
Nearby match
Plum Silk Muted
#AD9FBC · hsl(270, 18%, 68%)
Nearby match
Plum Pearl Muted
#D6CFDE · hsl(270, 18%, 84%)

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
Lime Ink Faint
#242720
AAA8:1
Lime Ink Muted
#242A1D
AAA7.7:1
Lime Ink Dust
#242D1A
AAA7.5:1
Lime Ink Soft
#243018
AAA8.1:1
Olive Ink Faint
#252720
AAA7.9:1
Olive Ink Muted
#262A1D

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#C0C0C5
Protanopia
#BFBFC5
Tritanopia
#C2C3C2
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Appears in collections
2026 Midnight Plum