#FEA051Bittersweet (#FEA051) is a light, saturated orange with an OKLCH hue of 58°, lightness 0.79 and chroma 0.146. It sits on the warm side of the color wheel. In practice it behaves as an accent color: strong in focal moments, dominant over large fields.
| HEX | #FEA051 |
|---|---|
| RGB | rgb(254, 160, 81) |
| HSL | hsl(27, 99%, 66%) |
| HSV | hsv(27, 68%, 100%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(0%, 37%, 68%, 0%) |
| CIE Lab | lab(74.1 28.3 54.5) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.787 0.146 58) |
Under warm 2700K interior light Bittersweet shifts subtly: leans toward red; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 1.3), so it is a lighting-stable choice.
#ff9a48 — ΔE 1.3, shifts subtly: leans toward red#ffa04d — ΔE 0.4, is virtually unchanged#fea051 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged#ffa153 — ΔE 0.3, is virtually unchangedTest Bittersweet in the color lighting simulator — sweep it through daylight, warm 2700K light, 4000K LED, and shade alongside the rest of your palette.
Against white it measures 2.03:1 and against black 10.36:1, so black text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid white text on this color entirely.
One color explored: close hues with real lightness and chroma structure, so the palette is the anchor through value rather than a set of colors.
#ffeee2 · #fea051 · #e28a3e · #b4661c · #864600 · #562b00
The anchor's neighbours on the wheel — everything shares an undertone, so the chord carries color without anything having to be muted to get along.
#fcdc84 · #febf64 · #fea051 · #ed8860 · #d6746b · #bb6372
The mid-gap pairing — sage and mustard, terracotta and olive. A foil rotated 40–65° toward warm or cool: too far to be kin, too near to argue, carried by temperature and a deliberate value offset.
#fea051 · #9d9f6a · #b26723 · #636400 · #683500 · #2d2d00
One deliberately opposed voice — a single restrained counterpoint across the wheel, or temperature against temperature where the anchor is too muted to carry a loud opposite.
#f4d7c1 · #fea051 · #17a2e6 · #9a6a45 · #754c2c · #4e331e
The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.
#e6f4fe · #fea051 · #ac998c · #576067 · #342315 · #000104
This color as a ground rather than a subject — its own restraint held across a narrow value band, carrying one saturated voice from the opposite temperature.
#e9f4fb · #c0cdd6 · #94a2ac · #1b2d39 · #000b17 · #fea051
The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.
#d4d7b2 · #fea051 · #c1969f · #21808c · #2e3d55 · #04110c
The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.
#bbddc4 · #fea051 · #8ea0d7 · #436c7a · #313c58 · #120e03
Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.
#d4fcf2 · #fea051 · #2fb59e · #6b47a5 · #310e5a · #000302
Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.
#dffbe2 · #fea051 · #67b174 · #006695 · #440144 · #00050f
#FFAF6F · #FFBD8B · #FFCBA4 · #FFD8BC · #FFE6D3
#D48037 · #AB621C · #844500 · #5A2D00 · #331600
#F1A76D · #E3AD84 · #D4B299
Its chroma is high enough to carry accents, calls to action, and focal moments; large fields of it will dominate a composition. In palettes it pairs most predictably with its tonal ramp and analogous neighbors; reserve the complementary hue for small, deliberate contrast.