Saddle Brown #8B4513

Saddle Brown (#8B4513) is a dark, soft orange with an OKLCH hue of 51°, lightness 0.47 and chroma 0.112. It sits on the warm side of the color wheel. In practice it behaves as a mid-weight working color for secondary surfaces and editorial blocks.

Color values

HEX#8B4513
RGBrgb(139, 69, 19)
HSLhsl(25, 76%, 31%)
HSVhsv(25, 86%, 55%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 50%, 86%, 45%)
CIE Lablab(37.5 26.4 41)
OKLCHoklch(0.471 0.112 51)

How Saddle Brown behaves under real light

Under warm 2700K interior light Saddle Brown is virtually unchanged; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 0.7), so it is a lighting-stable choice.

Contrast & accessibility

Against white it measures 7.1:1 and against black 2.96:1, so white text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid black text on this color entirely.

Palettes built from Saddle Brown

Tonal

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.

#e4ab8a · #c0825d · #9e5a2f · #8b4513 · #481d00 · #1e0600

Analogous

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.

#97783c · #925f23 · #8b4513 · #793120 · #632126 · #4c1327

Shifted

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.

#bbb789 · #a2983d · #7d7952 · #8b4513 · #662e02 · #411900

Contrast

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.

#5cbdeb · #8c7569 · #8b4513 · #57331e · #361905 · #150400

Quiet Support

The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.

#e8f4fb · #beaea5 · #6e767b · #8b4513 · #4f3f36 · #000103

Bright Accent

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.

#e8f4fb · #bfcdd5 · #92a2ab · #182d37 · #000b14 · #8b4513

Complementary

The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.

#d0d6b1 · #b0ae7f · #4d7ff3 · #8b4513 · #40406d · #110626

Split-complementary

The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.

#e3f5ff · #64c3c8 · #4e74b6 · #8b4513 · #004d51 · #00000d

Triadic

Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.

#ddfaef · #72c4a9 · #7568b1 · #8b4513 · #433771 · #000402

Tetradic

Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.

#e6f8e3 · #92c08a · #037faa · #8b4513 · #592f61 · #00050c

Tints, shades & muted variants

Tints

#A0613A · #B57C5B · #CA987C · #DFB59D · #F3D2C0

Shades

#763707 · #622A00 · #4C1F00 · #381400 · #250A00

Muted

#824B29 · #785039 · #6E5546

Using Saddle Brown

Its moderate chroma lets it work in mid-size areas — upholstery, secondary UI surfaces, editorial blocks — without overwhelming neighbors. In palettes it pairs most predictably with its tonal ramp and analogous neighbors; reserve the complementary hue for small, deliberate contrast.

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