Shortbread `#F5E6D3`

Shortbread (#F5E6D3) is a near-white, muted orange with an OKLCH hue of 74°, lightness 0.93 and chroma 0.03. It sits on the warm side of the color wheel. In practice it behaves as a background color — quiet over large surfaces.

Color values

HEX	`#F5E6D3`
RGB	`rgb(245, 230, 211)`
HSL	`hsl(34, 63%, 89%)`
HSV	`hsv(34, 14%, 96%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 6%, 14%, 4%)`
CIE Lab	`lab(92 2 11.1)`
OKLCH	`oklch(0.932 0.030 74)`

How Shortbread behaves under real light

Under warm 2700K interior light Shortbread shifts subtly: leans toward red, gains intensity; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 2.1), so it is a lighting-stable choice.

Warm interior (2700K incandescent / warm LED): → #fde0c5 — ΔE 2.1, shifts subtly: leans toward red, gains intensity
Neutral LED (4000K task and retail lighting): → #fde7ce — ΔE 1.3, shifts subtly: leans toward red
Daylight (6500K standard daylight (reference)): → #f5e6d3 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged
Blue-sky shade (cool daylight (~10000K proxy)): → #f5e7d6 — ΔE 0.4, is virtually unchanged

Test Shortbread in the color lighting simulator — sweep it through daylight, warm 2700K light, 4000K LED, and shade alongside the rest of your palette.

Contrast & accessibility

Against white it measures 1.23:1 and against black 17.14:1, so black text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid white text on this color entirely.

Colors that go with Shortbread

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.

#f5e6d3 · #d5c7b5 · #aca090 · #867b6d · #61584c · #3e372d

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.

#f5e6d3 · #facaa7 · #e9b49f · #d59f99 · #bf8c93 · #a77b8c

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.

#f5e6d3 · #a2ad94 · #a1845e · #627443 · #644b29 · #313a22

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.

#f5e6d3 · #cec3b5 · #6a8db7 · #6f5e47 · #4f402c · #2f2518

Quiet Support

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

#f5e6d3 · #c6ccd2 · #948d84 · #52565a · #282219 · #010204

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.

#f5e6d3 · #a49d93 · #4b4237 · #2e251a · #0c0500 · #f4b04c

Complementary

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

#f5e6d3 · #c1ccda · #7590b2 · #37577e · #092341 · #130700

Split-complementary

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

#f5e6d3 · #c1ccda · #6596a9 · #504f7e · #002834 · #010007

Triadic

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

#f5e6d3 · #bbd0cf · #619a99 · #654973 · #2e1838 · #000202

Tetradic

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

#f5e6d3 · #bfd0c7 · #6c9a84 · #37577e · #37152a · #000107

Tints, shades & muted variants

Tints

#F6E8D8 · #F6EBDC · #F7EDE1 · #F7F0E6 · #F8F2EA

Shades

#C8BBAA · #9D9283 · #746A5D · #4E453B · #2A241B

Muted

#F2E7D8 · #F0E7DC · #EDE8E1

Using Shortbread

Its high lightness and low chroma make it a natural background or large-surface color. In palettes it pairs most predictably with its tonal ramp and analogous neighbors; reserve the complementary hue for small, deliberate contrast.