#141414Sooty (#141414) is a near-black neutral with an OKLCH hue of 90°, lightness 0.19 and chroma 0. In practice it behaves as a grounding tone — suited to text, outlines, and shadowed surfaces.
| HEX | #141414 |
|---|---|
| RGB | rgb(20, 20, 20) |
| HSL | hsl(0, 0%, 8%) |
| HSV | hsv(0, 0%, 8%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(0%, 0%, 0%, 92%) |
| CIE Lab | lab(6.3 0 0) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.191 0.000 90) |
Under warm 2700K interior light Sooty is virtually unchanged; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 0.5), so it is a lighting-stable choice.
#151312 — ΔE 0.5, is virtually unchanged#151413 — ΔE 0.3, is virtually unchanged#141414 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged#141414 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchangedTest Sooty 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 18.42:1 and against black 1.14:1, so white text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid black 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.
#9a9a9a · #757575 · #525252 · #313131 · #141414 · #010101
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.
#3c6c5c · #335a40 · #2e4825 · #2b3607 · #262300 · #141414
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.
#8ea38b · #8c7c54 · #486c43 · #534418 · #21301f · #141414
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.
#b2ab99 · #928970 · #495784 · #322e21 · #141414 · #0b0500
The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.
#eff2f9 · #bebab0 · #84868b · #59554a · #27292f · #141414
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.
#f2f2f2 · #c9c9c9 · #9c9c9c · #3f3f3f · #141414 · #e7c04d
The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.
#edf2ff · #abbae2 · #7484b4 · #485479 · #302812 · #141414
The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.
#edf2ff · #98c1de · #8d7cad · #325a75 · #2c2539 · #141414
Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.
#e1f6fa · #8dc6d0 · #a0769c · #6a4867 · #0f2e33 · #141414
Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.
#e3f7f2 · #90c8bc · #7484b4 · #734654 · #22283c · #141414
#3b3b3b · #626262 · #8a8a8a · #b1b1b1 · #d8d8d8
#111111 · #0d0d0d · #0a0a0a · #070707 · #030303
As a deep tone it works for grounding elements — text, outlines, and shadowed surfaces — rather than open fields.