Heavy Cream as a scale
Eleven steps from #e8ddc6, built by moving lightness in OKLCh and keeping the hue where it is. Every step is gamut-mapped by giving up chroma, never by clipping channels — clipping is what turns a light blue purple.
| Stop | Hex | OKLCh L | Chroma | On white | On black | APCA on white | ΔE00 from the step above |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | #fff4dd | 97.0% | 0.032 ·capped | 1.09:1 | 19.25:1 | 0 | — |
| 100 | #f5e9d2 | 93.8% | 0.033 | 1.20:1 | 17.50:1 | 10 | 2.2 |
| 200 | #dfd4be | 87.4% | 0.033 | 1.46:1 | 14.35:1 | 22 | 4.7 |
| 300 | #cbc0a9 | 81.0% | 0.033 | 1.81:1 | 11.63:1 | 34 | 5.0 |
| 400 | #b6ac96 | 74.6% | 0.033 | 2.26:1 | 9.30:1 | 45 | 5.5 |
| 500 | #a29882 | 68.2% | 0.033 | 2.86:1 | 7.34:1 | 55 | 6.0 |
| 600 | #8f846f | 61.8% | 0.033 | 3.67:1 | 5.72:1 | 64 | 6.6 |
| 700 | #7b725d | 55.4% | 0.033 | 4.77:1 | 4.40:1 | 73 | 7.3 |
| 800 | #695f4b | 49.0% | 0.033 | 6.27:1 | 3.35:1 | 81 | 7.0 |
| 900 | #403724 | 34.0% | 0.033 | 11.77:1 | 1.78:1 | 97 | 13.8 |
| 950 | #181001 | 18.0% | 0.033 | 18.82:1 | 1.12:1 | 105 | 12.6 |
What is true of this ramp
- 10 of the 10 adjacent pairs differ by ΔE00 2 or more. Every step here is a step a reader can see.
- The tightest pair is 50 to100, at ΔE00 2.2.
- 1 step had to give up chroma to stay inside sRGB — 50. A wider display would show it more vividly.
- 4 steps clear 4.5:1 on white (700, 800, 900, 950), and 7 on black (50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600).
Harmonies from Heavy Cream
complement
the hue directly opposite, at the same lightness. #d4def5 (+180°)
analogous
the two neighbours 30° either side. #f0d9ca (+-30°), #dde1c9 (+30°)
split complement
the two hues either side of the opposite, 30° apart from it. #cae2f1 (+150°), #dfdaf2 (+210°)
triad
the circle divided in three. #c6e5e9 (+120°), #ead7ea (+240°)
tetrad
the circle divided in four. #c9e6dd (+90°), #d4def5 (+180°), #f1d6df (+270°)
The ramp as CSS
:root {
--heavy-cream-50: #fff4dd;
--heavy-cream-100: #f5e9d2;
--heavy-cream-200: #dfd4be;
--heavy-cream-300: #cbc0a9;
--heavy-cream-400: #b6ac96;
--heavy-cream-500: #a29882;
--heavy-cream-600: #8f846f;
--heavy-cream-700: #7b725d;
--heavy-cream-800: #695f4b;
--heavy-cream-900: #403724;
--heavy-cream-950: #181001;
}