Tints & Shades
50
100
200
300
400
500
600
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800
900
Scale from white (50) through Antique White (500) to black (900), interpolated in Lab color space.
Color Values
- HEX
- #FAEBD7
- RGB
- rgb(250, 235, 215)
- HSL
- hsl(34, 78%, 91%)
- OKLCH
- oklch(0.947 0.031 75)
- CMYK
- cmyk(0%, 6%, 14%, 2%)
--color-antique-whitebg-[#FAEBD7]Accessibility
Score: 48/100On White (#FFF)
1.17:1
On Black (#000)
17.93:1
On Light Gray (#F5F5F5)
1.07:1
Best text color on this background:
Design Applications
background-color: #FAEBD7
color: #FAEBD7
bg-[#FAEBD7] text-[#000000]
border-left: 4px solid #FAEBD7
Color Harmonies
Complementary
Brandeis Blue
#0070FF
Split-Complementary
Similar Colors
Color Meaning & Psychology
White is defined by the absence of color absorption — it reflects all light. It represents purity, cleanliness, and potential. White space in design is not emptiness but breathing room — it directs the eye, reduces cognitive load, and conveys confidence. In branding, white signals transparency, minimalism, and premium simplicity. Healthcare adopts white for cleanliness associations. Technology companies use white to suggest precision and simplicity. Cultural variations are significant: white is mourning in several Asian cultures, but purity and bridal in Western contexts. In photography and product presentation, white backgrounds are the universal default because they project the subject without distraction. As a very light tint, it carries the lightness and openness of its hue family while remaining gentle enough for backgrounds, subtle highlights, and delicate UI elements.
Industry Usage
Common contexts and industries where Antique White is applied in professional design.
- Healthcare and clinical environments
- Medical device and pharmaceutical packaging
- Minimalist consumer electronics packaging
- Premium homeware and kitchen brands
- Wedding and bridal industry
- Architecture and interior design for clean aesthetics
- Laboratory and scientific equipment
- Zero-waste and sustainability brands (clean connotations)
Accessibility Considerations
Normal Text
Fails AA
4.5:1 minimum required
Large Text
Fails AA Large
3:1 minimum required
UI Components
Check contrast
3:1 for non-text UI
Antique White is a light color. Use black (#000000) text on top of it for maximum readability (17.93:1). Avoid white text on this background.
CSS & Code Examples
Background
background-color: #FAEBD7;Text
color: #FAEBD7;Border
border: 2px solid #FAEBD7;Box Shadow
box-shadow: 0 4px 20px #FAEBD740;Gradient
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #FAEBD7, #ffffff);Tailwind-style
--color-antique-white: #FAEBD7;Tailwind CSS Utilities
Use arbitrary value syntax in Tailwind CSS to apply Antique White without a custom config.
Background
bg-[#FAEBD7]Text
text-[#FAEBD7]Border
border-[#FAEBD7]Ring
ring-[#FAEBD7]Fill
fill-[#FAEBD7]From (gradient)
from-[#FAEBD7]Via (gradient)
via-[#FAEBD7]To (gradient)
to-[#FAEBD7]Design Tokens
Ready-to-use Antique White design token in CSS custom properties, SCSS, Tailwind v3/v4, and JSON formats.
CSS Custom Properties
:root {
--color-antique-white: #FAEBD7;
--color-antique-white-rgb: 250, 235, 215;
--color-antique-white-hsl: 34, 78%, 91%;
}SCSS Variables
$color-antique-white: #FAEBD7; $color-antique-white-rgb: 250, 235, 215; $color-antique-white-hsl: 34, 78%, 91%;
Tailwind v3 Config
// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
'antique-white': '#FAEBD7',
},
},
},
};Tailwind v4 (@theme)
/* tailwind.css */
@theme {
--color-antique-white: #FAEBD7;
}JSON Design Token (W3C format)
{
"antique-white": {
"value": "#FAEBD7",
"type": "color",
"description": "Antique White — #FAEBD7"
}
}More white colors
View all →What Does Antique White Mean? Color Psychology & Cultural Symbolism
Antique White (#FAEBD7) is the color of maximum reflection—the lightest possible tone in the visual spectrum. At the opposite end from black's absorption, white projects cleanliness through its complete openness: every other color appears more vivid against it, and the spaces it creates are charged with potential.
- Across color psychology research, white consistently tests high for "clarity" associations, making Antique White a reliable vehicle for cleanliness in cross-demographic audiences.
- Brand designers draw on white-family tones to project purity and precision—values that Antique White communicates in a pale key.
- At 78% saturation, Antique White reads as moderately saturated—neither overwhelming nor passive, landing in the purity, clarity, simplicity, and openness zone with measured confidence.
- Antique White's pale lightness (91%) shifts its psychological register: All whites are light by definition, but warm whites (cream, ivory, off-white) feel more human and organic than pure white—they're softer, less clinical, and more inviting in analog and print contexts.
The discipline of Antique White is knowing what to leave in and what to leave out. The most sophisticated designs know both.
How to Use Antique White in Design: Applications, Pairings & Best Practices
Professional designers treat Antique White as an active design element, not a background assumption. The proportion, the warmth, and the contrast of white against other colors are all deliberate decisions that determine the sophistication of the overall design.
- Avoid: environments where cultural context (East Asian mourning) may cause misunderstanding, highly tactile or sensory product categories where warmth is needed, and any context where sterility reads as cold.
- Color harmonies: Antique White's complementary color creates a high-energy split ideal for promotional design; its analogous palette (±30° hue) builds cohesive, monochromatic sophistication.
- Proportional use: Antique White's moderately saturated saturation (78%) means small applications—accents, highlights, icons—deliver maximum impact without visual fatigue. Reserve large-scale use for intentional brand moments.
- Antique White creates strong legibility with black text overlays (17.9:1 contrast ratio), making it a reliable background or surface color in design systems
- Typography: Antique White as text requires a dark background; its 91% lightness means it provides 1.2:1 contrast on white, not meeting WCAG AA.
The discipline of Antique White is knowing what to leave in and what to leave out. The most sophisticated designs know both.
Antique White Accessibility: WCAG Contrast Ratios, Color Blindness & Inclusive Design
Antique White (#FAEBD7) achieves a 17.93:1 contrast ratio with black text, surpassing the WCAG 2.1 AAA threshold of 7:1. This exceptional contrast qualifies it for body text, UI components at any size, and all accessibility-sensitive interface contexts. Relative luminance: 84.7%.
- As text on white (#FFFFFF): 1.17:1 — Fail
- As text on black (#000000): 17.93:1 — AAA ✓
- Best text color on Antique White background: Black (#000000) at 17.93:1
- WCAG 2.1 luminance: 84.7% — high-luminance (near-white)—it provides excellent readability for dark text overlays and integrates naturally into light design systems
- Antique White qualifies for all text sizes including small body copy (AAA).
For production use, test Antique White against your specific background colors rather than assuming #FFFFFF or #000000 performance translates. Surrounding colors alter perceived contrast.
Antique White in Industry: Branding, Design & Market Applications
Antique White's brand positioning falls squarely in the territory of purity, clarity, simplicity, and openness. Industry data supports its strongest performance in healthcare, technology, luxury categories, where the moderately saturated saturation calibrates the message at a pale, considered level.
- Healthcare & Medical: White's universal association with cleanliness, sterility, and medical precision makes it the foundational color of healthcare environments and products. It signals that contamination is absent and that procedures are conducted with precision and care. (examples: CVS Health, Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente) Warm off-whites are used in patient-facing healthcare design to reduce anxiety; pure white for clinical, back-of-house, and medical device contexts.
- Technology & Minimalist Design: Apple's adoption of white as its product philosophy's visual language has made white synonymous with technological simplicity and premium minimalism. White signals that a product has been edited to essentials—nothing unnecessary remains. (examples: Apple, Microsoft, Salesforce) White backgrounds in UI design create the most readable interfaces by maximizing contrast for dark text and giving colorful UI elements maximum visual clarity.
- Luxury Packaging: White luxury packaging signals restraint, confidence, and the elimination of unnecessary decoration. It says: the product itself is so good that it doesn't need dressing up. This approach is used across fragrance, skincare, and premium food packaging. White + gold foil is a particularly powerful luxury packaging combination, creating maximum sophistication with minimum color.
- Brand positioning: Antique White is best suited for brands projecting purity, precision, cleanliness. Categories outside this positioning—environments where cultural context (East Asian mourning) may cause misunderstanding—tend to see weaker results.
- Adjacent applications: Beyond primary industries, Antique White works effectively in luxury retail, clean UI backgrounds, digital white space—contexts where simplicity serves a secondary but reinforcing role.
For marketers and brand strategists, Antique White is a commitment to purity, clarity, simplicity, and openness. Match it with industries that make that promise and it will pay dividends consistently.
Accessibility & Design Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the hex code for Antique White? ▾
- The hex code for Antique White is #FAEBD7. Its RGB values are rgb(250, 235, 215) and its HSL values are hsl(34, 78%, 91%).
- What does Antique White mean in design? ▾
- White is defined by the absence of color absorption — it reflects all light. It represents purity, cleanliness, and potential. White space in design is not emptiness but breathing room — it directs the eye, reduces cognitive load, and conveys confidence. In branding, white signals transparency, minimalism, and premium simplicity. Healthcare adopts white for cleanliness associations. Technology companies use white to suggest precision and simplicity. Cultural variations are significant: white is mourning in several Asian cultures, but purity and bridal in Western contexts. In photography and product presentation, white backgrounds are the universal default because they project the subject without distraction. As a very light tint, it carries the lightness and openness of its hue family while remaining gentle enough for backgrounds, subtle highlights, and delicate UI elements.
- Is Antique White WCAG accessible? ▾
- Antique White (#FAEBD7) does not pass WCAG AA on white (1.17:1 ratio). Use it on dark backgrounds where it achieves 17.93:1. Its overall accessibility score is 48/100.
- What colors go well with Antique White? ▾
- Antique White pairs well with its complementary color Brandeis Blue (#0070FF). Analogous colors like Barn Red and Sienna also work harmoniously. Check the Color Harmonies section above for the full palette.
- What is Antique White used for? ▾
- Antique White is commonly used for: Healthcare and clinical environments; Medical device and pharmaceutical packaging; Minimalist consumer electronics packaging; Premium homeware and kitchen brands; Wedding and bridal industry.
- What are the CSS and Tailwind values for Antique White? ▾
- In CSS, use `color: #FAEBD7` or `background-color: #FAEBD7`. The CSS custom property is `--color-antique-white: #FAEBD7`. In Tailwind CSS, use the arbitrary value class `bg-[#FAEBD7]` for backgrounds or `text-[#FAEBD7]` for text.