Exploring the Color #81859E

#81859E sits at 232° on the color wheel, placing it in the blue family of the cool half of the spectrum. With 13% saturation and 56% lightness, it reads as a heavily muted, light tone — a quiet, restrained presence that recedes rather than competes. Its RGB mix of 129, 133, 158 produces a 5.78:1 contrast ratio against black, which clears WCAG AA for body text in that pairing.

In RGB space #81859E is a clear variant of CSS gray — about 30 units away from #808080. Designers reach for blue hues at this saturation when the brief calls for restraint and atmosphere, and at this lightness when they want a present, comfortable mid-canvas voice. On screen the cool cast tends to pair best with warm neutrals in the 25°-45° range to add life.

Darkening Shades

Lightening Shades