Collection · 24 palettes

Warm Color Palettes

Reds, oranges, golds, and amber — the heat range of the Japanese palette.

Warm colors dominate the Wada catalog in a way that surprises designers expecting the cool restraint of wabi-sabi. Crimson lacquerware, saffron-dyed cloth, persimmon-glazed ceramics, and festival banners in red-gold combinations — warmth was not accent but foundation. These 24 palettes run from the near-neutral ochres suitable for minimalist brand identities to the full vermillion-and-gold combinations of shrine architecture.

Heian era

Crimson & Navy— 紅と紺

Deep safflower crimson against navy — the courtly contrast of Heian-era robes and formal Edo textiles.

Edo era

Madder Red & Evergreen— 茜と常磐

The rooted red of madder-dyed cotton set against enduring pine green.

Kamakura era

Vermillion, Black, Gold— 朱・黒・金

The ceremonial triad of temple lacquerware — vermillion, lacquer black, gold leaf.

Edo era

Bitter Orange & Navy— 橙と紺

The sharp orange of the daidai citrus set off by deep indigo navy.

Edo era

Crimson Lake & Pine— 臙脂と松葉

The deep lake crimson of cochineal against pine needle green — winter evergreen.

Edo era

Persimmon & Burnt Brown— 柿と焦茶

Autumn persimmon against scorched cedar — harvest colors from the countryside.

Edo era

Kerria Gold & Chestnut— 山吹と栗

The bright gold of the kerria flower against the warm brown of roasted chestnut.

Edo era

Kite Brown & Gold— 鳶と黄金

The warm brown of a kite's wing lit by afternoon gold.

Edo era

Light Pink & Tea— 薄紅と茶

A whisper of pink against tea brown — the tone of an Edo-period lacquer sweet box.

Edo era

Turmeric & Indigo— 鬱金と藍

Warm turmeric yellow against true indigo — the everyday textile of Japanese farm life.

Showa era

English Red & Cerulian Blue

Plate 1 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — English Red, Cerulian Blue.

Showa era

Raw Sienna & Pale Lemon Yellow

Plate 3 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Raw Sienna, Pale Lemon Yellow.

Showa era

Grenadine Pink & Deep Indigo

Plate 6 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Grenadine Pink, Deep Indigo.

Showa era

Orange & Glaucous Green

Plate 7 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Orange, Glaucous Green.

Showa era

Cinnamon Rufous & Grayish Lavender - A

Plate 8 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Cinnamon Rufous, Grayish Lavender - A.

Showa era

Cinnamon Rufous & Dark Citrine

Plate 10 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Cinnamon Rufous, Dark Citrine.

Showa era

Raw Sienna & Veronia Purple

Plate 13 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Raw Sienna, Veronia Purple.

Showa era

Spinel Red & Naples Yellow

Plate 14 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Spinel Red, Naples Yellow.

Showa era

Vandyke Red & Pale King's Blue

Plate 16 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Vandyke Red, Pale King's Blue.

Showa era

Eugenia Red | B & Sea Green

Plate 17 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Eugenia Red | B, Sea Green.

Showa era

Fawn & Dusky Madder Violet

Plate 18 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Fawn, Dusky Madder Violet.

Showa era

Mars Brown Tobacco & Night Green

Plate 19 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Mars Brown Tobacco, Night Green.

Showa era

Calamine BLue & Laelia Pink

Plate 20 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Calamine BLue, Laelia Pink.

Showa era

Grenadine Pink & Sea Green

Plate 21 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Grenadine Pink, Sea Green.

From the archive

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All 378 palettes (348 Wada + 30 editorial) in five formats
Figma design tokens (W3C-spec JSON, drag into any file)
Tailwind v4 + v3 configs — drop into any project
CSS custom properties — every plate, one stylesheet
378 museum SVG plates — print-ready at any size
Full JSON — colors, names, eras, moods, dominant hues

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