Colors that go with Blue for cabinets
Blue · #3E6FA3
Blue (#3E6FA3) — a classic mid-blue — is best for cabinets with muted red, terracotta & clay, warm greige & grey, and ochre & gold. With cabinets, match it to muted red, drawn from 8 historically-grounded combinations below.
Cabinet color is a long commitment — the partners that age well are warm neutrals and one quiet accent for hardware or tile.
About blue
Blue is a classic mid-blue — a gently muted, cool colour that reads as deep and grounding. As a cool tone it looks most resolved next to warm and neutral partners that add the warmth it lacks, and it needs both lighter and deeper shades nearby for the value contrast the eye reads as finished. That balance is what makes it feel earthy in cabinets.
- HEX
- #3E6FA3
- RGB
- 62, 111, 163
- HSL
- 211°, 45%, 44%
- CMYK
- 62, 32, 0, 36
Accessibility: put light text on blue for AA legibility (contrast 5:1 against off-white).
Why blue pairs with muted red, terracotta & clay, warm greige & grey, and ochre & gold
Across the 8 historical combinations below, blue sits most often beside muted red, terracotta & clay, warm greige & grey, and ochre & gold. That tracks with colour theory: a cool, deep tone like this one wants warm and neutral partners that add the warmth it lacks so the scheme feels intentional rather than flat, and both lighter and deeper partners supply the light-to-dark range the eye needs. Cabinet color is a long commitment — the partners that age well are warm neutrals and one quiet accent for hardware or tile.
- muted red
- terracotta & clay
- warm greige & grey
- ochre & gold
Using blue in cabinets
With cabinets, match it to muted red and terracotta & clay. Because blue is deep and grounding, keep it to anchor pieces or a single feature area and let muted red carry the larger surfaces.
8 combinations with blue, from the 1933 Dictionary
Jasper Red & Seashell Pink +1
Plate 194 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Jasper Red, Seashell Pink, Olympic Blue.
#5a82b3 #eb5324 #fdd4bd
Cinnamon Buff & Pistachio Green +1
Plate 127 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Cinnamon Buff, Pistachio Green, Dark Soft Violet.
#66629c #fdc57e #648f7b
Eosine Pink & Dark Soft Violet +1
Plate 197 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Eosine Pink, Dark Soft Violet, Neutral Gray.
#66629c #f37f94 #b6bfc1
Indigo Blue & Silver
Mid-grade indigo with the quiet sheen of silver — an understated Edo merchant robe.
#3C6E8F #BCBCBE #F8F4E9
Cameo Pink & Hay's Russet +1
Plate 231 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Cameo Pink, Hay's Russet, Olympic Blue.
#5a82b3 #e0b3b6 #793327
Peach Red & Dark Citrine +2
Plate 274 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Peach Red, Dark Citrine, Olympic Blue, Light Mauve.
#5a82b3 #f15a30 #8b835b #9a72aa
Pompeian Red & Olympic Blue +2
Plate 324 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Pompeian Red, Olympic Blue, Aconite Violet, Neutral Gray.
#5a82b3 #ab2439 #a36aa5 #b6bfc1
Red Orange & Pale Lemon Yellow +2
Plate 241 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Red Orange, Pale Lemon Yellow, Isabella Color, Dark Medici Blue.
#547076 #dd4027 #ffefae #c5a56e
Questions about Blue for cabinets
What colors go with blue for cabinets?
Blue (#3E6FA3) — a classic mid-blue — is best for cabinets with muted red, terracotta & clay, warm greige & grey, and ochre & gold. With cabinets, match it to muted red, drawn from 8 historically-grounded combinations below.
What is the hex code for blue?
Blue is #3E6FA3 — a classic mid-blue.
Does blue go with white?
Yes. Blue reads clean against soft white and cream; for contrast, add one of: muted red, terracotta & clay, warm greige & grey, ochre & gold.
Blue in other settings
Other colors
Studio
Work with this pairing
You have the hex codes for Blue for cabinets. These are the materials a colour study like this actually gets made with.
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Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 24 — Art Nouveau
Gansai are traditional Japanese watercolour pans — dense, matte and easy to mix, the closest everyday medium to the flat printed colour Wada's plates were made in. This is the Art Nouveau-themed 'II' edition, a different 24 to the standard set.
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau
View on Amazon -
Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 36
The larger pan set. More range means mixing toward a specific plate rather than approximating it from six colours.
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 36 Colors
View on Amazon
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The colour-theory books behind pairings like Blue — history, reference and the science of what works together.
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Torn between the two Wada dictionaries? Vol 1 vs Vol 2, compared plate by plate →
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