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.
#a7d4e4
blue · 9 palettes
Pale King's Blue
About Pale King's Blue
Pale King's Blue is a light, muted blue tone. Its hex value is #a7d4e4 — that is
RGB 167, 212, 228, or HSL 196°, 53%, 77%.
It holds 13.2:1 contrast against dark, so Pale King's Blue works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 1.6:1; on black 13.2:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Pale King's Blue appears in 9 combinations — most often paired with Vandyke Red, Blue and Sulpher Yellow.
Colours that go with Pale King's Blue
From a standard colour wheel, Pale King's Blue anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#a7d4e4 #E4B7A7
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#a7d4e4 #A7E4D6 #A7B5E4
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#a7d4e4 #E4A7D4 #D4E4A7
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#a7d4e4 #E4A7B5 #E4D6A7
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Pale King's Blue
Pale King's Blue is a light, muted tone (HSL 196°, 53%, 77%), which makes it a soft background or a light accent. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a dark background (13.2:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use dark lettering. Pair it with its complement (#E4B7A7) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#A7E4D6 and #A7B5E4) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Palettes with Pale King's Blue
Pale King's Blue appears in 9 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours.
From the archive
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