Showa era
Corinthian Pink & Slate Color
Plate 27 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Corinthian Pink, Slate Color.
#34454c
blue · 13 palettes
Slate Color
Slate Color is one of the colors Sanzo Wada used in his 1933 book. Get Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary on Amazon → Affiliate link; your price is unchanged. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
About Slate Color
Slate Color is a deep, near-neutral blue tone. Its hex value is #34454c — that is
RGB 52, 69, 76, or HSL 198°, 19%, 25%.
It holds 10.0:1 contrast against white, so Slate Color works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 10.0:1; on black 2.1:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Slate Color appears in 13 combinations — most often paired with Raw Sienna, Turquoise Green and Cotinga Purple.
Colours that go with Slate Color
From a standard colour wheel, Slate Color anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#34454c #4C3B34
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#34454c #344C47 #34394C
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#34454c #4C3445 #454C34
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#34454c #4C3439 #4C4734
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Slate Color
Slate Color is a deep, muted tone (HSL 198°, 19%, 25%), which makes it a grounding background or strong accent. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a light background (10.0:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#4C3B34) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#344C47 and #34394C) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Studio
Taking Slate Color off the screen
A hex code is an instruction to a screen, not a colour. Where this one is going decides what it needs next.
Affiliate links — as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
-
...onto paper
Start here if the palette gets printed. Screen colour and ink colour are not the same colour, and this is the deck that translates between them.
Listed on Amazon as Pantone GP6102B Color Bridge Guide Set Coated & Uncoated, Multi-Colour
See price on AmazonView on Amazon -
...onto a screen you can trust
Start here if it stays digital. An uncalibrated monitor is the single most common reason a palette that looked right on your desk looks wrong everywhere else.
Calibrite
ColorChecker Studio spectrophotometer
Listed on Amazon as Calibrite ColorChecker Studio Spectrophotometer for Complete Color Management for Display, Projector, Printer and Scanner Profiling
See price on AmazonView on Amazon -
...by hand
Start here if you are mixing it. Wada's plates were flat printed colour; gansai pans are the closest everyday medium to them.
Listed on Amazon as Strathmore 300 Series Tape Bound Watercolor Pad, 140 lb. Cold Press, 11 X 15 inches, White, 12 Sheets (360-111)
See price on AmazonView on Amazon
Amazon Associates affiliate links — your price is unchanged and a small commission keeps the archive free. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Palettes with Slate Color
Slate Color appears in 13 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
Questions about Slate Color
- What is the hex code for Slate Color?
- Slate Color is #34454c. It appears in 13 historical color combinations from Sanzo Wada's 1933 "A Dictionary of Color Combinations".
- What does Slate Color look like on white and black backgrounds?
- Slate Color (#34454c) has a WCAG contrast ratio of 9.99:1 against white (#FFFFFF) and 2.10:1 against black (#000000). WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
- Where does the color Slate Color come from?
- Slate Color is documented in Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933, Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). Wada catalogued blue pigments and historical Japanese color terms. The source work is in the public domain.
- Can I use Slate Color in my own design or brand?
- Yes. The color name and hex value (#34454c) are factual data — not copyrightable. Our curation and descriptions are CC BY 4.0 licensed.
From the archive
Support the archive The full catalog, on your disk, as a thank-you.
- 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 SVG plates (348 Wada + 30 editorial) — print-ready at any size
- Full JSON — colors, names, eras, moods, dominant hues
See what's inside
Launching soon. The free archive stays free, always.