Showa era
Old Rose & White
Plate 55 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Old Rose, White.
#ffffff
neutral · 1 palette
White
White 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 White
White is a light, near-neutral neutral tone. Its hex value is #ffffff — that is
RGB 255, 255, 255, or HSL 0°, 0%, 100%.
It holds 21.0:1 contrast against dark, so White works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 1.0:1; on black 21.0:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, White appears in 1 combination — most often paired with Old Rose.
Colours that go with White
As a light near-neutral, White sits comfortably beside almost any accent — the schemes below show the subtle, reliable pairings from a standard colour wheel.
Complementary
#ffffff #FFFFFF
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#ffffff #FFFFFF #FFFFFF
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#ffffff #FFFFFF #FFFFFF
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#ffffff #FFFFFF #FFFFFF
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use White
White is a light, near-neutral tone (HSL 0°, 0%, 100%), which makes it a soft background or a light accent. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a dark background (21.0:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use dark lettering. Pair it with its complement (#FFFFFF) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#FFFFFF and #FFFFFF) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Studio
Taking White 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.
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...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
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...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
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...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.
Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 24 — Art Nouveau
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau
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Palettes with White
White appears in 1 combination from the archive. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
Questions about White
- What is the hex code for White?
- White is #ffffff. It appears in 1 historical color combination from Sanzo Wada's 1933 "A Dictionary of Color Combinations".
- What does White look like on white and black backgrounds?
- White (#ffffff) has a WCAG contrast ratio of 1.00:1 against white (#FFFFFF) and 21.00:1 against black (#000000). WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
- Where does the color White come from?
- White is documented in Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933, Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). Wada catalogued neutral pigments and historical Japanese color terms. The source work is in the public domain.
- Can I use White in my own design or brand?
- Yes. The color name and hex value (#ffffff) 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
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