Pairing colors

Get your colors here.

2024-07-06

Written by: joe

I added a new page to the site, Colors.

It will generate pairs of colors that meet some minimum contrast threshold. The threshold is configurable and based on the Accessible Perceptual Contrast Algorithm (APCA).

It works fine without authenticating, but by doing so I can record my liked and disliked pairings to a database. Next time I want an accessible pair of colors I’ll have a list of some I already like.

I’ll be able to analyze that list to map my preferences.

• Do I favor certain hues or levels of saturation?
• Are pairs with dramatically different hues more or less likeable than those that are similar?
• How distant are the colors in my favored pairs?
• Do liked pairs correlate with various theories of color harmony, like complementary, split, triadic, etc?

Once I’ve built a collection of liked pairs, I’d like to add a UI for reviewing and extending them into more complete palettes. Filterable by L/C/H of text and/or background color within some target range. Extending them into palettes will require a little more thinking about the purpose of the additional color(s). Ought to review the thresholds of APCA and find the contrast thresholds for distinguishing element states. Additional colors should have minimum required contrast when compared to one (or both) of the existing colors, in case it’s only used adjacent to one or the other.