BLUES

Pāua

#2A2551

RGB 42, 37, 81 · HSL 247°, 37%, 23% · CMYK 48, 54, 0, 68

Pāua is #2A2551 in HEX — rgb(42, 37, 81), hsl(247°, 37%, 23%), cmyk(48%, 54%, 0%, 68%).

Pāua pulls into the deep end of the blues spectrum — HSL 247°, 37%, 23%. The muted saturation makes it quiet but present, and the hue reads cool. In interior projects it shines on bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices — for calm, focused environments. Reads best alongside warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware.

Color Codes

HEX#2A2551

RGB42, 37, 81

HSL247°, 37%, 23%

HSV247°, 54%, 32%

CMYK48, 54, 0, 68

Decimal2762065

CSS RGBrgb(42, 37, 81)

CSS HSLhsl(247, 37%, 23%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

RAL

Ultramarine Blue 5002

ΔE 3.2 · #20214F

Behr

Interlude S-H-690

ΔE 4.7 · #382A59

Dulux

Georgina S44E9

ΔE 9.4 · #403357

Benjamin Moore

Midnight 2067-10

ΔE 9.5 · #343457

Hallman-Lindsay

Newport Indigo historic-newport-indigo

ΔE 11.2 · #313D6C

Sherwin-Williams

Dewberry SW6552

ΔE 11.3 · #3E385A

Vista Paint

Hot Sauna C-1270

ΔE 12 · #3C3973

Dutch Boy

Royal Blue D-6740

ΔE 13.1 · #1D375C

Dunn-Edwards

Magic Night DEA191

ΔE 13.2 · #3A3B5B

Kilz

Renaissance Tapestry RH240

ΔE 13.6 · #48436D

Valspar

Spirit Blue 4011-9

ΔE 14.4 · #49456F

PPG

Daring Indigo 1166-7 · 13-25

ΔE 16.1 · #374874

Kobra

Blue 31

ΔE 19 · #334059

Colorhouse

Create .06 Create-06

ΔE 20.2 · #5E3D5A

IKEA

IKEA122 122

ΔE 22.9 · #3A5170

Farrow & Ball

Pelt 254

ΔE 26 · #50414C

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

2/100

Very Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Absorbs almost all light — dramatic and cocooning. Needs strong artificial lighting and works best as an accent or in well-lit rooms.

Undertone

TemperatureCool MasstoneBlue UndertoneViolet

Reads as a cool blue with a violet undertone showing through, especially in daylight. Pair trim and adjacent colours to either calm or amplify that undertone.

Color Theory

Complementary

#2A2551

#4B5025

Analogous

#253650

#2A2551

#402550

Triadic

#2A2551

#502A25

#25502A

Split-Complementary

#2A2551

#504025

#365025

Tetradic

#2A2551

#502536

#4B5025

#255040

Monochromatic

#090811

#0F0D1C

#2A2551

#453D85

#655BB3

Rectangle

#2A2551

#50254B

#4B5025

#25502A

Compound

#2A2551

#402550

#4B5025

#365025

Variations

Lighter

#463E86

#6D64AE

#ADA8CC

Darker

#211D41

#16132D

#0D0B1B

Saturation

#363441

#2A2550

#1C1263

Interior Use

Best Rooms

bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices

Best Uses

main walls, ceilings, trim, cabinetry

Pairs With

warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

14.17:1

AAA

vs Black

1.48:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#2A2551

#1B2D51

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#2A2551

#26264D

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#2A2551

#242F29

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Focused · Cooling

Pāua lowers the temperature of a room — useful in south-facing rooms that overheat visually, and in home offices where you want a clear head. Pair with warm wood and brass to keep it from reading clinical.

SymbolismTrust, depth, stability

PersonalityClear-headed, dependable, contemplative

focustrustcalmofficebedroomdepth

How it looks under different light

#5F4858

Warm Bulb 2700K

Incandescent / soft white LED — pulls colour toward yellow/amber.

#2A2551

Daylight 5500K

Midday natural light or daylight-spec LED — closest to the paint chip.

#4C4D7C

Cool Bulb 6500K

Cool white LED / overcast daylight — pulls colour toward blue.

Pairs With

#EAE9EC

Trim

Matched off-white

Same hue at 92% lightness — trim reads coordinated, not stark.

#F7F7F8

Ceiling

Whisper tint

Near-white with a hint of the hero's undertone — ceiling feels intentional.

#3E4222

Accent

Complementary punch

Hue +180°, slightly muted for paint vs. screen — use on a door, frame, or single piece.

#574738

Floor

Walnut neutral

Warm mid-brown grounds the scheme regardless of hero hue.

Paint Info

Brand · Product Line

Benjamin Moore / Aura Interior (for richer color depth in deep tones)

Recommended Finishes

Matte (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Satin (doors)

Deep colors look best in matte — gloss exaggerates surface flaws. Reserve subtle sheen for trim, doors, and high-touch areas.

Best Surfaces

Accent walls · Doors · Cabinetry · Built-ins

Coverage & Dry Time

Typical coverage 350-400 sq ft per gallon over a primed surface.

Touch-dry in ~1 hour. Recoat after 4 hours. Full cure 7-14 days.

Primer

Tinted primer in a similar value is highly recommended — saves a coat and prevents the wall colour from washing the surface.

Application Tip

Use a 9" microfiber roller on walls and a 2.5" angled sash brush for trim cuts. Two coats minimum for even depth.

Paint Calculator

Wall area (m²)

Coats

Coverage (m² / L)

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

Code Snippets

CSS — color

color: #2A2551;

CSS — background

background-color: #2A2551;

CSS Variable

--color-pāua: #2A2551;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'pāua': '#2A2551' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#2A2551] text-[#2A2551]

SCSS

$pāua: #2A2551;

Similar Colors

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#333356 · ΔE 9.2

Admiral Blue

#2B3762 · ΔE 9.2

Blue Grotto

#353963 · ΔE 9.3

Bold Blue

#2B3558 · ΔE 10.8

Grape Gum

#413D6D · ΔE 10.9

Blue

#233872 · ΔE 12.5

Majestic Violet

#3A3450 · ΔE 13.0

Starry Night Blue

#334076 · ΔE 13.2

Built by DSGN.HOUSE Updated 2026

Our color tools run on our own catalogue of 26,000+ real paint colors across 16 brands — Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux, RAL and more — with the color math (HSL and CIELAB matching) computed in-house, not scraped from summaries. Every color you pick maps to a real, buyable paint with its code, so what you see here you can actually take to the store. We review and update these tools and their data regularly.

Created by Denis Kataev, founder of DSGN.HOUSE — a software engineer and digital entrepreneur building professional color-design tools for everyone.

Frequently Asked Questions

What color is #2A2551?

#2A2551 is Pāua, a deep blue with a cool undertone.

Is #2A2551 warm or cool?

Pāua reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Pāua?

Pāua works well in bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices. Designers typically use it for main walls, ceilings, trim, cabinetry.

What colors pair well with Pāua?

Pāua pairs naturally with warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Pāua?

You can download Pāua on DSGN.HOUSE in 15 designer formats including CSS gradient, Figma, Procreate swatches, Tailwind config, Adobe ASE, SVG, and 4K wallpapers — all free.

What's the hex code for Pāua?

The hex code is #2A2551. In RGB it's 42, 37, 81, and in HSL it's 247°, 37%, 23%.

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