YELLOWS

Northern

#BBB6A8

RGB 187, 182, 168 · HSL 44°, 12%, 70% · CMYK 0, 3, 10, 27

Northern is #BBB6A8 in HEX — rgb(187, 182, 168), hsl(44°, 12%, 70%), cmyk(0%, 3%, 10%, 27%).

Northern pulls into the light end of the yellows spectrum — HSL 44°, 12%, 70%. The neutral saturation makes it near-neutral and forgiving, and the hue reads warm. In interior projects it shines on kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms, accent walls — bringing sunlight indoors. Reads best alongside white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass.

Color Codes

HEX#BBB6A8

RGB187, 182, 168

HSL44°, 12%, 70%

HSV44°, 10%, 73%

CMYK0, 3, 10, 27

Decimal12301992

CSS RGBrgb(187, 182, 168)

CSS HSLhsl(44, 12%, 70%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Benjamin Moore

Northern 1536

Exact match

Dunn-Edwards

Play on Gray DE6228

ΔE 0.7 · #BAB6A9

Dulux

Putty S16A2

ΔE 0.8 · #BCB8AA

Valspar

Sandy Sage 5008-1C

ΔE 1.2 · #BDB9AA

Sherwin-Williams

Techno Gray SW6170

ΔE 1.3 · #BFB9AA

Vista Paint

Light Lichen C-210

ΔE 1.3 · #BFB7A9

Kilz

Urban Gateway LK110

ΔE 1.3 · #BCB5A9

Hallman-Lindsay

Light Lichen 211

ΔE 1.7 · #BFB6A9

Behr

Barista N210-3

ΔE 1.7 · #BAB8AC

PPG

Hurricane Haze 1032-2

ΔE 2 · #BDBBAD

Farrow & Ball

Hardwick White 5

ΔE 2.6 · #B5AFA0

Dutch Boy

Drifting Sand DCP-0218

ΔE 3.1 · #B6B2A9

IKEA

IKEA123 123

ΔE 3.3 · #C5BEB1

Colorhouse

Metal .03 Metal-03

ΔE 4.9 · #B5B8B1

RAL

Silk Grey 7044

ΔE 5.9 · #CAC4B0

Kobra

Silver 47

ΔE 11.3 · #CDCECD

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

47/100

Medium

0 · DarkLight · 100

Balanced reflectance — holds colour without washing out. Versatile for most rooms and the most forgiving range for true-to-chip results.

Undertone

TemperatureWarm MasstoneOrange UndertoneYellow

Reads as a warm orange with a yellow undertone showing through, especially in daylight. Pair trim and adjacent colours to either calm or amplify that undertone.

Color Theory

Complementary

#BBB6A8

#A9AEBC

Analogous

#BCAEA9

#BBB6A8

#B7BCA9

Triadic

#BBB6A8

#A9BCB7

#B7A9BC

Split-Complementary

#BBB6A8

#A9B7BC

#AEA9BC

Tetradic

#BBB6A8

#A9BCAE

#A9AEBC

#BCA9B7

Monochromatic

#726C5A

#9A937E

#BBB6A8

#DDDBD4

#F4F3F1

Rectangle

#BBB6A8

#AEBCA9

#A9AEBC

#B7A9BC

Compound

#BBB6A8

#B7BCA9

#A9AEBC

#AEA9BC

Variations

Lighter

#C9C5BA

#D6D3CC

#E6E5E2

Darker

#9D9581

#6F6855

#413D31

Saturation

#B5B4B0

#BCB7A9

#DDC688

Interior Use

Best Rooms

kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms

Best Uses

accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights

Pairs With

white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

2.03:1

Fail

vs Black

10.37:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#BBB6A8

#BAB7A9

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#BBB6A8

#B7B7AA

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#BBB6A8

#BCB4B6

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Bright · Optimistic

Northern brings light into spaces that lack it — kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms wake up under it. The trick with yellow is restraint: lean toward the muted/buttery end if you want it on walls; reserve high-chroma versions for accents and trim.

SymbolismSunlight, clarity, intellect

PersonalityCheerful, alert, sociable

sunlightclarityjoyalertnesskitchenmorning

How it looks under different light

#CCB599

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#BBB6A8

Daylight 5500K

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

#B9BABD

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#EBEBEA

Trim

Matched off-white

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

#F7F7F7

Ceiling

Whisper tint

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

#7E8CB2

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 / Regal Select Interior

Recommended Finishes

Eggshell (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Matte (ceiling)

Eggshell hides imperfections on main walls while keeping the color rich; pearl on trim adds subtle sheen and easier cleaning; flat matte on ceilings prevents glare.

Best Surfaces

Primary walls · Cabinetry · Trim · Soft furniture

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

Standard primer is adequate.

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: #BBB6A8;

CSS — background

background-color: #BBB6A8;

CSS Variable

--color-northern: #BBB6A8;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'northern': '#BBB6A8' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#BBB6A8] text-[#BBB6A8]

SCSS

$northern: #BBB6A8;

Similar Colors

Northern Cliffs

#BAB5A7 · ΔE 0.4

Cosmopolitan

#BBB6A9 · ΔE 0.5

Thunder

#BDB8AD · ΔE 1.8

Cape Hatteras Sand

#BEB8AE · ΔE 2.4

Pashmina

#BBB2A1 · ΔE 2.6

Valley Forge Tan

#B6AFA3 · ΔE 2.7

Bone Black

#B9B8AE · ΔE 2.7

Old Soul

#C4BAAB · ΔE 2.7

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 #BBB6A8?

#BBB6A8 is Northern, a soft yellow with a warm undertone.

Is #BBB6A8 warm or cool?

Northern reads warm, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Northern?

Northern works well in kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms. Designers typically use it for accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights.

What colors pair well with Northern?

Northern pairs naturally with white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Northern?

You can download Northern 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 Northern?

The hex code is #BBB6A8. In RGB it's 187, 182, 168, and in HSL it's 44°, 12%, 70%.

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