Lunar New Year Color Psychology & Meaning
Lunar New Year is lucky red, gold, and lantern light, the palette of renewal across East Asia. It reads as celebration, prosperity, and the specific warmth of family gatherings and fireworks.
#B02020
#E8A020
#C8A060
#1A1A1A
Background
Primary Accent
Secondary
Body Text
Lunar New Year Color Palette
#B02020 · #E8A020 · #C8A060 · #1A1A1A
Fail
WCAG Grade
2.5:1
Contrast Ratio
1,550
Saves
4,000
AI Copies
Use #B02020 as the background. Use #E8A020 as the primary accent. Use #C8A060 as secondary. Use #1A1A1A as body text/supporting color. Palette mood: Lunar New Year — festive, auspicious, bold.
Hex Codes, RGB & CMYK Color Values
Technical breakdown for the Lunar New Year color scheme. Use these values for web design (HEX/RGB), print projects (CMYK), or specialized design software (HSL).
| Swatch | Design Role | HEX | RGB | CMYK | HSL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background Luminance: 10.4% | 176, 32, 32 | 0%, 82%, 82%, 31% | 0°, 69%, 41% | ||
| Primary Accent Luminance: 42.4% | 232, 160, 32 | 0%, 31%, 86%, 9% | 38°, 81%, 52% | ||
| Secondary Luminance: 38.3% | 200, 160, 96 | 0%, 20%, 52%, 22% | 37°, 49%, 58% | ||
| Body Text Luminance: 1.0% | 26, 26, 26 | 0%, 0%, 0%, 90% | 0°, 0%, 10% |
Lunar New Year Tints & Shades
Hover states, borders and elevation need lighter and darker steps of your base colors. Here are computed tints and shades for every color in the Lunar New Year palette — click any swatch to copy its hex.
#B02020 saturated red
#E8A020 saturated orange
#C8A060 gently saturated orange
#1A1A1A neutral gray
Lunar New Year Palette Contrast Matrix (WCAG 2.1)
Every color tested as text on every other color as background. Body copy needs 4.5:1 (AA), large text and UI components 3:1. AAA requires 7:1.
| Text on Background | Preview | Ratio | Grade | Safe For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1A1A1A on #E8A020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.86:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #E8A020 on #1A1A1A |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.86:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #1A1A1A on #C8A060 |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.17:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #C8A060 on #1A1A1A |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.17:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #E8A020 on #B02020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 3.08:1 | Fail | Large headings, UI components |
| #B02020 on #E8A020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 3.08:1 | Fail | Large headings, UI components |
| #C8A060 on #B02020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.82:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #B02020 on #C8A060 |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.82:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #1A1A1A on #B02020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.55:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #B02020 on #1A1A1A |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.55:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #C8A060 on #E8A020 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.10:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #E8A020 on #C8A060 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.10:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
Color Harmony: Custom Scheme
The Lunar New Year palette is built using a custom relationship between its hues. This ensures that even with high-contrast accents, the overall scheme feels balanced and intentional.
Hue Wheel
A custom palette is often preferred by professional designers because it balances visual interest with cohesion.
History & Design Context
Lunar New Year is the most important holiday in China and is celebrated across Vietnam, Korea, and the global diaspora. Red envelopes, gold decorations, and firecrackers have fixed its palette for over two thousand years.
Best Design Use Cases
Use the red for hero surfaces and the strongest CTAs, the gold for accents and envelope-inspired details, and the near-black for text and contrast.
Industries This Palette Suits
Events, cultural tourism, food and sweets, retail, finance, greeting cards.
Colors That Pair Well With Lunar New Year
Need a fifth color? These three companions are computed from the palette's own hue positions on the color wheel, so they extend the scheme without breaking its harmony.
blue
directly opposite #E8A020 on the wheel — the strongest accent for CTAs and highlights when you need maximum energy
yellow
30° beside #E8A020 — a calm secondary that extends the palette without adding tension
tinted neutral
a paper-white carrying the palette's own hue — perfect for surfaces and dividers
Using Lunar New Year Without Breaking Accessibility
- Use #E8A020 for buttons and links — it scores 3.1:1 against the #B02020 background (above the 3:1 UI-components threshold).
- Don't set body copy in #1A1A1A on #B02020 — 2.5:1 fails WCAG AA; keep it for large decorative headings only.
- Don't use #C8A060 behind body text — this light tone works better for surfaces, badges and dividers than for reading areas.
How to Implement the Lunar New Year Color Scheme
To use this Lunar New Year color palette in your web project, you can copy the following CSS variables or Tailwind CSS configuration. These roles ensure your UI maintains accessibility and visual hierarchy.
Option 1: CSS Variables
:root {
/* {name} Palette - ihatecolors.com */{'
'} --color-bg: {colors[0]};{'
'} --color-primary: {colors[1]};{'
'} --color-secondary: {colors[2]};{'
'} --color-text: {colors[3]};{'
'} {'}'}Web Design Tip
Use #B02020 for the main background and #E8A020 for primary buttons. This creates a high-contrast focal point.
Accessibility Note
The contrast ratio between #1A1A1A and #B02020 is 2.55:1 (Fail). Ensure your body text remains legible.
Lunar New Year Palette — Frequently Asked Questions
What are the hex codes in the Lunar New Year color palette?
The Lunar New Year palette contains #B02020, #E8A020, #C8A060, #1A1A1A. Click any swatch on this page to copy its value, or export all four at once as CSS variables, Tailwind config, SCSS or a Figma-ready list.
Is the Lunar New Year color palette accessible (WCAG)?
Yes for its strongest pairings: #1A1A1A on #E8A020 reaches 7.9:1 (AAA). For body text always keep a 4.5:1 ratio and for large UI elements 3:1 — the full contrast matrix above shows the exact score for every color-on-color combination in this palette.
What colors go well with the Lunar New Year palette?
Beyond its own four colors, #216AE8, #C4DC2E, #F0EAEA extend it naturally: the complementary hue for high-energy accents, an analogous neighbor for calm transitions, and a tinted neutral for surfaces. All three are computed from this palette's hues on the color wheel.
What mood does the Lunar New Year palette create?
Lunar New Year reads as festive, auspicious, bold. Saturated orange drives the personality, grounded by saturated red — a combination that works best when the mid-tone base gets most of the canvas.
Can I use the Lunar New Year color palette commercially?
Yes. Individual color values can't be copyrighted, so the Lunar New Year palette is free for personal, client and commercial work — websites, branding, apps, print and social content, with no attribution required.
How do I add the Lunar New Year palette to Tailwind or CSS?
Use the export panel on this page: CSS variables, a Tailwind config block, SCSS variables, or a Figma copy list are generated from Lunar New Year's exact values, including the tint and shade ramps shown above.