Vintage Denim Palette

Decades-worn denim, faded and whiskered from washing — indigo gone pale and gray, not fresh dark denim.

#3D4C63

worn dark denim

HSL 216° 24% 31%

8.7:1 on white

#5C7191

faded denim blue

HSL 216° 22% 47%

5.0:1 on white

#8CA0B8

pale washed denim

HSL 213° 24% 64%

2.7:1 on white

#C4D1DE

whiskered highlight

HSL 210° 28% 82%

1.6:1 on white

#EDE5D8

stitching-thread cream

HSL 37° 37% 89%

1.2:1 on white

Using this palette

Every blue in this set is deliberately grayer and lighter than indigo-night's saturated dye-ramp — genuine decades-old denim loses saturation as the indigo dye washes out and the white weft threads show through, which is the real physical process this palette is imitating rather than just picking paler blues arbitrarily. #EDE5D8 stands in for the cream/tan stitching thread on actual jeans, a small but specific detail. #3D4C63 is the single tone with enough weight to carry body copy here. Suits Americana, workwear, or heritage-fashion branding wanting a lived-in blue rather than indigo-night's crisp, saturated dye tones.