What color is Carmine?
Carmine is a deep, rich red with a slight cool undertone, hex #960018, darker than a fresh rose but not as shadowed as dried brick. It has a dense, almost velvety quality that makes it look closer to a garnet stone than a bright red.
What is the meaning of the color Carmine?
Named from the Latin carminium, carmine dye was extracted from the dried bodies of cochineal insects, a trade practiced in Mesoamerica long before Spanish colonizers exported it to Europe in the 16th century. By the 1600s, cochineal-based carmine had become one of the most valuable commodities shipped from the Americas, rivaling silver in price per ounce on European markets. The color was first recorded in English in 1799, and its pigment was adopted by painters including Vermeer and Rubens for its intensity and stability. Carmine remains the designated red in the Campari aperitivo formula, which used cochineal-derived dye in its recipe until 2006.
What colors go with Carmine?
Colors that pair well with Carmine include:
Ivory: soft, warm contrast
Navy Blue: bold, cool balance
Charcoal: strong, grounding depth
Gold: rich, warm accent
Forest Green: vivid, natural contrast
Similar Colors
Conversions & Codes
| Format | Value | CSS |
|---|---|---|
| HEX | #960018 |
color: #960018;
|
| RGB | 150, 0, 24 |
color: rgb(150, 0, 24);
|
| RGB Percentage | 59%, 0%, 9% |
color: rgb(59%, 0%, 9%);
|
| CMYK | 0%, 100%, 84%, 41% | Not supported in CSS |
| HSL | 350°, 100%, 29% |
color: hsl(350, 100%, 29%);
|
| HSV | 350°, 100%, 59% | Not supported in CSS |
| CIE-LAB | 23, 30, -8 |
color: lab(23% 30 -8);
|
| Decimal | 9830424 | Not supported in CSS |
Color Variations
Shades
Tints
Tones
Hues
Color Harmonies
Analogous
Complementary
Split Complementary
Triadic
Tetradic
Square
CSS & Dev Snippets
.carmine {
color: #960018;
}
$carmine: #960018;
rgb(150, 0, 24)