| name | monochromatic-dominance |
| description | Use when establishing brand color hierarchy. Luxury brands rely on 1 dominant color with restrained accents.
|
Monochromatic Dominance
Cream + ink + ONE accent. That's the luxury palette. Multiple colors signal startup; restraint signals brand maturity.
The 3-color rule
Maximum 3 colors:
- Dominant (cream #fbf6ec or near-white): 70-80% of surface
- Ink (near-black #0d0807): 15-20% of surface (type)
- Accent (single brand color): 1-5% of surface (CTAs, highlights)
More than 3 colors = retail aesthetic. Less than 3 = sterile.
Accent placement discipline
Accent appears in:
- Primary CTA button background
- Hover states
- Highlighted text in pull-quotes
- Active nav indicator
- Critical alerts (error red is exception)
- Logo (optional)
Accent should NEVER appear in:
- Body text
- Borders (use ink at 20%)
- Section backgrounds (cream variants)
- Decorative elements without function
Choosing the accent
Single accent per product:
- CardPrepAI: warm orange
- X3FS: blue
- FDG: blue-green
- REG: deep red
The accent should be 4.5:1+ contrast against cream background for accessibility.
Where this fits in the X3 empire
Color discipline foundation for every X3 product.