Get inspired with carmine design templates.
The color carmine is a rich crimson that can communicate passion, sacrifice, and depth of connection.
Inspiration in the color carmine.
Learn the history and meaning of the color carmine, both as bold as the deep red hue.
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How to use the color carmine.
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Shades similar to the color carmine.
For other reds in the ballpark of carmine color, look to ruby red (which is lighter), burgundy (which is darker and has more purple), and crimson (which is redder). The color puce is far lighter, but it does share a history of entomology. (Puce was named with the French word for “flea” because its color is that of dried blood after squashing a flea on white linens.)
Carmine color in music.
The color carmine has a history rich enough to match its hue, making it a poetic color choice in music, too. Carmine is mentioned in Donovan’s “Wear Your Love Like Heaven,” and in Katatonia’s “Lethean.” Listen to both songs to catch the carmine color references.
The color carmine in food dye.
Because of its potency and permanence, carmine is used as a colorant for foods. From red velvet cake to cherry ice cream, your food might use carmine color dye. Look for “cochineal extract,” E120, or natural red 4 in the ingredients, especially if you’re a vegan or vegetarian and insects aren’t on the menu. The FDA regulates the use of carmine color and says it's safe, which is why you’ll also see it in cosmetics, too.
Combine other colors with carmine.
Combine the color carmine with other shades of red to create either a passionate or sanguinary palette. If drama isn’t your intention, pair carmine color with neutrals like ecru to mute its intensity. Alongside purple, the color carmine becomes sweeter. A palette with carmine color, browns, and blues offers a more contemporary look.
Information about carmine color.
The carmine HEX code picker is #960018. This is the deep red reminiscent of dried blood, but whose meaning goes well beyond the morbid.
The color carmine can be achieved in a RGB space with 150 red, 0 green, and 24 blue. Carmine color can be achieved in a CMYK color space with 0% cyan, 100% magenta, 84% yellow, and 41% black.
What is the meaning of the color carmine?
Carmine color is a vivid red with the merest hint of purple. It sits between crimson and red on the color wheel. The color carmine is a popular pigment that’s been made for thousands of years using aluminium salt of carmine acid, which comes from certain insects. The pigment has been used in paints and inks, medications, cosmetics, food dye, and more.
Carmine color is a dramatic red used since antiquity. Its character is one of mystique, power, and seduction.
The history of carmine color.
The history of carmine color.
The color carmine is sourced from the Cochineal beetle (Dactylopius coccus), a tiny insect that lives – and feeds on the prickly pear cacti in Mesoamerica. The female cochineal is high in carminic acid, which yields more of the carmine color than its male counterpart. When mixed with metal ions or adjusting its pH, its original color can be transformed into a deep scarlet and even purple. Because of it’s rich pigmentation and versatility in shade range, cochineal dye was used to dye textiles as early as 700 B.C.
The name carmine appeared in English in 1799.
The name “carmine” was first recorded as a color name in 1799. Less than a century earlier, carmine had been adopted in English as the name of the “pure red dyestuff obtained from cochineal,” inspired by the French carmin, which traveled through Medieval Latin from the Arabic word (qirmiz) for “crimson.”
Lasting symbolism of the color carmine.
The color carmine resembles the color of dried blood. Many shades of red represent blood, sacrifice, fire, and desire, but the color carmine is perhaps the truest. Carmine color as a pigment became even more prized because of its permanence. Carmine color pigments were long known as the most lasting natural red dye in the world.
The color carmine across different cultures.
Carmine, the color of rouge in Japan and China.
Japanese carmine color is closely related to the classic hex of the color carmine. Its name in Japanese is enji-iro, meaning “cochineal rouge.” The term enji (“rouge”) comes from the Ancient Chinese state called Yan, where it’s believed that the use of rouge originated. The color carmine in many parts of the East represents health.
The color carmine in Mesoamerica.
The cochineal insect used for carmine color is native to Mesoamerica. The Aztecs were the first to discover and use it, creating innumerable artifacts in striking shades of red. After the Spanish arrived and colonized across the continent, they saw the opportunity to dominate a new carmine color market. Carmine pigments were so beautiful and lasting that Spain coveted the opportunity to sell it across Europe. The color carmine triggered the same lust and sacrifice that it was said to represent.
Carmine color in Latvia.
Many flags around the world fly a shade of red. Latvia’s flag flies the color carmine, which is nicknamed Latvian red. As Latvian legend goes, a mortally wounded chief of Latgalians was wrapped in white sheets, which he bled on profusely. The part he laid on remained white, but the edges were soaked with carmine color blood. The Latvian soccer team also uses carmine color in its uniforms.