Spin the Wheel Skin Color: Art Palette for Characters

Spin one of 44 art palette tones for a drawn character and get base, shadow and highlight hex codes.

Spin the Wheel Skin Color: Art Palette for Characters

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Spin 1 · number 1

Very light cool

Depth 1 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #F5DDD6, shadow #D09183, highlight #F8E6DE. Blush shows fast on this base: a soft rose on cheeks, nose and ears is plenty.

Every spin uses the whole wheel.

44 tones on the wheel.

Numbers on the wheel

  1. Very light cool
  2. Very light neutral
  3. Very light olive
  4. Very light warm
  5. Light cool
  6. Light neutral
  7. Light olive
  8. Light warm
  9. Medium cool
  10. Medium neutral
  11. Medium olive
  12. Medium warm
  13. Tan cool
  14. Tan neutral
  15. Tan olive
  16. Tan warm
  17. Deep cool
  18. Deep neutral
  19. Deep olive
  20. Deep warm
  21. Very deep cool
  22. Very deep neutral
  23. Very deep olive
  24. Very deep warm
  25. Sky blue
  26. Midnight blue
  27. Teal
  28. Seafoam green
  29. Moss green
  30. Forest green
  31. Lilac
  32. Violet
  33. Rose pink
  34. Crimson
  35. Sun yellow
  36. Ash gray
  37. Slate gray
  38. Charcoal
  39. Ghost white
  40. Obsidian black
  41. Gold metal
  42. Silver metal
  43. Copper metal
  44. Bronze metal

Results

  1. 1. Very light cool

Tip: the space bar and the Enter key spin the wheel, and so does a tap on the wheel itself. Press again to skip to the result.

Next step Tone set. Spin the hair colorNext trait: spin an eye color

Spin the Wheel Skin Color: Art Palette for Characters: how it works

This spin the wheel skin color page is an art palette for drawn characters: 24 natural tones, six depths by four undertones, plus 20 fantasy tones from Teal to Gold metal. Press Spin the wheel for a base hex code with a matching shadow and highlight. It describes no real person.

A grid of six depths and four undertones

This skin color wheel spinner lays its natural tones out as a grid: six depths, Very light to Very deep, each in a cool, neutral, olive and warm undertone. Undertone is the lean underneath the base: pink for cool, golden for warm, a grayed green-yellow for olive. The chips cut the grid either way, so Deep leaves four segments and Olive undertone leaves six. Natural tones keeps the 20 fantasy colors off the wheel.

From three hex codes to a painted face

Fill the flats with the base hex. The shadow is the base under a Multiply layer filled with #D9A79C, and the highlight is the base under a Screen layer filled with #4D4030, so any paint program repeats them exactly. Portrait painters run the forehead more golden, the band across ears, cheeks and nose redder, and the jaw cooler and grayer. Palms and soles are paler than the rest, most visibly on deep tones.

Tips

  • For a line-up, spin once per character in Elimination, so no two share a tone, then check the row in grayscale: values should differ, not only hues.
  • Spin the wheel: skin tone first, hair color second. A cool base beside warm hair gives the face contrast; matching leans look calmer.
  • For an alien, a ghost or a golem, pick Fantasy tones. The four metals need hard contrast: a dark reflection right beside a near-white glint.

Questions and answers

How many tones are there, and what are they?

The wheel of skin color holds 44 art palette tones. 24 are natural: six depths (Very light, Light, Medium, Tan, Deep, Very deep) in four undertones. 20 are fantasy: blues, greens, purples, grays, Ghost white, Obsidian black and four metals. The list under the wheel prints three hex codes for each.

Why six depths in this order?

The six steps run light to deep in the same order as the six types of the Fitzpatrick scale, the 1975 dermatology scale behind the five emoji skin tone modifiers. Only the ordering is borrowed. The swatches are paint colors picked by eye, not measurements.

Does a result describe real people?

No. It is a drawing tool for made-up characters. Tone names use depth and undertone words only, never places, peoples or foods, and every tone has the same chance. For a portrait of a real person, work from a photo reference in even light.

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All 44 tones

Very light 4

  • Very light cool Depth 1 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #F5DDD6, shadow #D09183, highlight #F8E6DE. Blush shows fast on this base: a soft rose on cheeks, nose and ears is plenty.
  • Very light neutral Depth 1 of 6, neutral. Base #F4DED2, shadow #D09180, highlight #F7E6DA. It takes on the color of the light, so choose the lighting before you choose the blush.
  • Very light olive Depth 1 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #EBE1CB, shadow #C8937C, highlight #F1E9D5. Keep blush muted, a dusty rose, or it looks pasted on top.
  • Very light warm Depth 1 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #F7E0C9, shadow #D2937B, highlight #F9E8D3. Blush reads coral here, not pink, and freckles sit naturally in a light warm brown.

Light 4

  • Light cool Depth 2 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #EAC4B8, shadow #C78071, highlight #F0D3C5. Shadows can lean mauve under the jaw and around the eyes.
  • Light neutral Depth 2 of 6, neutral. Base #E9C8B4, shadow #C6836E, highlight #F0D6C2. A steady base for a line-up, because warm and cool neighbors both sit well beside it.
  • Light olive Depth 2 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #DCCCAD, shadow #BB866A, highlight #E7D9BC. The gray-green lean is slight. If it starts to look yellow, lower the saturation, not the lightness.
  • Light warm Depth 2 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #EDCCAB, shadow #CA8669, highlight #F2D9BB. Evening light pushes it toward gold, so cool the shadow side to keep the form readable.

Medium 4

  • Medium cool Depth 3 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #D6A694, shadow #B66D5B, highlight #E2BCA8. Lips only a little redder than the base look natural at this depth.
  • Medium neutral Depth 3 of 6, neutral. Base #D6AB8F, shadow #B67057, highlight #E2C0A4. The middle of the palette, and a useful anchor when you grade a whole cast around one tone.
  • Medium olive Depth 3 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #C6B086, shadow #A87352, highlight #D7C49D. Low saturation is the point. If it drifts toward orange, gray it back down.
  • Medium warm Depth 3 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #DAAD81, shadow #BA714F, highlight #E5C299. Lamp light turns it amber. A cooler, grayer shadow keeps the face from going flat.

Tan 4

  • Tan cool Depth 4 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #BD7D65, shadow #A1523E, highlight #D19E82. Blush becomes a deeper rose at this depth, because pale pink turns chalky.
  • Tan neutral Depth 4 of 6, neutral. Base #BF845F, shadow #A3563A, highlight #D2A37D. Highlights can be a plain lighter brown. Save near-white for wet or glossy shine.
  • Tan olive Depth 4 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #AE8E56, shadow #945D35, highlight #C6AA76. A green-gold lean. Ivory and gold costume details stand out well against it.
  • Tan warm Depth 4 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #C7884D, shadow #A9592F, highlight #D8A66F. Made for sunlit scenes: push the highlight toward yellow and the shadow toward red-brown.

Deep 4

  • Deep cool Depth 5 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #864D3C, shadow #723225, highlight #AB7A61. Blush and lips move to a deep red-violet. A light pink would sit on top like chalk.
  • Deep neutral Depth 5 of 6, neutral. Base #865237, shadow #723622, highlight #AB7D5D. Draw the palms and the soles of the feet clearly lighter than the rest of the figure.
  • Deep olive Depth 5 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #755D38, shadow #643D22, highlight #9F865D. Muted and slightly green. Keep the shadows low in saturation so they stay brown, not red.
  • Deep warm Depth 5 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #8C572C, shadow #77391B, highlight #AF8154. Highlights can carry strong color. An amber edge of light works well along the cheekbone.

Very deep 4

  • Very deep cool Depth 6 of 6, cool, pink-leaning. Base #4C2F29, shadow #411F19, highlight #826351. Open sky gives cool blue highlights on the forehead, nose and cheekbones.
  • Very deep neutral Depth 6 of 6, neutral. Base #4F3226, shadow #432117, highlight #84654F. Never shade with plain black. Go darker and more saturated, or the form goes flat.
  • Very deep olive Depth 6 of 6, olive, gray-green leaning. Base #463825, shadow #3C2517, highlight #7E6A4E. A pale gold rim light separates the figure from a dark background.
  • Very deep warm Depth 6 of 6, warm, golden-leaning. Base #553620, shadow #482314, highlight #88684A. A red-brown glow. Light bounced up under the chin can be warm and clearly visible.

Fantasy tones 20

  • Ash gray Base #B8BCC2, shadow #7A7999, highlight #C8CDD4. A pale stone gray for ghosts, statues and undersea creatures. Tint the cheeks blue or lilac.
  • Bronze metal Base #8C6A3A, shadow #5D442E, highlight #A68F73. A darker, browner metal than gold: the classic living-statue finish.
  • Charcoal Base #2E3238, shadow #1E202C, highlight #5E6572. Near-black with a cool lean. Leave room below it for the darkest shadow.
  • Copper metal Base #B87333, shadow #7A4A28, highlight #C8966E. A red-brown metal. A few blue-green patches in the creases suggest age and weather.
  • Crimson Base #B3202E, shadow #771524, highlight #C4576B. The standard fiend and fire-spirit red. Shade toward dark violet, never toward black.
  • Forest green Base #2F6B3F, shadow #1F4532, highlight #5E9077. A deep green that reads as plant or reptile. Add lighter, yellower scales or markings.
  • Ghost white Base #F3F1EA, shadow #A19BB8, highlight #F6F4F0. Off-white, not paper white, so highlights still show. Its shadow is a lavender gray.
  • Gold metal Base #D4AF37, shadow #8D712B, highlight #DEC371. Metal reads through contrast: put a dark reflection right beside a near-white glint.
  • Lilac Base #C4A6E0, shadow #826BB1, highlight #D1BCE9. Pale purple. Works for fae and dream characters, with blush in a stronger violet.
  • Midnight blue Base #2B3F73, shadow #1C295B, highlight #5B6E9C. Very dark, so pale highlights and a bright eye color have to carry the expression.
  • Moss green Base #7A8F4B, shadow #515C3B, highlight #98AB7F. Yellow-green and earthy: the familiar goblin and forest-spirit base.
  • Obsidian black Base #15161A, shadow #0E0E14, highlight #4A505C. Almost no room to go darker, so model the form with the highlight alone.
  • Rose pink Base #F2A0B5, shadow #A0678F, highlight #F5B7CA. Reads as sweet and doll-like at full strength. Gray it slightly for an older character.
  • Seafoam green Base #9FE0C5, shadow #69909B, highlight #B5E8D6. A pale blue-green that turns sickly if it drifts yellow. Lips in a deeper teal keep it consistent.
  • Silver metal Base #C0C4CC, shadow #7F7EA1, highlight #CED3DB. Polished silver mirrors its surroundings. Pick up sky blue above and ground color below.
  • Sky blue Base #8EC5E8, shadow #5E7FB7, highlight #A8D3EF. A calm, airy blue. Put violet, not pink, in the cheeks so the face still looks alive.
  • Slate gray Base #66707A, shadow #444860, highlight #8993A1. Mid gray with a blue lean. Suits rock folk, golems and storm spirits.
  • Sun yellow Base #F2CF4A, shadow #A0853A, highlight #F5DB7F. Bright and hard to shade: its shadow turns olive, which is correct, so trust it.
  • Teal Base #2F9C95, shadow #1F6475, highlight #5EB4B4. Blue-green, the usual choice for sea folk and river spirits. Shade it toward deep blue.
  • Violet Base #6E49A8, shadow #492F84, highlight #8F76C1. Saturated purple. Pair it with white, silver or pale yellow hair for contrast.

How this list was compiled: An art palette written for this site, for drawn and painted characters. It describes no real person or group of people. The 24 natural tones are a grid of six depth steps (very light to very deep) by four undertones (cool, neutral, olive, warm); each base swatch was picked by the writer as a hue, saturation and lightness value and converted to a hex code. The light-to-deep order of the six steps was checked against the six types of the Fitzpatrick scale at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fitzpatrick_scale (checked 2026-09-18); nothing else is taken from that scale. The 20 fantasy tones carry names that cannot be read as a human tone (Ghost white and Obsidian black, not chalk white and jet black), with swatches picked by the writer. Shadow and highlight swatches follow a fixed rule that any paint program can repeat: shadow is the base under a Multiply layer filled with #D9A79C (natural tones) or #A9A4C9 (fantasy tones); highlight is the base under a Screen layer filled with #4D4030 (natural) or #3A3F4A (fantasy). The note that palms and soles are paler than other skin is from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_skin_color (checked 2026-09-18). Drawing notes are the writer's own advice. Licence: own work