Researches have revealed that green is the color that gives a calming effect for the eyes. The green color also avoids the eyes from getting fatigued.
A dark theme built on chalkboard green — calm, readable, and easy on the eyes in any light. Colour is used deliberately to distinguish language constructs, not just to decorate.
Languages: JavaScript, TypeScript, TSX/JSX, PHP, Python, CSS, SCSS, HTML, Markdown, YAML, TOML, Shell/Bash, Dockerfile, Rust, JSON, XML, Regex
Agentic / CLI: Shell variables, flags, pipes, heredocs, subshells — all distinctly coloured. YAML keys vs values distinguished so GitHub Actions, MCP configs, and Copilot instruction files are easy to read at a glance. Terminal ANSI colours are tuned to the chalk palette so git diff, npm, and agent tool output all stay on-theme.
Workbench: Sidebar, activity bar, status bar, tabs, panels, terminal, breadcrumbs, diffs, and git decorations — all using green tones derived from the chalkboard background.
Semantic highlighting: LSP-powered token colours for TypeScript types, Rust lifetimes, Python self, decorators, and more.
Loosely based on colours available in a real chalk set:
| Role | Hex |
|---|---|
| Background | #154734 — Chalkboard green |
| Foreground | #e6e1c4 — Chalk cream |
| Comments | #efcb43 — Yellow chalk |
| Keywords / storage | #0092d1 — Blue chalk |
| Functions | #41b644 — Green chalk |
| Strings | #C4622D — Orange-red chalk |
| Classes / types | #6FC1D2 — Teal chalk |
| Variables | #6c99bb — Steel blue chalk |
| Decorators | #B6B8FE — Lavender chalk |
| Numbers | #6F59C2 — Purple chalk |
| Operators | #bbd7c1 — Sage chalk |
| Builtins | #E0A1FF — Dusty pink chalk |
| Macros / heredoc | #efac32 — Amber chalk |
| Enum members / flags | #a5c261 — Lime chalk |
- Colours work with the green background with enough contrast to distinguish constructs
- Works in low light and bright light environments
- Helps reduce reflection on glass screens
- Similar colours used for similar syntax constructs across languages
- Limited palette — not too busy
