Build Color Ring

Let's build a circular hue ring step by step.

Here's what we'll end up with:

Click to view the full code

ColorRingGuide.vue

<script setup lang="ts">
import "internationalized-color/css";
import {
  useColor,
  ColorRingRoot,
  ColorRingTrack,
  ColorRingGradient,
  ColorRingThumb,
} from "@urcolor/vue";

const { color } = useColor("hsl(210, 80%, 50%)");
</script>

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    channel="h"
    :inner-radius="0.85"
    as="div"
    class="relative block size-64"
    style="container-type: inline-size"
  >
    <ColorRingTrack
      as="div"
      class="relative block size-full"
    >
      <ColorRingGradient
        as="div"
        class="absolute inset-0 block"
      />
      <ColorRingThumb
        class="
          size-4 rounded-full border-2 border-white
          shadow-[0_0_0_1px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3),0_2px_4px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3)]
          focus-visible:shadow-[0_0_0_1px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3),0_0_0_3px_rgba(66,153,225,0.6)]
        "
        aria-label="Hue"
      />
    </ColorRingTrack>
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

Step 1: Set up state

Start by importing the color model and creating a reactive color value.

<script setup lang="ts">
import { useColor } from "@urcolor/vue";  

const { color } = useColor("hsl(210, 80%, 50%)");  
</script>

useColor() creates a reactive color ref from any CSS color string. It returns a { color } object where color is a shallow ref holding the parsed Color instance.

Step 2: Add the root

ColorRingRoot manages all the state and interactions. Tell it which color space and channel to control.

<script setup lang="ts">
import { useColor, ColorRingRoot } from "@urcolor/vue"; 

const { color } = useColor("hsl(210, 80%, 50%)");
</script>

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    channel="h"
    :inner-radius="0.85"
  >
    <!-- children go here -->
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

• color-space — the color space to work in (hsl, oklch, hsb, etc.)
• channel — the channel this ring controls (h, s, l, hue, chroma, etc.)
• inner-radius — the inner radius as a fraction of the outer radius (0–1), controls ring thickness

Step 3: Add the track and gradient

ColorRingTrack is the interactive area that handles pointer events. ColorRingGradient renders the circular gradient on a canvas.

<script setup lang="ts">
import {
  useColor,
  ColorRingRoot,
  ColorRingTrack, 
  ColorRingGradient, 
} from "@urcolor/vue";

const { color } = useColor("hsl(210, 80%, 50%)");
</script>

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    channel="h"
    :inner-radius="0.85"
    class="relative block size-64"
    style="container-type: inline-size"
  >
    <ColorRingTrack class="relative block size-full">
      <ColorRingGradient class="absolute inset-0 block" />
    </ColorRingTrack>
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

The root needs container-type: inline-size so the component can calculate dimensions correctly.

Step 4: Add the thumb

ColorRingThumb is the draggable handle. It's positioned automatically along the ring.

<script setup lang="ts">
import {
  useColor,
  ColorRingRoot,
  ColorRingTrack,
  ColorRingGradient,
  ColorRingThumb, 
} from "@urcolor/vue";

const { color } = useColor("hsl(210, 80%, 50%)");
</script>

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    channel="h"
    :inner-radius="0.85"
    class="relative block size-64"
    style="container-type: inline-size"
  >
    <ColorRingTrack class="relative block size-full">
      <ColorRingGradient class="absolute inset-0 block" />
      <ColorRingThumb
        class="
          size-4 rounded-full border-2 border-white
          shadow-[0_0_0_1px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3),0_2px_4px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3)]
          focus-visible:shadow-[0_0_0_1px_rgba(0,0,0,0.3),0_0_0_3px_rgba(66,153,225,0.6)]
        "
        aria-label="Hue"
      />
    </ColorRingTrack>
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

TIP

All components are completely unstyled — the classes above are just an example using Tailwind CSS. Use any styling approach you prefer.

Adjusting ring thickness

Use the inner-radius prop to control the ring thickness. The value is a fraction of the outer radius — 0 gives a full circle, 0.9 gives a thin ring:

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    :inner-radius="0.7"
    channel="h"
  >
    <!-- ... -->
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

Changing start angle

Use start-angle to rotate where the ring gradient begins (in degrees):

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    :start-angle="90"
    channel="h"
  >
    <!-- ... -->
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

Different channels

Switch the channel prop to control different color properties. For example, a saturation ring:

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    channel="s"
  >
    <!-- ... -->
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>

Listening to changes

Use @update:model-value for real-time updates (while dragging) and @value-commit for the final value (on release):

<script setup lang="ts">
// ...
const onColorChange = (color: Color) => {
  console.log("dragging", color.toString("css"));
};
const onColorCommit = (color: Color) => {
  console.log("committed", color.toString("css"));
};
</script>

<template>
  <ColorRingRoot
    v-model="color"
    color-space="hsl"
    @update:model-value="onColorChange"
    @value-commit="onColorCommit"
    channel="h"
  >
    <!-- ... -->
  </ColorRingRoot>
</template>