Edo Nezu Themes

A chic, soothing, and eye-friendly color and icon theme for Visual Studio Code, using traditional Japanese colors.
Designed with a well-balanced palette for readability and reduced glare to keep typing comfortable during long sessions.

🌸 Japanese note
日本の伝統色を使用して作成したカラーテーマです。目に優しく、長時間作業していても疲れない配色を目指しています。

Concept

• Easy on the eyes: Tones down harsh blue and high-glare hues.
• Traditional Japanese colors: Thoughtfully selected muted, grayish tones from Edo-nezu and Japanese traditional palettes.
• Reduced brightness: Avoids primary colors as well as pure white and black (#FFFFFF/#000000) to prevent harsh glare.
• Minimal palette: Curates a limited color count to reduce visual noise.
• Functional contrast: Preserves clear syntax hierarchy and practical readability.
• Balanced visual depth: Balances advancing and receding colors so keywords and syntax guide the eye without jumping out aggressively.
• Everyday comfort: Designed not like flashy luxury wear, but like comfortable casual wear for daily work.

Themes Included

Color palettes and contrast balances are continually refined through daily coding use.

Color Themes

• Edo Nezu Dark: designed for coders
• Edo Nezu Light: designed for writers

💡 Preview themes in your browser at VS Code Themes > Edo Nezu Theme.

File Icon Themes

• Edo Nezu Icon Theme: ideal for dark themes
• Edo Nezu Material Icon Theme: ideal for light themes

Screenshots

Edo Nezu Dark & edo-nezu-icon-theme

Inspired by chalkboards and chalk. Reduced blue tones, eye-friendly dark theme.

Edo Nezu Dark & edo-nezu-material-icon-theme

Dark folder tones bring a calm, tranquil feel.

Edo Nezu Light & edo-nezu-material-icon-theme

Inspired by Japanese washi paper and sumi ink. A glare-free, highly readable light theme.

Edo Nezu Light & edo-nezu-icon-theme

Yellow folders add a touch of brilliance.

Installation & Usage

1. Install Extension

Search for Edo Nezu Theme in the VS Code Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X) and click Install.
Or install from Marketplace > Edo Nezu Theme.

2. Activate Themes

• Color Theme: Press Ctrl+K Ctrl+T (or Cmd+K Cmd+T) and select Edo Nezu Dark or Edo Nezu Light.
• File Icon Theme: Open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P or F1), run Preferences: File Icon Theme, and select Edo Nezu Icon Theme or Edo Nezu Material Icon Theme.

Or configure manually in your user settings.json (or .vscode/settings.json in your workspace):

// Edo Nezu Dark & edo-nezu-icon-theme
{
  "workbench.colorTheme": "Edo Nezu Dark",
  "workbench.iconTheme": "edo-nezu-icon-theme"
}

// Edo Nezu Light & edo-nezu-material-icon-theme
{
  "workbench.colorTheme": "Edo Nezu Light",
  "workbench.iconTheme": "edo-nezu-material-icon-theme"
}

Tips & Customization

1. Display Color Settings

As this theme uses delicate intermediate colors and tones, appearance may look different on some monitors. If needed, adjusting your monitor's color profile or RGB settings could help resolve this.
(e.g. My laptop and external monitor were from the same manufacturer, but had different colors, so I fixed it via monitor RGB settings.)

2. VS Code Color Settings

If you prefer previous colors from an older version, check CHANGELOG.md for past color codes and keys.
See: VS Code docs > Theme Color

"workbench.colorCustomizations": {
  "[Edo Nezu Light]": {
    // Override or restore specific UI colors
    "editor.background": "#fbf8f5",
    "statusBar.background": "#f7f5f2"
  }
}

What is "Edo-Nezu"?

"Edo-nezu" (江戸鼠, meaning Edo grayish) is a traditional Japanese color characterized by warm brown or gray tones.

In the late 18th century (during the Edo period), the Tokugawa shogunate issued strict sumptuary laws prohibiting commoners from wearing vivid, opulent colors such as deep red and purple. Restricted to using only subdued tones like brown and gray, the townspeople of Edo exercised great ingenuity, creating hundreds of delicate and subtle shades. This aesthetic sensibility became known as "Shijūhatcha-hyakunezu" (四十八茶百鼠, meaning a vast variety of brown and gray colors), symbolizing the rich variety and nuance found within these colors.

Edo-Nezu gained immense popularity as a symbol of "iki" (粋) — a refined, understated style born from the ability to elevate strict constraints into a creative aesthetic.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for detailed release notes and version history.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. Copyright (c) 2026 arukumo.

Credits & Acknowledgments

• Icon assets are adapted from:
  • Gruvbox Icon Theme by azat-io (MIT License)
  • Gruvbox Material Icon Theme by Jonathan Harty (MIT License)
  • Material Icon Theme by Philipp Kief (MIT License)

Support

I would greatly appreciate your support in the form of a coffee.