Farrow & Ball · No. 16 · Yellows
Farrow & Ball
Cord
Benjamin Moore
Sandy Brown
Lower score means closer. Under 2 is hard to tell apart on the wall; over 5 is a different colour that sits in the same family.
British paint maker, widely stocked across the UK.
UK stockists
Closest · 39
Clay
Closescore 2.27
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · 319
Travertine
Similarscore 3.66
Option 3 · 38
Hammock
Similarscore 3.78
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · 1046
Sandy Brown
Near identicalscore 0.95
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · CW-120
Bracken Biscuit
Very closescore 1.16
Option 3 · HC-177
Richmond Bisque
Very closescore 1.81
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 7698
Straw Harvest
Very closescore 1.26
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · SW 6120
Believable Buff
Closescore 2.44
Option 3 · SW 6135
Ecru
Closescore 2.46
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 3005-10A
Sandy Cove
Very closescore 1.04
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 3007-8B
Baked Scone
Very closescore 1.79
Option 3 · 6008-3C
Epic
Closescore 2.64
North American colour card.
Closest · 1095-4
Golden Ecru
Near identicalscore 0.98
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · 1104-4
Sandy Pail
Very closescore 1.40
Option 3 · 1094-3
Birch Beige
Very closescore 1.84
North American colour card.
Closest · HDC-NT-02
White Oak
Very closescore 1.10
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · UL160-6
Straw Basket
Very closescore 1.51
Option 3 · N290-4
Curious Collection
Very closescore 1.53
North American colour card.
Closest · DE6172
Bungalow Taupe
Closescore 2.25
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · DE6185
Light Aspiration
Closescore 2.40
Option 3 · DEC739
Golden Gate
Closescore 2.58
From the trade
Paint Cord and your chosen match on two boards in the same finish. A flat and an eggshell in one colour never look identical.
Check them on the darkest wall in the morning and again under your own lamps at night. That is where small differences show.
Give the merchant the brand, colour name and code shown here. It avoids the guesswork of a scanned match.
In your light
Pick the way your window faces and the time of day. The same paint can look like three different colours.
North light is steady but cool and grey. It pulls blues and greys colder and makes greens look heavier. Warm based colours hold up best.
An approximation of how light colour and strength shift a paint. Use it to narrow a shortlist, then paint a sample board and look at it at these same times.
Building a scheme
Worked out from undertone and depth, the way a decorator would put a scheme together. Paint samples side by side before you commit.
A pale colour from the same undertone as Cord, so the ceiling does not look stark white against it.
One step lighter or darker on skirtings, doors and window boards. A tonal scheme is the easiest way to make a room feel finished.
A dark colour that sits under it. Use on a fireplace wall, an inside door, a kitchen island or a hall below the dado.
From the other side of the colour wheel, at a similar depth, for a door, a bookcase or a cushion. Use in small amounts.
Colour values are on screen approximations taken from published community colour libraries (Farrow & Ball; Farrow & Ball (cross check); Little Greene; Benjamin Moore; Sherwin-Williams, Valspar, PPG, Behr, Dunn-Edwards), compiled 2026-10-09. Scores use CIEDE2000. Screens, light and sheen all change how paint looks, so always check a physical sample. Aethos is not connected to any of the paint makers named here and all colour names belong to their owners.