Farrow & Ball · No. 28 · Neutrals and stones
Farrow & Ball
Dead Salmon
Sherwin-Williams
Trusty Tan
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 · 3
Light Peachblossom
Nearest availablescore 6.34
This brand has nothing closer. Treat it as a starting point only.
Option 2 · 334
Masquerade
Nearest availablescore 7.62
Option 3 · 267
Blush
Nearest availablescore 8.66
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · 1012
Whispering Woods
Near identicalscore 0.79
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · CC-392
Muddy York
Near identicalscore 0.79
Option 3 · CSP-350
Whipped Mocha
Very closescore 1.13
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 6087
Trusty Tan
Near identicalscore 0.69
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · SW 6066
Sand Trap
Closescore 2.36
Option 3 · SW 7501
Threshold Taupe
Closescore 2.54
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 2006-10A
Free Wheeling
Very closescore 1.05
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 2007-9C
Woodland Stone
Closescore 2.22
Option 3 · 1002-10A
Wool Coat
Closescore 2.78
North American colour card.
Closest · FLLW858
Wright Stone Grey
Closescore 2.69
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · 1076-4
Cuppa Coffee
Closescore 2.70
Option 3 · 1077-4
Weathered Wood
Closescore 3.23
North American colour card.
Closest · PPU5-15
Postmodern Mauve
Very closescore 1.44
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 250F-4
Stone Brown
Closescore 2.60
Option 3 · 250F-4
Stone Brown
Closescore 2.62
North American colour card.
Closest · DEC759
Hickory
Closescore 2.68
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · DEC717
Baked Potato
Closescore 2.92
Option 3 · DE6074
Frontier Land
Closescore 3.44
From the trade
Paint Dead Salmon 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 Dead Salmon, 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.