Farrow & Ball · No. 277 · Greys
Farrow & Ball
Dimpse
Benjamin Moore
Shoreline
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 · 229
Wood Ash
Similarscore 4.55
A sensible alternative, but clearly its own colour beside the original.
Option 2 · 130
Joanna
Similarscore 4.55
Option 3 · 25
Hollyhock
Nearest availablescore 5.37
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · 1471
Shoreline
Near identicalscore 0.00
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · CSP-500
Whisper
Near identicalscore 0.90
Option 3 · 1458
Silver Bells
Very closescore 1.33
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 7646
First Star
Near identicalscore 0.23
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · SW 7666
Fleur de Sel
Very closescore 1.45
Option 3 · SW 6196
Frosty White
Very closescore 1.60
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 4004-1A
Tempered Gray
Near identicalscore 0.70
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · 4003-1A
Seashell Gray
Near identicalscore 0.90
Option 3 · 5008-1A
Madison White
Near identicalscore 0.99
North American colour card.
Closest · 1010-2
Fog
Very closescore 1.06
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 14-03
Seagull
Very closescore 1.52
Option 3 · 1006-2
Shark
Very closescore 1.54
North American colour card.
Closest · MQ3-23
Statuesque
Very closescore 1.14
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 790C-2
Silver Drop
Very closescore 1.60
Option 3 · N200-1
Moth Gray
Very closescore 1.60
North American colour card.
Closest · DEC791
Cloud
Near identicalscore 0.55
Most people could not tell these apart on the wall.
Option 2 · DEW395
Heirloom Shade
Very closescore 1.78
Option 3 · DE6275
Silver Creek
Very closescore 1.96
From the trade
Paint Dimpse 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 Dimpse, 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.
Dimpse is close to neutral, so almost any colour will sit beside it. These have enough character to show.
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.