Farrow & Ball · No. 19 · Neutrals and stones
Farrow & Ball
Lichen
Benjamin Moore
Cypress Green
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 · 79
Normandy Grey
Similarscore 3.59
A sensible alternative, but clearly its own colour beside the original.
Option 2 · 295
Boringdon Green
Similarscore 4.78
Option 3 · 78
Tracery II
Nearest availablescore 6.35
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · 509
Cypress Green
Very closescore 1.08
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · HC-113
Louisburg Green
Very closescore 1.40
Option 3 · 1503
Texas Sage
Very closescore 1.94
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 9128
Green Onyx
Closescore 2.50
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · SW 7728
Green Sprout
Closescore 2.62
Option 3 · SW 7748
Green Earth
Closescore 3.04
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 6001-1C
Grandma's Linen
Closescore 2.53
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · 6005-4A
Dusty Olive
Closescore 2.65
Option 3 · 5004-1C
Green Tea Leaves
Closescore 3.34
North American colour card.
Closest · 1028-4
Smoky Slate
Closescore 2.24
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · 1126-5
Zebra Grass
Closescore 2.65
Option 3 · 1030-4
Edamame
Closescore 3.14
North American colour card.
Closest · BXC-10
Warm Stone
Very closescore 1.85
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · BNC-24
Shadow Taupe
Closescore 2.62
Option 3 · PPU9-22
Cricket
Closescore 3.17
North American colour card.
Closest · DE6257
Battle Harbor
Very closescore 1.76
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · DEC777
Meadowood
Closescore 2.55
Option 3 · DE6250
Fairbank Green
Closescore 2.61
From the trade
Paint Lichen 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 Lichen, 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.