Farrow & Ball · No. 25 · Neutrals and stones
Farrow & Ball
Pigeon
Behr
Shiitake
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 · 117
Lead Colour
Nearest availablescore 5.01
This brand has nothing closer. Treat it as a starting point only.
Option 2 · 233
Serpentine
Nearest availablescore 5.51
Option 3 · 296
Windmill Lane
Nearest availablescore 7.11
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · CSP-760
Oil Cloth
Very closescore 1.50
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 1559
Arctic Shadows
Closescore 2.01
Option 3 · HC-105
Rockport Gray
Closescore 2.80
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 2821
Downing Stone
Very closescore 1.63
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · SW 6199
Rare Gray
Closescore 2.03
Option 3 · SW 7746
Rushing River
Closescore 2.32
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 6002-2A
Tornado Watch
Very closescore 1.65
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 5007-2A
Gray Exposé
Closescore 2.36
Option 3 · 6004-2A
Aspen Gray
Closescore 2.90
North American colour card.
Closest · 1028-4
Smoky Slate
Closescore 2.22
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · 1031-3
Wandering Willow
Closescore 3.19
Option 3 · 14-28
Aldabra
Closescore 3.19
North American colour card.
Closest · N220-4
Shiitake
Very closescore 1.16
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · N210-4
Espresso Martini
Very closescore 1.29
Option 3 · HDC-NT-01
Woodland Sage
Very closescore 1.44
North American colour card.
Closest · DEC777
Meadowood
Similarscore 4.28
A sensible alternative, but clearly its own colour beside the original.
Option 2 · DE6229
Calico Rock
Similarscore 4.49
Option 3 · DE6271
Elemental Green
Similarscore 4.50
From the trade
Paint Pigeon 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 Pigeon, 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.