Farrow & Ball · No. 255 · Greys
Farrow & Ball
Tanner's Brown
Benjamin Moore
Cordovan 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 · 277
Córdoba
Nearest availablescore 5.72
This brand has nothing closer. Treat it as a starting point only.
Option 2 · 227
Scree
Nearest availablescore 7.71
Option 3 · 228
Lamp Black
Nearest availablescore 9.26
Sold through independent stockists in the UK and mixed to order.
UK stockists
Closest · ES-62
Cordovan Brown
Very closescore 1.22
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 2130-20
Deep Caviar
Very closescore 1.85
Option 3 · 2134-20
Midsummer Night
Closescore 2.70
North American colour card.
Closest · SW 7020
Black Fox
Closescore 3.04
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · SW 7083
Darkroom
Similarscore 3.50
Option 3 · SW 7675
Sealskin
Similarscore 3.66
North American colour card. The Valspar range sold in UK stores is different.
Closest · 1011-10
Brown Velvet
Very closescore 1.87
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 4002-2C
Black Raisin
Closescore 2.13
Option 3 · 6011-1
Fired Earth
Closescore 2.50
North American colour card.
Closest · 1002-7
Phantom Mist
Very closescore 1.60
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · 1004-7
Black Elegance
Closescore 2.38
Option 3 · 1011-7
Onyx
Closescore 3.17
North American colour card.
Closest · HDC-CL-14A
Warm Onyx
Very closescore 1.49
A small difference you may see with the two side by side.
Option 2 · BNC-33
Harvest Oak
Very closescore 1.59
Option 3 · PPU5-20
Sweet Molasses
Closescore 2.69
North American colour card.
Closest · DE6385
Black Bean
Closescore 2.09
Same family and depth. Expect a slight shift in warmth or strength.
Option 2 · DE6392
Mink
Closescore 2.20
Option 3 · DE6357
Black Tie
Similarscore 3.56
From the trade
Paint Tanner's Brown 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 Tanner's Brown, 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.
Tanner's Brown 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.