Rainy Afternoon vs Hicks' Blue
Where Rainy Afternoon belongs to Behr's range, Hicks' Blue is a Little Greene color. Rainy Afternoon reads as blue-green, while Hicks' Blue reads as blue — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Rainy Afternoon has an LRV of 30. Rainy Afternoon runs green while Hicks' Blue is decidedly blue, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 28.4, the contrast is hard to miss. These aren't variations on a theme — they're two different answers to the same question. Below you'll find 4 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Rainy Afternoon vs Hicks' Blue in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Rainy Afternoon and Hicks' Blue in actual rooms makes the difference concrete; browse the spaces below to get a feel for how each color lives on a wall.
Living Room
In a living room, color works across both daylight and evening light — the same wall can read very differently at noon and at 8pm. Side by side like this, the difference is easy to read — which is exactly why seeing them in a real space is more useful than comparing chips.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. The distinction reads clearly at room scale, making the choice between them concrete.
Bathroom
Bathrooms are one of the few spaces where you're genuinely enclosed by the paint color, which makes the choice between these two more consequential. The distinction reads clearly at room scale, making the choice between them concrete.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. The distinction reads clearly at room scale, making the choice between them concrete.
Color Details
Rainy Afternoon vs Hicks' Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Rainy Afternoon on one side and Hicks' Blue on the other.
Digital color is approximate. These simulations are generated from the manufacturer's hex values and overlaid on grayscale room photos — your screen's calibration, brightness, and viewing angle all affect how they render. Before committing to either color, test physical samples in your own space under the light you actually live with.
More Rainy Afternoon comparisons
See how Rainy Afternoon stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 30, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
Rainy Afternoon reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 30, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 30 vs 30), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 30, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
With LRVs of 30 and 27, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 43 vs 30, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 30 vs 4, Rainy Afternoon is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
Rainy Afternoon reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 30, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
A 8-point LRV gap (30 vs 21) makes Rainy Afternoon the marginally brighter of the two.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
At LRV 51 vs 30, Pigeon is decisively the brighter choice.
Rainy Afternoon reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Rainy Afternoon reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
A 11-point LRV gap (41 vs 30) makes Dix Blue the marginally brighter of the two.
Rainy Afternoon reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 30), opening up a space where Rainy Afternoon encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 31 vs 30), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 30 vs 7, Rainy Afternoon is decisively the brighter choice.