Flax Flower vs Merlins Beard
Both are Cloverdale Paint colors. These are both beiges, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within beige to land. With LRVs of 76 and 77, they'll behave almost identically in terms of how much light they reflect back into a room. With a ΔE of 1.4, the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side to reliably tell them apart. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Flax Flower vs Merlins Beard in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Flax Flower and Merlins Beard are close enough that the difference can be hard to judge from a chip alone — these photos show how each reads at scale, across different spaces and lighting conditions.
Living Room
Living rooms test a color across a full range of conditions — morning sun, afternoon shade, and evening lamp light all shift how both of these read. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Bedroom
Bedroom walls are often seen under warm artificial light, a context that shifts both colors from how they look on a chip. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Kitchen
Kitchen lighting tends to be bright and directional, which sharpens contrast and makes undertone differences more apparent. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Dining Room
Dining room light is typically the warmest in the house, which shifts both colors toward the red end of the spectrum compared to daylight. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Bathroom
Bathrooms amplify color — the enclosed space and reflective surfaces make what reads subtle elsewhere feel more present here. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Color Details
Flax Flower vs Merlins Beard Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Flax Flower on one side and Merlins Beard 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 Flax Flower comparisons
See how Flax Flower stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Flax Flower reads slightly lighter (LRV 76 vs 69), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 7-point LRV gap (83 vs 76) makes White Dove the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 76 vs 6, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 52), opening up a space where Purbeck Stone encloses it.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
At LRV 76 vs 52, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 60), opening up a space where Agreeable Gray encloses it.
At LRV 76 vs 58, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 76 vs 27, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 43), opening up a space where French Gray encloses it.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
At LRV 76 vs 55, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 76 vs 13, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 76 vs 44, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
Pure White reads slightly lighter (LRV 84 vs 76), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
A 10-point LRV gap (76 vs 66) makes Flax Flower the marginally brighter of the two.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 76 vs 74), so neither reads brighter in a room.
A 7-point LRV gap (83 vs 76) makes Snowbound the marginally brighter of the two.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 51), opening up a space where Pigeon encloses it.
At LRV 76 vs 12, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 76 vs 8, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
A 8-point LRV gap (76 vs 68) makes Flax Flower the marginally brighter of the two.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 41), opening up a space where Dix Blue encloses it.
At LRV 76 vs 12, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 76 vs 45, Flax Flower is decisively the brighter choice.
Flax Flower reflects far more light (LRV 76 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.