Smoky Tone vs Made in the Shade
Smoky Tone (Cloverdale Paint) and Made in the Shade (Valspar) come from different manufacturers. These are both greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within grey to land. The 3-point LRV gap — 36 for Smoky Tone vs 33 for Made in the Shade — means Smoky Tone will open up a space more effectively. ΔE 3.3 means they're clearly different, but not dramatically so — they'd pair well in the same room. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Smoky Tone vs Made in the Shade in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Smoky Tone and Made in the Shade 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
A living room wall sees more varied light than almost any other surface in the house, which makes the choice between these two more nuanced than a chip suggests. Smoky Tone reads slightly lighter here — a subtle but real difference in how open the space feels.
Bedroom
Bedrooms are typically lit with warmer, lower light than the rest of the house — a condition that flatters warm tones and deepens cool ones. Smoky Tone has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Color Details
Smoky Tone vs Made in the Shade Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Smoky Tone on one side and Made in the Shade 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 Smoky Tone comparisons
See how Smoky Tone stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
