Thistle Gray vs Dix Blue
Where Thistle Gray belongs to Cloverdale Paint's range, Dix Blue is a Farrow & Ball color. Hue-wise, Thistle Gray belongs to the beige-greige family and Dix Blue to the blue-grey family. Thistle Gray (LRV 49) reflects noticeably more light than Dix Blue (LRV 41), a difference of 8 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. With a ΔE of 14.2, 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.
Thistle Gray vs Dix Blue in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Thistle Gray and Dix 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. The LRV gap is large enough that Thistle Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Dix Blue would.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Thistle Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dix Blue.
Dining Room
A dining room lit by a dimmed pendant or candles is one of the most forgiving environments for paint — warm light softens almost everything. Thistle Gray returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
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. Thistle Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dix Blue.
Color Details
Thistle Gray vs Dix Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Thistle Gray on one side and Dix 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 Thistle Gray comparisons
See how Thistle Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 49), opening up a space where Thistle Gray encloses it.
At LRV 83 vs 49, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 49 vs 6, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 52 and 49, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Thistle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 49 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 52 vs 49), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Agreeable Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 60 vs 49), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 9-point LRV gap (58 vs 49) makes Accessible Beige the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 49 vs 27, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Thistle Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 49 vs 43), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Thistle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 49 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
A 6-point LRV gap (55 vs 49) makes Tranquil Dawn the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 49 vs 13, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 5-point LRV gap (49 vs 44) makes Thistle Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 49), opening up a space where Thistle Gray encloses it.
Thistle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 49 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
At LRV 66 vs 49, Balboa Mist is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 74 vs 49, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 49, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 51 and 49, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 49 vs 12, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 49 vs 8, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 49, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 49 vs 12, Thistle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 4-point LRV gap (49 vs 45) makes Thistle Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Thistle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 49 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.
Thistle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 49 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.