Dimity vs Basil
Where Dimity belongs to Farrow & Ball's range, Basil is a Sherwin-Williams color. Dimity reads as beige, while Basil reads as green-grey — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Dimity (LRV 78) reflects noticeably more light than Basil (LRV 15), a difference of 63 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Dimity runs warm while Basil is decidedly neutral, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 46.5, 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 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Dimity vs Basil in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Dimity and Basil 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 Dimity will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Basil 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. Dimity reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Basil.
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. Dimity reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Basil.
House
Seen across an entire facade, subtle tonal differences become pronounced. What reads as nearly the same on a chip often reads as clearly different at scale. Dimity reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Basil.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Dimity reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Basil.
Color Details
Dimity vs Basil Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Dimity on one side and Basil 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 Dimity comparisons
See how Dimity stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
