Dix Blue vs Spring Thaw
Where Dix Blue belongs to Farrow & Ball's range, Spring Thaw is a PPG color. These are both blue-greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within blue-grey to land. Spring Thaw (LRV 71) reflects noticeably more light than Dix Blue (LRV 41), a difference of 30 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. With a ΔE of 19.3, 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 6 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Dix Blue vs Spring Thaw in Real Spaces
6 real rooms side by side. Seeing Dix Blue and Spring Thaw 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 Spring Thaw 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. Spring Thaw 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. Spring Thaw 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. Spring Thaw reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dix Blue.
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. Spring Thaw reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dix Blue.
Front Door
A front door is a focal point — small color differences read clearly at this concentrated scale. The LRV gap is large enough that Spring Thaw will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Dix Blue would.
Color Details
Dix Blue vs Spring Thaw Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Dix Blue on one side and Spring Thaw 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 Dix Blue comparisons
See how Dix Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
