Mizzle vs Dress Blues
Where Mizzle belongs to Farrow & Ball's range, Dress Blues is a Sherwin-Williams color. Mizzle reads as grey, while Dress Blues reads as blue — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Mizzle (LRV 52) reflects noticeably more light than Dress Blues (LRV 5), a difference of 46 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Mizzle runs warm while Dress Blues is decidedly cool, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 57.2, 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 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Mizzle vs Dress Blues in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Mizzle and Dress Blues 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 Mizzle will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Dress Blues 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. Mizzle reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dress Blues.
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. Mizzle reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dress Blues.
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. Mizzle reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Dress Blues.
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 Mizzle will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Dress Blues would.
Color Details
Mizzle vs Dress Blues Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Mizzle on one side and Dress Blues 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 Mizzle comparisons
See how Mizzle stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 52), opening up a space where Mizzle encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 52 vs 52), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 52 vs 30, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
A 9-point LRV gap (60 vs 52) makes Agreeable Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Accessible Beige reads slightly lighter (LRV 58 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
A 8-point LRV gap (52 vs 43) makes Mizzle the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Mizzle reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 44), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 84 vs 52, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 52), opening up a space where Mizzle encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 52), opening up a space where Mizzle encloses it.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 52), opening up a space where Mizzle encloses it.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Mizzle reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 45), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 31, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 52 vs 7, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 52 vs 24, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
A 6-point LRV gap (57 vs 52) makes Guilford Green the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 72 vs 52, Just Walnut is decisively the brighter choice.