Pale Powder vs Artichoke
Where Pale Powder belongs to Farrow & Ball's range, Artichoke is a Sherwin-Williams color. These are both greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within grey to land. Pale Powder (LRV 70) reflects noticeably more light than Artichoke (LRV 21), a difference of 49 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Pale Powder runs warm while Artichoke is decidedly neutral, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 35.6, 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.
Pale Powder vs Artichoke in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Pale Powder and Artichoke 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 Pale Powder will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Artichoke 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. Pale Powder reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Artichoke.
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. Pale Powder reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Artichoke.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Pale Powder reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Artichoke.
Color Details
Pale Powder vs Artichoke Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Pale Powder on one side and Artichoke 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 Pale Powder comparisons
See how Pale Powder stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
