Simmering Smoke vs Fawn Brindle
Simmering Smoke (PPG) and Fawn Brindle (Sherwin-Williams) come from different manufacturers. Both sit in the greige-grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. Their light reflectance values are nearly the same — 36 vs 36 — so neither will read significantly brighter or darker than the other. A ΔE of 2.0 puts them in subtle territory — distinguishable in direct comparison, less so from across a room. Below you'll find 7 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Simmering Smoke vs Fawn Brindle in Real Spaces
7 real rooms side by side. Simmering Smoke and Fawn Brindle are close enough that the difference can be hard to judge from a chip alone — these photos show how each reads at scale, across different spaces and lighting conditions.
Living Room
A living room wall sees more varied light than almost any other surface in the house, which makes the choice between these two more nuanced than a chip suggests. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Bedroom
Bedrooms are typically lit with warmer, lower light than the rest of the house — a condition that flatters warm tones and deepens cool ones. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Kitchen
Kitchens often have the harshest, most revealing light in the house — under-cabinet LEDs and overhead fixtures that strip away subtlety. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Bathroom
Small bathrooms intensify color. A shade that seems quiet in a larger room can feel immersive when you're surrounded by it on four walls. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Home Office
Home office walls matter more than most — you're looking at them all day, and a color that reads fine at first can become tiring over time. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
House
A full exterior is the most demanding test for a paint color — scale and outdoor light both amplify differences that seem small on a swatch. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Front Door
On a front door, the color is both the first and last thing you see — a context where even a modest tonal difference reads clearly. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Color Details
Simmering Smoke vs Fawn Brindle Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Simmering Smoke on one side and Fawn Brindle 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 Simmering Smoke comparisons
See how Simmering Smoke stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 83 vs 36, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.
At LRV 36 vs 6, Simmering Smoke is decisively the brighter choice.
Purbeck Stone reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.
Simmering Smoke reads slightly lighter (LRV 36 vs 30), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 36, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
Agreeable Gray reflects far more light (LRV 60 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.
At LRV 58 vs 36, Accessible Beige is decisively the brighter choice.
A 9-point LRV gap (36 vs 27) makes Simmering Smoke the marginally brighter of the two.
French Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 43 vs 36), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Simmering Smoke reflects far more light (LRV 36 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
At LRV 55 vs 36, Tranquil Dawn is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 36 vs 13, Simmering Smoke is decisively the brighter choice.
A 8-point LRV gap (44 vs 36) makes Hardwick White the marginally brighter of the two.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.
Simmering Smoke reflects far more light (LRV 36 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
At LRV 66 vs 36, Balboa Mist is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 74 vs 36, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 36, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 36 vs 12, Simmering Smoke is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 36, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Dix Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 41 vs 36), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Calamine reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.
Simmering Smoke reads slightly lighter (LRV 36 vs 25), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 36 vs 12, Simmering Smoke is decisively the brighter choice.
A 9-point LRV gap (45 vs 36) makes Saybrook Sage the marginally brighter of the two.
Simmering Smoke reads slightly lighter (LRV 36 vs 31), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Simmering Smoke reflects far more light (LRV 36 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.
Simmering Smoke reads slightly lighter (LRV 36 vs 24), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Guilford Green reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 36), opening up a space where Simmering Smoke encloses it.