Swirling Smoke vs Snowbound
Where Swirling Smoke belongs to PPG's range, Snowbound is a Sherwin-Williams color. Hue-wise, Swirling Smoke belongs to the greige-grey family and Snowbound to the beige-greige family. Snowbound (LRV 83) reflects noticeably more light than Swirling Smoke (LRV 60), a difference of 23 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. With a ΔE of 11.6, 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 8 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Swirling Smoke vs Snowbound in Real Spaces
8 real rooms side by side. Seeing Swirling Smoke and Snowbound 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 Snowbound will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Swirling Smoke 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. Snowbound reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Swirling Smoke.
Kitchen
In a kitchen, colors are seen under bright task lighting that amplifies undertones — what reads neutral elsewhere can show its hand here. Snowbound reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Swirling Smoke.
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. Snowbound 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. Snowbound reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Swirling Smoke.
Home Office
The test for a home office color isn't how it looks in a quick glance — it's whether it still feels right after a full day of work. Snowbound reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Swirling Smoke.
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. Snowbound reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Swirling Smoke.
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 Snowbound will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Swirling Smoke would.
Color Details
Swirling Smoke vs Snowbound Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Swirling Smoke on one side and Snowbound 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 Swirling Smoke comparisons
See how Swirling Smoke stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
