Azure Tide vs Dress Blues
Both from Sherwin-Williams's palette. Both sit in the blue family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. Azure Tide (LRV 12) reflects noticeably more light than Dress Blues (LRV 5), a difference of 7 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Both lean cool, so they'll behave similarly in mixed or changing light conditions. With a ΔE of 14.1, 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 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Azure Tide vs Dress Blues in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing Azure Tide 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 brightness difference is modest but present — Azure Tide gives the walls a little more lift.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Azure Tide reads slightly lighter here — a subtle but real difference in how open the space feels.
Color Details
Azure Tide vs Dress Blues Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Azure Tide 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.