Forged Steel vs Paper
Forged Steel is a Sherwin-Williams color while Paper comes from Tikkurila. Hue-wise, Forged Steel belongs to the grey family and Paper to the beige-greige family. At LRV 88 vs 10, Paper will read as the brighter of the two — a 78-point gap that matters most in north-facing or low-light rooms. At ΔE 56.8, these are genuinely distinct colors — a strong contrast if used together, or a meaningful choice between two different directions. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Forged Steel vs Paper in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing Forged Steel and Paper 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
Living rooms test a color across a full range of conditions — morning sun, afternoon shade, and evening lamp light all shift how both of these read. Paper returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
House
At full exterior scale, the difference between these two colors becomes much easier to judge than from a small chip. The LRV gap is large enough that Paper will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Forged Steel would.
Color Details
Forged Steel vs Paper Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Forged Steel on one side and Paper 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 Forged Steel comparisons
See how Forged Steel stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
