Hicks' Blue vs Downing Straw
Where Hicks' Blue belongs to Little Greene's range, Downing Straw is a Sherwin-Williams color. Hicks' Blue reads as blue, while Downing Straw reads as beige — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Downing Straw has an LRV of 43. Hicks' Blue runs blue while Downing Straw is decidedly warm, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 53.7, 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 1 real-room photo comparison where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Hicks' Blue vs Downing Straw in Real Spaces
1 real room side by side. Seeing Hicks' Blue and Downing Straw in actual rooms makes the difference concrete; browse the spaces below to get a feel for how each color lives on a wall.
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. The distinction reads clearly at room scale, making the choice between them concrete.
Color Details
Hicks' Blue vs Downing Straw Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Hicks' Blue on one side and Downing Straw 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 Hicks' Blue comparisons
See how Hicks' Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
