The Color Digest · Compare
Settled, side by side
Brinjal
Farrow & Ball · No. 222
Aubergine skin, not aubergine flesh
Socialite
Sherwin-Williams · SW 6025
A grown-up mauve with a brown backbone
In real rooms
Every room, each colorBrinjal
1 roomThe difference
Read from the numbersSocialite is the lighter of the two at LRV 20, 13 points above Brinjal at LRV 7. Both read warm. Both belong to the reds & purples family. For a whole room, Socialite is the safer, more forgiving choice thanks to its higher LRV, while Brinjal is the bolder pick.
How they read
In their own wordsBrinjal is the Hindi word for aubergine, and the color is exactly the skin of one: a deep, brown-based plum that reads almost black until light finds the purple in it. With an LRV around 7 it is a true dark, and it is one of the most flattering darks there is — warmer than navy, softer than black, richer than charcoal.
Socialite is a muted, dusty rose built on a brown base — close enough to mauve to feel romantic, grounded enough to never read as pink. With a low LRV near 20 it brings real depth, the kind of moody, grayed red that makes a dining room or powder room feel considered.