Settled, side by side

Le Cygne — the swan — is a warm, matte ivory from the French house Ressource. It has the chalky, light-absorbing quality of old lime plaster, which is why it looks so at home on Haussmann panelling and ceiling roses: it softens the light rather than bouncing it around. Cream is present, yellow is not.

Creekbed is a true taupe — grey and brown balanced so evenly that it reads as neither, with a faint pink warmth underneath. At LRV 33 it is a mid-tone, dark enough to feel like a color and light enough to keep a small room from closing in. It is the shade of wet river stone.