Farrow and Ball Skimming Stone: Interior Guide for UK Homes

Farrow & Ball Skimming Stone No. 241 is a warm light grey, which the maker also calls a "stony off white". It belongs to the Contemporary Neutrals (Strong White, Skimming Stone, Elephant's Breath and Dove Tale, from lightest to darkest), its complementary white is Strong White No. 2001, and Farrow & Ball singles it out for soothing bedroom schemes. Is it grey or beige? On the published swatch it is a grey with a gentle yellow lean: warmer than Ammonite, far less yellow than a true stone such as Joa's White. Our lightness index, calculated from the swatch and not an official LRV, puts it at about 67 out of 100, roughly 15 points lighter than Elephant's Breath, its classic partner. Estate Emulsion (2% sheen) costs £61 for 2.5 litres and £103 for 5 litres; Modern Emulsion (7% sheen, washable) costs £66 and £111; a 100 ml sample pot is £5.95.

Descriptions, schemes, finish data and prices come from the Farrow & Ball website, read on 2 November 2026. Farrow & Ball prints no light reflectance value (LRV): the lightness, undertone and colour-difference figures below are our own calculations from the makers' published swatches.

What colour is Farrow & Ball Skimming Stone?

The Skimming Stone colour page says the name comes from a 19th-century skim, or plaster, colour, and describes "warm light grey undertones" that make it extremely versatile. It also suggests two ways of using it: with the lighter Strong White and darker Elephant's Breath for a clean, contemporary look, or in a darker statement scheme beside Pelt or London Clay.

To answer the question people ask most, grey or beige, we converted the swatch shown on that page (#DBD5CA) to CIELAB, the colour space that measures red against green (a*) and yellow against blue (b*). Skimming Stone has almost no red or green (a* 0.2) and a modest yellow tint (b* 6.2). Its chroma (total colourfulness) is about 6, where a strong colour scores 50 or more: a grey in most rooms, but never a cold one.

The lightness index is the relative luminance of the on-screen swatch, from 0 (black) to 100 (white): not an LRV, but it ranks colours in the right order. Skimming Stone matches Ammonite's depth with more warmth; Joa's White, one of the maker's Warm Neutrals, carries almost twice as much yellow. Our verdict: a warm grey that can drift towards beige in warm light, not a beige that looks grey.

The Contemporary Neutrals page adds that the whole group owes its welcoming feel to a lilac undertone. We measure no lilac in Skimming Stone's swatch, so expect that hint of purple only in cooler light, as a softness rather than a colour.

Skimming Stone in the Contemporary Neutrals

Farrow & Ball builds its neutral groups so that the shades can run through a house together. For this group it suggests Elephant's Breath, the strongest shade, on hallway walls; Skimming Stone for a light touch in living areas; and Strong White in kitchens alongside chrome appliances. The accent colours it lists are Charleston Gray, Pelt, Dix Blue, Card Room Green and Calamine.

The difference column is CIEDE2000 between the swatches: around 1 is hard to tell apart, above 5 clearly different. Strong White (3.9) gives a soft, tonal frame; Elephant's Breath (5.7) a contrast you notice from the doorway.

Skimming Stone and Elephant's Breath together

This is the pairing behind a lot of searches, and Farrow & Ball shows it in both directions. On the Skimming Stone page, one suggested scheme puts Skimming Stone on the walls, Elephant's Breath as the accent and Dove Tale on the trim. On the Elephant's Breath page, the first scheme simply swaps the first two: Elephant's Breath walls, Skimming Stone accent, Dove Tale trim. The maker also sells a sample selection of three 100 ml pots, Ammonite, Skimming Stone and Elephant's Breath, presented as three of its most popular greys.

How to decide which goes where:

• Skimming Stone walls, Elephant's Breath accent keeps the room light: the deeper shade goes on a chimney breast, in alcoves or below a dado rail.
• Elephant's Breath walls, Skimming Stone accent feels cosier, with Skimming Stone above a picture rail or on the ceiling.
• Across a house, follow the maker's layout: Elephant's Breath in the hall, Skimming Stone in the rooms off it, Strong White in the kitchen.

A warning from the Elephant's Breath page: it can become almost lilac in the cooler light of west-facing rooms, so a duo that looks balanced in a sunny back room may look pinker in the front one. Our page on Elephant's Breath No. 229 covers that colour on its own, and our warm greige paint colours guide sets both shades beside Drop Cloth and the Dulux warm neutrals.

Ceilings, woodwork and accent colours

The official complementary white is Strong White, which Farrow & Ball describes as a cool, grey-based white with a subtle urban feel. Because it sits only 9 points above Skimming Stone on our index, ceilings and skirting stay soft rather than bright. The three schemes on the Skimming Stone page give the full range of options:

• Warm and tonal: Skimming Stone walls, Elephant's Breath accent, Dove Tale trim. The woodwork is darker than the walls, a look that suits panelled doors and deep skirting in older houses.
• Light and fresh: Skimming Stone walls, Wimborne White accent, Strong White trim. Wimborne White, named after the Dorset market town that is home to Farrow & Ball, is a just-off-white with a little warm yellow pigment.
• Soft colour: Skimming Stone walls, Calluna accent (a tranquil lilac named after Scottish heather) and Pelt on the trim, a deep purple.

For the cleanest white on woodwork, the All White page says it pairs seamlessly with Skimming Stone and Strong White for a warm scheme with a slight edge, without the cold blue undertone of a brilliant white.

Pelt, which can look almost black in darker spaces, takes Skimming Stone as its own complementary white. London Clay, a warm brown loaded with magenta pigment, is the maker's accent for Elephant's Breath and Charleston Gray. Both come from the Farrow & Ball Archive: made to order, non-returnable, and on 2 November 2026 listed without a 100 ml sample pot. For timber floors and furniture there is no official rule: hold the sample against the wood in daylight.

Skimming Stone in British light: north, south, east and west

Farrow & Ball's own guides give two pieces of advice that seem to pull apart. Its guide on how light affects colour says northern light brings out the cooler tones in a colour, so a lighter tone in a north-facing room should avoid a blue or grey base. Its guide to grey paint then names Skimming Stone as a clever choice for counteracting the cooler light of north-facing rooms. Both hold because Skimming Stone's tint is yellow, not blue. Dulux agrees: its guide to the best shades for north, south, east or west-facing rooms says greys and whites with hints of pink, gold and yellow add subtle warmth to north-facing spaces.

A British complication: in a terrace knocked through from front to back, the two halves of the living room often face opposite ways, so sample both ends. Farrow & Ball says halogen bulbs warm wall colours, cool white bulbs cool them and a neutral white bulb is truest; Dulux adds that compact fluorescents can wash out subtle neutrals. If the room faces north, our guide to paint colours for north-facing rooms goes further on colour choices for that aspect, and Dulux's advice on decorating a north-facing room adds pale furniture and layered lighting to the list.

Room by room: where Skimming Stone works

• Bedrooms. The maker's first suggestion. In an attic bedroom, carry the colour onto the ceiling to soften the angles. See our bedroom paint colours guide and small bedroom colours guide.
• Living rooms. The group page's choice for living areas. In a period front room, paint below the picture rail in Skimming Stone and the frieze and ceiling in Strong White. See our living room paint colours guide.
• Hallways and stairs. Choose Modern Emulsion, perhaps with Elephant's Breath or Dove Tale on the lower wall. Our hallway paint colours guide covers durable finishes.
• Kitchens and bathrooms. Use Modern Emulsion, which Farrow & Ball describes as washable and protected against mould, never Estate Emulsion. See our kitchen paint colours guide and bathroom paint colours guide.
• Nurseries. Farrow & Ball states its Estate Emulsion is certified toy-safe to EN 71-3. See our nursery paint colours guide.
• Period houses. Skimming Stone is also sold in Casein Distemper, Soft Distemper and Limewash, finishes suited to old plaster. Read our period property interior colours guide before choosing one.

Which finish? Estate Emulsion, Modern Emulsion and the end of Estate Eggshell

Sheen changes how a colour looks, and Farrow & Ball says it adjusts the formula for every finish so the colour stays balanced. The three finishes most people weigh for Skimming Stone walls and woodwork, from each finish page and the Skimming Stone price list on 2 November 2026:

What sheen is Modern Emulsion? 7%, which Farrow & Ball still calls matt; Estate Emulsion is 2%, chalkier and, the maker says, better at minimising imperfections. Choose Estate for a bedroom or formal sitting room, Modern for kitchens, bathrooms, halls and children's rooms.

Estate Eggshell is no longer sold, though older guides still specify it for skirting and doors. Farrow & Ball's Estate Eggshell range update names Flat Eggshell as the closest equivalent, virtually indistinguishable once applied. For more shine on trim, Modern Eggshell has a 40% sheen at the same price. Dead Flat (2.5 L £81, 5 L £132) covers walls, woodwork and metal in one very matt finish.

Worked example: a 3.6 m by 3.2 m bedroom with a 2.4 m ceiling has about 29.5 m² of wall after a door and a window, so 59 m² for two coats: about 4.2 litres of Estate Emulsion (one 5 litre tin, £103) or 4.9 litres of Modern Emulsion (5 L, £111, with nothing spare). Coverage figures are maximums on smooth, primed surfaces; the maker recommends its White and Light Tones Primer & Undercoat. Hiring someone? Our UK interior decorator cost guide covers day rates.

On solvents, interior matt wall and ceiling paints sold in the UK are capped at 30 grams of VOC per litre by the Volatile Organic Compounds in Paints, Varnishes and Vehicle Refinishing Products Regulations 2012. Farrow & Ball states that its whole range has been water based since 2010 and is rated A+ for indoor air quality, and that every tin is made in Dorset.

Closest Sherwin-Williams and Dulux colours (not official matches)

Farrow & Ball argues on its colour pages that its paint cannot be matched. These are only the closest swatches on screen (CIEDE2000 between the hex values on each maker's website): a shortlist to sample, not substitutes.

Cross-check: Limewash, with a published LRV of about 67, has a swatch almost identical to Skimming Stone's, and our index gives Skimming Stone 67. That supports the method, but it is not Skimming Stone's LRV. For a UK project the Dulux names are easier to buy. For ranges and prices side by side, see our Dulux Heritage vs Farrow & Ball comparison.

How to test Skimming Stone before you commit

A 100 ml sample pot costs £5.95. With a colour this quiet, compare it with its neighbours:

1. Sample three at once: Ammonite (balanced), Skimming Stone (warm) and Elephant's Breath (deeper) show whether your room needs more warmth or more depth.
2. Paint two coats on card, at least A3, with a white border so the old wall colour does not distort the reading.
3. Move the samples between the window wall and the darkest corner, morning, late afternoon and after dark.
4. Check them against what stays: floorboards, carpet, sofa, worktop.

Our guide on how to test paint colours before buying explains how to read a sample through the day, and our Farrow & Ball Ammonite guide covers the cooler alternative at the same depth.

Sources and references

• Farrow & Ball, Skimming Stone No. 241: description, name origin, complementary white, recommended primer, suggested schemes, swatch colour, finishes and prices.
• Farrow & Ball, colour pages for Elephant's Breath, Strong White, Dove Tale, Charleston Gray, London Clay, Pelt, Calluna, Wimborne White, All White, Ammonite and Joa's White (most linked in the text): descriptions, complementary whites, schemes, Archive status, sample selection, swatch colours.
• Farrow & Ball, Contemporary Neutrals, How Light Affects Colour and Our Guide to Grey Paint: the group and its uses, light by aspect, bulbs, Skimming Stone in north-facing rooms.
• Farrow & Ball, finish pages for Estate Emulsion, Modern Emulsion, Flat Eggshell, Modern Eggshell and the Estate Eggshell range update: use, sheen, coverage, drying times, washability, discontinuation.
• Dulux UK, Best shades for north, south, east or west-facing rooms and How to decorate a north-facing room: light by orientation, effect of bulbs; colour pages for Khaki Mists 5, Weathered Pebble and Egyptian Cotton: swatch colours.
• Sherwin-Williams, colour pages for Limewash SW 9589 and Egret White SW 7570, with LRV and hex values from Sherwin-Williams' public colour data (api.sherwin-williams.com).
• legislation.gov.uk, VOC Regulations 2012, Schedule 2: VOC limit for interior matt wall and ceiling paints.
• Lightness index, CIELAB tint and colour differences: FacadeColorizer calculation (relative luminance, CIELAB, CIEDE2000) from the hex values on the makers' colour pages, 2 November 2026.