Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog (9130): Undertones, Lighting, & Real-Home Results
Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog is a soft, medium, cool green paint color. It works well on accent walls, kitchen cabinets, and interior walls, especially in bedrooms.
Homeowners often ask, ‘Is Evergreen Fog too green? Is it good for cabinets? Too dark for a dark room? Warm or cool?’ And these are great questions to ask before you start slapping any paint color on your home.
Like all paint colors, LRV, undertones, and temperature can affect how Evergreen Fog looks, especially as lighting conditions change. So, let’s find out how these gorgeous green works, to see if it’s YOUR best paint color.
IS EVERGREEN FOG GREEN, GRAY, OR NEUTRAL?
Make no bones about (and preferably no boners either), Evergreen Fog is a green paint color. However, not every green is created equal…
- WARM GREEN – green with a yellow undertone
- COOL GREEN – green with a cool undertone
The neat thing about Evergreen Fog is that visually, it kind of hovers in the middle. For example, if it were a cool green paint color, it would look better with this rug (which is a cool green)…
Sooooo, is it warm or cool?
While it’s nowhere near olive green, which is a warmer, muddier shade, technically, Evergreen Fog is a warm green; it just doesn’t act like a typical one.
Many people would call Evergreen Fog a ‘slightly more grayed-out’ sage green.
One of the great things about Evergreen Fog is that it holds its hue very well regardless of whether your room faces north, south, east, or west.
What does this mean? Well, the more neutral a color is, the more likely it is to shift in different lighting conditions. While Evergreen Fog isn’t OVERLY colorful, it usually ‘looks green’ and doesn’t morph too much.
North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?
All the photos on my blog are from my Online Color Consulting clients, readers, & friends—because real homes deserve to be celebrated (dirty laundry & all!). While not magazine-perfect, they’re packed with ideas & proven color choices to help you create a home you’ll love.
THE LRV (DEPTH) OF EVERGREEN FOG
Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog has an LRV of 30. This means it’s a medium-depth green – not too light, not too dark (although that can change based on perception).
With an LRV of 30, Evergreen Fog can hold its color pretty well in an overly bright room without washing out as much as lighter shades.
Not sure what LRV is? It could save your paint-lovin’ life – read all about it HERE.
IS IT TOO DARK FOR A DARK OR LOW-LIGHT ROOM?
It depends on your perception. For ME, yes, I’d find it a bit too dark for a room with low lighting. To improve that, I might choose a green with a bit more color (chroma), so it shows up a bit more in lower light. Or (novel idea) I’d improve my interior lighting sitch.
That said, green paint colors often show up a bit more in the evening, so sample it for 24 hours (or more) before deciding.
But it’s not all about me… not all the time, anyway. It could be just what YOU’RE looking for.
How to Make a Dark Room Look Brighter – and it ain’t with paint!
The Best LIGHT Paint Colors for a DARK room
IS EVERGREEN FOG STILL POPULAR?
Heck yeah, Evergreen Fog is as popular as ever. While it first appeared en masse thanks to its status as ‘Sherwin-Williams Color of the Year for 2022’, it’s still going strong.
Initially, it was used for accent walls, but as the green trend took hold, people used it in entire rooms, kitchen cabinets, islands, and exteriors.
Evergreen Fog ain’t no one-trick pony.
WHAT ARE EVERGREN FOG’S UNDERTONES?
Evergreen Fog is a green paint color with a warm gray undertone. While there’s some yellow in there, it never shows up at the party. Unlike me, I show up with tassels on…and not much else.
That said, even though Evergreen Fog is slightly warm, in my experience (extensive), I’ve found it to look balanced, if not slightly cool, most of the time – some greens are funny that way.
The green-gray of Evergreen Fog is one of the reasons it’s so popular. While some green hues can come across as a little too strong, the gray helps calm it down while leaving a glorious green on your walls #kermitapprovesofthismessage.
Here’s your Peel & Stick sample of Evergreen Fog…
And it shows up on your doorstep tomorrow!
THE BEST WHITE TRIM OR CABINET COLOR WITH EVERGREEN FOG
So many people don’t consider their trim or cabinets when choosing a color like Evergreen Fog; choosing whites all willy-nilly. While it’s pretty darn flexible, there are a few things to consider…
- The warmer your white is, the more yellow it can appear compared to green. This means that your previously muted-looking white could look surprisingly colorful.
- Evergreen Fog suits MANY warm whites, but for the above reason, leans into those with a more muted approach. A few of my favorites are Sherwin Williams Pure White, Alabaster, and Benjamin Moore White Dove.
- While Evergreen Fog can handle some cool whites, it prefers a WHITER white like Sherwin Williams White Snow or Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace (fave).
WHERE EVERGREEN FOG DOES (& DOESN’T) WORK
Just because we love a color doesn’t mean it makes sense to use it on or around certain finishes in our home. Let’s take a look at a few hot topics…
EVERGREEN FOG ON KITCHEN CABINETS…
As far as painted cabinets go, Evergreen Fog is amazeballs. Main cabinets, kitchen islands, bathroom vanities – it does them all.
And it’s not just me who feels this way, many of my Online Paint Color Consulting clients agree (they’ve been drinkin’ the Kylie Koolaid).
While recent trends focused on darker shades of green, Evergreen Fog is making its mark on the cabinet world.
Why?
Seeeeriously, it looks WAY more blue-green than usual in the above kitchen.
Evergreen Fog has enough color (chroma) to step out of the neutral range but not so much that it’s overwhelming or shockingly green.
Also, its depth (LRV) offers a bit of depth and body without being too heavy.
AS AN EXTERIOR PAINT COLOR…
Green can be tricky as it doesn’t always go with all brick, stonework, and roof colors. This doesn’t mean it won’t work with yours, but make sure that green is a natural choice for your home, as it already exists (e.g., in the roof) or contrasts/complements any features (e.g., brick or stone).
That said, if you’re considering green for your exterior, I hope Evergreen Fog is amongst your samples.
However, as this gorgeous exterior (below) shows, grays or greiges with green undertones are more common than greens like Evergreen Fog. The fact is, they tend to suit exterior finishes better.
5 Tips for Choosing an Exterior Paint Color
Does Your Exposure REALLY MATTER When Choosing EXTERIOR Paint Colors?
EVERGREEN FOG WITH CREAM OR WOOD TRIMS & CABINETS
CREAM TRIM & CABINETS: While you can try, the green hue of Evergreen Fog can really jack up the yellow-cream of your cabinets and trims – I wouldn’t do it. You might consider more muddy, medium-toned greige paint colors.
WOOD TRIM & CABINETS: Heck yes, Evergreen Fog is gorgeous with most wood stains, whether you have wood trim, cabinets, flooring, or furniture.
Look how gorgeous it looks in this 1990s home bar with its oak wood panelling and beams…
Just note that if you have cherry wood or wood with a stronger red or pink undertone, Evergreen Fog will contrast this and can make it look stronger. On the other hand, green can be a beautiful choice if you have golden oak wood finishes and want to contrast them (fewer people are bothered by this combo compared to the green-pink one).
WHICH COLORS ARE SIMILAR?
Where do I even START?!
Magnolia Silverado Sage is gorgeous, as shown on this feature wall below. Believe it or not, it’s also on the snippet of the door on the far right; it’s just in an area with more natural light…
Farrow & Ball Green Smoke is a STUNNER if you want a bit more depth and green to show up to the party…
Jeez, Louise, are my clients ever TALENTED – I LOVE YOU GUYS!
If you’re looking for a green that’s a touch grayer, greener, lighter, or darker, I’ve got a few more for you to compare with Evergreen Fog.
SHERWIN WILLIAMS EVERGREEN FOG vs. ACACIA HAZE
These are two great colors; similar in many ways, with a few defining features. Evergreen Fog is a great ‘middle of the road’ green paint color; not hardcore green-blue or green-yellow, and with a moderate degree of color (chroma). On the otherhand, while Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze has a similar degree of color, it comes off a bit cooler (green-blue).
Comparing these helps you see that shift. Evergreen Fog is also a touch darker (Acacia Haze’s LRV is 32, compared to EG’s 30).
Color Review of Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze
Benjamin Moore doesn’t have many shades that directly compare, but there are still a few worth exploring.
EVERGREEN FOG vs. BENJAMIN OCTOBER MIST
Ahhhh, the two giants in the wild world of green – and you thought the Green Giant was the boss (I do love peas, and I’m sure I also dated myself with that comment). While comparing these two might seem like a good idea, they approach green in different ways and may not suit the same project.
October Mist has an LRV of 46, making it considerably lighter. October Mist is also a noticeably warmer green, making Evergreen Fog look cooler in comparison.
Color Review of Benjamin Moore’s October Mist
EVERGREEN FOG VS. SHERWIN WILLIAMS DRIED THYME
Dried Thyme is gorgeous and a great alternative to Evergreen Fog.
Why?
Well, first off, they’re on the same color strip, so you’re dealing with a similar TYPE of green. But while Dried Thyme can settle a bit greener than Evergreen Fog, the main difference is in depth.
Evergreen Fog has an LRV of 30, parking it snugly in the bosom of the medium range. Dried Thyme sits at 21, putting it in the lower end of this range and making it look darker.
Sherwin Williams Dried Thyme: Color Review
WHAT COLORS GO WITH EVERGREEN FOG IN A PALETTE?
One of the many things I love about Evergreen Fog is its openness to coordinating colors. Whereas some other greens are too colorful to be flexible and others have too much gray in them to really be green, Evergreen Fog is the perfect blend, allowing for a wide range of partners, just like me. JUST JOKING!!!!!
Ideas to Add Interest to a Small Bathroom
While it depends on what you need this color for (cabinet, walls, adjoining room, other walls in a room, etc.), here are a few shades to consider…
- SOFT GREIGES: Some subtle greiges, such as Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray, can work, but I would avoid a color with much purple undertone.
- MUTED BEIGES: Super-muted, toned-down beiges can look great with Evergreen Fog.
- FLEXIBLE OFF-WHITES: Muted off-white paint colors help slow the energy down in a room and let Evergreen Fog be the star of the show.
- WHITE PAINT COLORS: Soft, warm whites and bright whites can look amazeballs.
- DARK GRAY PAINT COLORS: Some dark grays can be gorgeous, simple accents to the beauty of green.
- DARK BLUES: A range of medium to dark shades of blue can be great accents with Evergreen Fog.
QUICK SUMMARY (TL;DR)
- Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog is a slightly warm green paint color with a gray undertone.
- Its LRV of 30 makes it a medium-depth, popular choice for accent walls, rooms, cabinets, and exteriors.
- While it’s beautiful with a wide range of wood finishes, it’s touchy with cream cabinets and trims.
READ MORE
Sherwin Williams Retreat (A Gorgeous GREEN!)
The 8 Best Green-Blue Blend Paint Colors
Benjamin Moore October Mist Paint Color Review
Get the best paint color advice with Kylie M’s Online Paint Color Consulting – I’d love to help!
How does SW Pewter Green compare to Evergreen Fog?
Oooo, you’ll see a GOOD difference between the two. Evergreen Fog is lighter with its LRV of 30, whereas Pewter Green comes in lower at 12, so it’s a substantial shift. Pewter Green is also a TOUCH cooler without flashing blue (EG doesn’t flash blue either though) :).
Excellent article. Evergreen Fog is absolutely gorgeous! If I had another house, I too would definitely use it!
Thank you, Madison! I’m SUPER EXCITED to use it in our lake home as it doesn’t suit our current house at all :).
Great article, thank you, it’s a fabulous colour. We had considered adding this colour to rooms (west, northwest and a dark kitchen that gets filtered south light from under a porch) that already have warm whites to creme tones and a bit of griege ( BM HC 27, BM HC 83 , BM CSP 245) Are these tones too warm to partner well? Alternately we were considering BM CC 602 which is very olive grey. Thanks for all your great articles.
Hi Tracie!~ While I miiiiight put HC 27, HC 83 in adjoining rooms in a palette, if I HAD to, I’m not totally loving them together. CSP 245 is better as it’s a bit more muted than HC 27. I would AVOID 602 as it has too much green in it, making it look like competition to Evergreen Fog – it’s not nearly neutral enough. Overall, I would stick with more MUTED warm tones and a greige-green that’s DEFINITELY more greige (leaning into gray) and considerably less green.
Do you think evergreen fog would work on kitchen walls in a kitchen with honey oak cabinets? Thanks.
Oh, it could be STUNNING, as long as you love the idea of the oak cabinets looking that bit stronger 🙂
This article was so helpful! I looooove this color. Which white are you pairing it with in your lake house? We decided to use Evergreen Fog in our west facing bathroom which doesn’t get much natural light (on shiplap behind the vanity). I’m not great with color theory and having a difficult time figuring out which white to use in the rest of the space!
The shower subway tile and vanity are both white, with no undertones that we can tell (at least no warm undertones!). Baseboards and doors are planned to be SW Pure White.
Hi Amber! I’ve chosen White Dove, but this will likely be too warm for your tile and vanity. You MIGHT even bump up to SW High Reflective White or BM Chantilly Lace, see which one blends the best with your vanity/tile 🙂
Hi Kylie, is Repose Gray 75% a no go with Evergreen Fog in a super bright great room? Not sure if Repose has too much of a violet undertone. Hubby and I LOVE Evergreen Fog but maybe Gibraltar Cliffs works better? Trim is SW Pure White and floors light cooler tones white oak. Thanks!
Hi Laura! It’s hard to say without seeing this lightened version of RP, but my FIRST thought is that it feels okay. This being said, I LOOOOVE the idea of Gibraltar with REpose Gray without even thinking about it!
Would this make violet under tones in a tile floor pop or tone down?
It could make them pop a bit more as opposites do attract and can make each other stronger!
What do you think of gossamer veil for a wall color with evergreen fog as an island color – cabinet color is extra white. 🙂 I love evergreen fog – such a beautiful color.
Sounds lovely! You might darken Evergreen Fog by 25% though (maybe even 50%), just to give it a bit more depth/body.
This sounds like my color palette! Gossamer Veil is my all-purpose wall color, Extra White for trim and cabinets, and then I use Evergreen Fog and Outerspace as accents.
Thank you for all the amazing information! I wanted to add a pop of green to my area. I’ve painted the walls Asthetic white and the trim is High reflective white. I wanted to paint the doors in my house this colour. Would you recommend painting the trim around the door high reflective white or evergreen fog?
Thank you again 🙏
Oooo, awesome! And I woudl be inclined to leave the trim white myself 🙂
I am loving this colour!! Would Evergreen Fog work as an accent wall with the remaining walls being BM Elmira White?
Hi Kylie! Thank you for the amazing and useful information!
I have all my house painted in SW Creamy (trim: SW Pure white) and I want to add 2 accent walls, one in a southwest dining room and the other in a North facing room (open floor plan). All my hardware is satin gold brass with black accents. Do you think SW Evergreen Fog will be a good option for the accent walls? Thank you so much.
From the sounds of it, Evergreen Fog could be GORGEOUS!
Thank you so much !!
Hi Kylie,
We are painting our front room. I feel good about Evergreen Fog with the furniture and lighting, but want to know if it works with the neighboring rooms. Revere Pewter is in the foyer and SW Essential Gray is in the family room. All have SW Pure White trim. The foyer and family room are connected to the front room by French doors SW Tricorn Black. Not sure if the neighbor rooms “winks” of violet or green would look bad with E Fog. Thank you!
Hi Kylie,
Thank you so very much for your great insight on paint colors. What do you think of the following color combinations:
SW Evergreen Fog in limited amount of wall space in the Kitchen (with maple Buckskin stained cabinets)
SW Evergreen Fog in Dining Room (which is open to kitchen) and along north facing and east facing walls Living Room (which is open to dining room)
SW Loggia in he rest of the Living Room (west facing wall and east facing Foyer walls) *west facing wall leads to downstairs family room painted in Cupola by Magnolia
SW Shoji White for all trim.
Again, thank you for your awesome reviews and help.
Hi! Our entire home is painted SW modern gray with current white duck trim- we’re transitioning all the trim to SW pure white. I’m looking at painting the interior doors either SW evergreen fog or SW still water – which would you recommend?
Of those 2, I do like Evergreen Fog, as long as you’re good with being committed to green on a large scale 🙂
Hello! I LOVE all your insight into color. What do you think about the combination of Evergreen Fog on cabinets and Requisite Gray on the walls? Thank you so much in advance!
I feel like the green in Evergreen and the violet in Requisite could be a WINK too reactive with each other. Evergreen could make Requisite look that bit MORE violet, just in comparison.
Hi Kylie!
Love your posts! I’ve learned so much.
We’re painting our kitchen next week and I’m waffling with my color choices!
We live in the north half of a duplex, and the kitchen is on the west side. The afternoon sun comes in the slider door and there’s a north window above the sink. In the morning it’s quite dim.
I wanted to use evergreen fog for lower cabinets and a new pantry area, but I think it will absorb light I want to reflect into the kitchen and hopefully cast into the darker middle of the house. It’s all open concept.
So I’ve veered course, and I’m thinking SW neutral ground on the walls, SW alabaster for cabinets and Evergreen Fog on the small island.
(We have Baltic brown granite and a new light brown backsplash)
Hopefully the new plan is reasonable! I was so excited for evergreen fog, but I don’t want to dim the light we get any further. The darker backsplash already sucked out some light!
My laundry room cabinets are 25% less evergreen fog. I currently have simply white bead board and trim in the room but think it needs a warmer white. Would Greek Villa be a good choice? I have cle sandcastle thin brick tile on the floor.
THANKS!!! From one redhead to another, I’m a huge fan of yours!
I think this could look quite lovely!
I just painted the beadboard greek villa and I think it’s too green/yellow. I could stick with the simply white walls, trim and beadboard with evergreen fog cabinets or keep the walls simply white and do alabaster or white dove trim and headboard. Why is choosing colors so hard!! I think the simply white may be too crisp for evergreen fog…
Hi Kylie,
Great post, very helpful. My husband and I are thinking about going with SW Evergreen Fog in our mud room. We’ve got SW Pure White trim and thinking about going two tone with Evergreen Fog being on the bottom half and I’m not sure what color for the top, would you have any suggestions?
Hmmmm. It really could depend on the flooring and the look of the room it flows into. Might you consider simplifying the palette by doing board and batten or wainscoting on the bottom walls – in Pure White to match the trim and then Evergreen Fog on the upper walls? :).
Painting the cabinets SW Evergreen Fog do you think this will pair well with the current wall color being BM Pashmina AF? Pashmina is a greige… Hmmm what are your thoughts?
Hmmmm. So here’s the thing – I love BOTH of these colors very, very much. I just worry that Evergreen Fog needs either a) a bit more depth or b) a bit more gray or c) maybe even both, to sit REALLY well with Pashmina. Like if you told me you were considering SW Link Gray, which is one color over in the fan deck, one shade darker, and a bit grayer, I’d be like HECK YES!
Thank you! I have found your page immensely helpful! We painted our bedroom Evergreen Fog and are absolutely love it! We are working on a whole house color palette and we’re considering Edgecomb gray for the rest of the home – open-ish layout with big windows and lots of southern exposure. Will these two play nice? They won’t be in the same room, but they would be adjacent…
Oh heck yes, these could be beautiful in a palette together!
Happy to see this post. I also have Edgecomb Gray throughout my open living, dining, kitchen and looking at Evergreen Fog or Rockport Gray for accent wall. I have loved Evergreen Fog for years and have wanted to use it somewhere, but wasn’t sure it would work w/Edgecomb Gray.
Thank you so much for your response!!!
You’re MOST welcome 🙂
I’m painting my nursery and wanting to use evergreen fog for my accent wall (board and batten). The remaining walls are SW crushed ice. Do you think this combo would look good together? I painted a sample square on the wall, but it seems to be pulling more gray but not sure how it would look once the entire wall is done… thoughts?? I’d like to avoid having to paint the ceiling and other three walls, so if you have a suggestion of a sage green that goes better with crushed ice, I’m all ears!