Benjamin Moore Pashmina: Undertones, LRV & Real Home Use

Pashmina is one of Benjamin Moore’s more popular, slightly deeper neutral paint colors. And with trends leaning warmer and more organic, it’s no surprise that it’s showing even more on my Pinterest and Instagram feeds.

Whereas lighter greiges and taupes are great for the average room, Pashmina’s depth and approach make it popular for accent walls, cabinets, islands, exteriors, and more. However, with sneaky undertones, it’s not cut out for every job.

So, let’s wrap ourselves up in the warmth of Pashmina and see what it offers you and your home.

Pashmina is a greige paint color, making it warm. Now, some greiges are reasonably balanced between gray and beige. Others (including many of the most popular shades) cater more to gray than beige. Not Pashmina.

This bad boy tips his hat toward beige, more so than the average greige paint color.

If you have a room with north-facing light or flat afternoon eastern light, you might see Pashmina lean a bit more into its gray base, while still keeping a SOLID dose of warmth. Of course, that’s open to perception; you might find it swings too cool for the look you want.

On the other hand, if you have a south-facing room or western afternoon sunshine, Pashmina can lean into its warmth, winking that bit more at beige.

North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?

WHAT’S PASHMINA’S LRV & WHY IT MATTERS

According to Benjamin Moore, Pashmina has an LRV of 44.2. At this depth, it sits in the light-medium range but on the HEAVY end, winking at the medium depths.

This matters because most people wouldn’t paint their whole home a color like Pashmina – it’s too dark. Instead, they might aim for an LRV between 62 and 74. Shortly, we’ll look at which rooms/projects Pashmina is best for.

The Best White & Off-White Quartz Countertops | Urbane Bronze island

ROOMS THAT SUIT PASHMINA’S DEPTH (& THOSE THAT DON’T)

• At this depth, Pashmina could look more like a solid medium tone in a slightly darker room. It can also look a bit drab and dingy, unless you’re going for a muted, organic look.
• If your room is light and bright, even moderately so, Pashmina will appear more like a light-medium depth paint color, but with some real meat on its bones.

Not sure what LRV is? It could save your paint-lovin’ life – read all about it HERE.

WHAT ARE PASHMINA’S UNDERTONES?

Pashmina has a very subtle green undertone. While some see it right away, most of the time it doesn’t stand out in any obvious way.

But you have to be careful, as just like midlife random hairs, undertones can show up in the most unexpected places. For example, if you pair Pashmina with a finish that has more purple-pink undertones, it can seem a bit more greenish in comparison.

On the other hand, if Pashmina flashes purple, pink, or even blue hues at you, you may want to check your interior lighting (the Kelvins of your bulbs) and the surrounding finishes, including your trim. These things can affect how Pashmina looks. That said, with a tendency towards green, those other shades shouldn’t really pop up too much.

SW Pavestone | SW Intellectual Gray | BM Pashmina | SW Iron Ore

In the above image, notice how Pavestone and Intellectual Gray are greiges that a) are grayer, and b) have a more noticeable green undertone, making Pashmina look more NEUTRAL in comparison! That’s how subtle its undertone can be!

BEST WHITE TRIM & CABINET COLORS WITH PASHMINA WALLS

Being a more organic, earth-toned neutral, Pashmina loves soft, warm whites. And while it can ‘politely handle’ bright, true whites, it prefers those that are a little more gentle. Here are a few I recommend to my clients…

• Sherwin Williams Pure White isn’t ‘pure’, it’s soft, but doesn’t have as much warmth as some.
• Benjamin Moore White Dove is my favorite white with Pashmina. Soft, warm, but not overly creamy.
• Benjamin Moore Cloud White can be a beautiful partner for trims and cabinets, too.

Benjamin Moore’s Best Warm White Paint Colors

The 4 Best White Paint Colors from Sherwin Williams

Here’s your Peel & Stick sample of Pashmina…

WILL PASHMINA WORK IN YOUR HOME? BEST ROOMS & FINISHES

While Pashmina can be gorgeous, it can be fussy in certain lighting conditions. Its undertones also make it a trickier choice with the average interior finishes. Let’s start with a large-scale overview of where it works…

WHERE IT WORKS BEST

• Single rooms or, at most, an open-concept, well-lit space. It’s not intended for ‘whole home’ use.
• Kitchen cabinets or islands (or bathroom vanities). Pashmina is a beautiful choice for a more modest, non-dark island color with a wide range of main cabinet colors, including stains and warmer, lighter shades.
• Exterior surfaces, in particular, painted siding/stucco
• As an accent wall with a well-chosen off-white (link coming up shortly)

FUN FACT: Stone-inspired colors like Pashmina are pretty popular on kitchen cabinets right now! 

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WITH WOOD FLOOR, TRIM OR CABINETS…

Pashmina can be beautiful with some wood stains, including flooring, cabinets, and furniture. I would be cautious with super light, natural woods, as well as those with a strong red or pink hue. Instead, focus on woods that are more ‘natural’ looking with a gentle yellow, orange, or brown look.

This wood-look flooring is super happy with Pashmina and its Urbane Bronze island.

WITH GRANITE COUNTERTOPS & WHITE QUARTZ

In my experience, it can be a touch too greige for the average granite. I’ve found that many granite countertops (especially those that need updating from the early 2000s) cater to colors that lean a bit more purple-pink with their undertones – not green (at this depth). That said, there’s the odd match!

As for white quartz, it should have a bit of this warmth in its veining. Many of the popular white quartzes have veins that are too cool-gray to suit Pashmina. However, some of the more modern, warm quartz and quartzite countertops could suit it quite nicely!

Here’s Pashmina looking badass and beautiful on painted kitchen cabinets. It instantly updates the original granite countertops and travertine backsplash tile…

Get the best color advice with Kylie M’s Online Design Consulting! 

WITH KITCHEN CABINETS…

WHITE CABINETS: Yup, as mentioned in the ‘white trim/cabinet’ section, it works well with warm whites rather than bright, crisp shades.

CREAM CABINETS (OR TRIM): It depends. If the cream paint color is muted and doesn’t have too orange-brown of a glaze, it can be a good choice. However, if the cream is too yellow, rich, or the glaze is off, Pashmina can fall a bit flat. Check out this blog post for some better update ideas.

• When it works, Pashmina offers a subtle warmth against the yellow undertone of cream cabinets/trims. This is more likely when your cream is super subdued, rather than rich and warm (the above photo is a good example of a soft, subtle warmth with Pashmina).
• When it doesn’t work, Pashmina comes off almost purplish and flat.

Here’s Pashmina with Sherwin Williams Antique White on the trim and door. It wooooorks, it’s just on the edge of my happy place (Antique White might prefer a bit more warmth)…

That said, it could just be the exposure of this room – you won’t know how it settles in your room until you try!

GRAY, GREIGE, OR TAUPE CABINETS: The only cabinet in this range that’ll really work with Pashmina is an off-white/light greige with a similar approach to undertones (not common), or a dark greige like Sherwin Williams Urbane Bronze.

BEIGE TILE, CARPET, COUNTERTOP: Because these are so common, they’re worth touching on. While the odd beige finish suits a color like Pashmina, it can sometimes look just a bit too muddy. Generally, the more muted and less golden your beige finish is, the better chance it’ll jibe.

COLORS SIMILAR TO PASHMINA (& HOW THEY COMPARE)

Sometimes you need a tweak in undertones, depth, or temperature to find your perfect shade. Or maybe you need an alternative to Sherwin Williams. Either way, sampling and comparing a range are important steps.

Benjamin Moore Rocky Road. If you’re unsure if your finish suits a greige like Pashmina or a color with a bit more purple undertone, you’ll definitely want to compare these 2. While they’re similar in depth and intentions, you’ll see a nice shift in undertones.

What’s better? For the average finish, possibly Rocky Rock. But I like Pashmina more for it’s organic, earthy look.

Benjamin Moore Stone Hearth. If you find Pashmina just a bit too heavy and greige, take a look at Stone Hearth. With its LRV of 48.45, it’s about 25% lighter, and you’ll see a bit more warmth/less inclination toward green.

What’s better? Ahhh, I’d give them pretty equal scores – Stone Hearth is awesome; it just depends on which depth/temperature you prefer.

Here’s Stone Hearth with a few other similar shades…

SW Tony Taupe | BM Indian River (also known as Ranchwood)

Sherwin Williams Loggia. Sherwin Williams doesn’t have a great alternative; they’re all reasonably different. Loggia is lighter and warmer – a bit more beige tan looking than greige. Sherwin Williams Whisper has a similar overall look, but picks up more gray-green undertone, for sure. Sherwin Williams Perfect Khaki is interesting, as it’s a shade darker (LRV 38) and leans a bit warmer.

What’s better? Loggia is awesome. For the average project, I’d probably choose it for its softness.

Here’s Loggia with some goooorgeous soapstone countertops…

Let’s look at a few more…

REVIEWS: SW Accessible Beige | SW Amazing Gray | SW Stone Lion | SW Tony Taupe | SW Mindful Gray | SW Network Gray

COLORS THAT GO BEST WITH PASHMINA (& ONES TO AVOID)

Pashmina can be a bit fussy, so be careful. It also depends on what you need this color for: an adjoining room, cabinets, island, or trim? Or perhaps you want Pashmina as your accent wall color and need a color for the other walls. Whatever you need, I should have it here…

• OFF-WHITES: Pashmina is amazeballs with a WIDE range of warm, subtle off-white paint colors.
• DARKER GRAY-BLUE BLENDS: Gray-blues that are darker can be gorgeous in the same color palette.
• GREEN-GRAYS: Darker green-grays, especially warm ones, can be beautiful. However, even slightly cooler grays with green can be pretty.
• DARK GREIGE: Darker greiges can be ‘next-level’ stunning in the same palette, especially as accent colors.
• DARK BLUES: Darker, muted shades of blue can be stunning. For example, a Pashima exterior with Cheating Heart shutters could be wicked pretty.

COLORS YOU SHOULD AVOID…

• Any color with a pink undertone. Also, be cautious of purple undertones in the light to medium range.
• Pashmina doesn’t love being partnered with gray that’s lighter than it, with rare exceptions
• Overly yellow cream colors.

WHAT TO EXPECT OF PASHMINA IN A REAL HOME

While a color can look awesome in a magazine or online, often, those images are overlit and overedited. Let’s bullet-point a few details to consider…

• It could look murkier and muddier than you might expect unless you have good lighting.
• It has a clay-like look in the average room/cabinet
• While it can work, it won’t coordionate with the average interior finish.

PASHMINA AS AN EXTERIOR PAINT COLOR

Pashmina can be gorgeous on an exterior and is friendly with some stonework and brickwork. However, expect it to look WARMER and more beige vs grayer and don’t be surprised if that wee wink o’ green undertone rises up!

Also, if you’re painting your home a darker color, like a dark green-gray, Pashmina can be a gorgeous trim color!

How Does Exposure Affect Choosing an EXTERIOR Paint Color?

5 Tips for Choosing an Exterior Paint Color

MY HONEST OPINION ON PASHMINA: PROS & CONS

RATING OUT OF 10: 9

I love Pashmina; in fact, I love it so much I had it in my office for a year or two (which is long for me to commit to a color).

It’s a beautiful color for the jobs it’s meant for, especially accent walls, cabinets, islands, and exteriors. And while it’s not great for more than 1 room at a time, with the right lighting, it can be a gorgeous, organic addition to your palette. Not too warm – not too cool – just right.

The reason it loses a point is that sometimes its murky, muddy green undertone makes it a touch of a match with some finishes. Really, though, it’s amazeballs.

READ MORE

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Get the best color advice with Kylie M’s Online Design Consulting! 

Updated for fresh content and new images for 2026