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Colour theory · answered by Fini

What colours go with Mockingbird?

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Quick answer

Mockingbird is a moody teal-grey that wants warmth, not crisp white. Pair it with antique brass and old oak, a chalky warm white like Sand I, and lift it with a soft ochre such as Copper Glow.

Mockingbird is one of Paint & Paper Library's best teal-greys — deep, sophisticated, and at its most convincing when you stop fighting it with cold white. The trick with a colour this saturated is to drench the whole room: walls and woodwork together. Let the teal-grey envelop you rather than chopping it up with contrasting trim, and the room reads as deliberate and enveloping instead of patchy.

Then it's all about warmth. Mockingbird leans cool, so it craves warm metals and timber to stop the room feeling clinical. Antique brass fittings and old oak furniture are made for it — they bring out the green undertones and add the glow the colour needs.

For the lift, you've got two routes. If you want a soft contrast for ceilings, joinery or a hallway running off the room, reach for a chalky warm white — Paint & Paper Library Sand I (LRV 95.4) is gentle enough not to jar against the teal. Avoid anything brilliant and blue-white; it'll make Mockingbird look dirty. If you do need a true off-white, Farrow & Ball All White (LRV 92) is the cleaner option, but use it sparingly.

For accents, an ochre or terracotta does the heavy lifting. Dulux Copper Glow (LRV 30.1) is a lovely warm foil — bring it in through cushions, a kilim, lampshades or a single piece of furniture, and it'll sing against the teal. Don't paint a whole wall in it; a touch goes a long way.

To ground the scheme, Mylands Cigar BH.20 (LRV 11.8) is a rich tobacco-brown that works beautifully on a piece of joinery, a fire surround or as a deep anchor. It echoes the old-oak warmth and stops the teal from floating.

Practical tip: Mockingbird shifts with the light — it'll look greener in north light and more inky in artificial. Always sample on at least two walls and live with it for a couple of days before you commit, mate.

Colours from the answer

LRV 8.9
Paint & Paper Library
Mockingbird
LRV 30.1
Dulux
Copper Glow
LRV 95.4
Paint & Paper Library
Sand I
LRV 11.8
Mylands
Cigar BH.20
LRV 92
Farrow & Ball
All White

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