Farrow and Ball Buff 20

Contents

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What are Farrow and Ball Buff undertones?
Is Buff 20 cool or warm?
How light temperature affects on Buff
Monochromatic color scheme
Complementary color scheme
Color comparison and matching
Color codes
Color equivalents

Official page:	Buff 20
Code:	20
Name:	Buff
Brand:	Farrow and Ball

What color is Farrow and Ball Buff?

Farrow and Ball Buff 20 is a muted mid-tone beige with a noticeable warm, earthy cast. Its #b49d82 value suggests a softened tan base rather than a pale cream, giving walls enough depth to feel grounded without becoming heavy. In brighter daylight, Buff can read as a gentle sandy neutral, while lower or warmer light may bring out its more golden-brown character. Use it in living rooms, halls, or kitchens where natural wood, woven fibres, linen, and aged brass are already part of the scheme. It also suits cabinetry or exterior trim when paired with deeper brown, charcoal, or off-white details.

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What are Farrow and Ball Buff undertones?

Buff 20 reads as a mid-light, muted sandy beige with a clear orange-leaning warmth rather than a cool gray cast. Its undertone appears gently warm, with a slight red and yellow bias in the supplied digital sample, which keeps the color grounded and earthy. Farrow & Ball describes Buff as a sandy neutral with “underlying warmth,” which aligns with its visibly warm beige main color family. Warm artificial light may bring out more of its golden-orange character, while cool daylight can make it look a little quieter and less warm.

Manufacturer information used in this description: official color page.

HEX value:

#B49D82

RGB code:

180, 157, 130

Is Farrow and Ball Buff cool or warm?

warm

cool

With a hue of 32°, this Beige reads warm on the HSL color wheel.

20 Buff HSL code: 32, 25%, 61%

Hue - degree on a color wheel from 0 to 360. 0 is red, 120 is green, and 240 is blue.
Saturation is expressed as a percentage. At 0%, it appears as a shade of grey, and at 100%, it is in full color.
Lightness is also a percentage value. 0% is black, and 100% is white.

How light temperature affects Buff

Natural Lighting. During the day, natural light shifts from about 2000 K at sunrise/sunset to 5500–6500 K at noon.

Sunrise

Morning

Noon

Afternoon

Sunset

In addition, natural-light temperature depends on its direction:

Direction of sunlight	Visible temp.	Hue	Duration
North	Cool	Bluish	All day
East	Warm	Yellow	Before noon
West	Warm	Orange-red	After noon
South	Warm	Orange-yellow	All day

Artificial Lighting. When choosing bulbs, pay attention to their color temperature in Kelvins.
Use the slider to see how this Beige shade looks under different lighting:

2000K

3000K

4000K

5000K

6000K

7000K

Coordinating colors.
Colors that go with Farrow and Ball Buff:

Monochromatic color scheme

This scheme consists of various shades, tints, and tones of a single color. While it offers a perfect combination of hues, without accent décor it may become monotonous.

Lighter shades

20
Buff

Darker shades

20
Buff

Complementary color scheme

This color scheme is a combination of two shades that are opposite each other on the color wheel. The high contrast between these colors creates a vibrant and dynamic visual effect. For the color Buff with a orange hue, complementary colors are those with a blue hue close to 212, such as Farrow and Ball Black Blue and Hazy.

20
Buff

Compare
Farrow and Ball
Buff 20
to any other colors