Sherwin Williams Positive Red SW 6871

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Official page:Positive Red SW 6871
Code:SW 6871
Name:Positive Red
Brand:Sherwin Williams
Collections:2019 Enthusiast

What color is Sherwin Williams Positive Red?

Sherwin Williams Positive Red SW 6871 is a clear, high-energy red with a warm cast that reads closer to a classic lacquered red than a muted brick or wine tone. It has very little gray or brown in it, so it stays vivid in daylight and can look especially punchy on a sunlit wall or front door. In north-facing rooms, the color may appear slightly deeper and cooler, while evening lamps bring out its warmer, almost tomato-red side. It is often strongest as an accent—on a dining room wall, kitchen island, built-in shelving, or exterior shutters—rather than across every wall in a small room. Pair it with creamy warm white, natural oak, walnut, aged brass, or dark green for contrast that keeps the red grounded.

Positive Red for living room (2 photos)

Check out this stunning dark color used in real living rooms. Explore how this red shade can create a unique space

SW Positive Red living room
@focal_paint
SW 6871 living room accent wall
@focal_paint

Positive Red for exterior (4 photos)

Looking for a fresh new look for your house exterior or starting from skretch? We’ve collected pictures of real-life homes that have been painted with this warm red hue. Find inspiration for your house’s exterior, front doors, gates, shutters, frames or windows.

Sherwin Williams Positive Red house exterior paint
@23whiteterrace
Sherwin Williams SW 6871 house exterior color
@23whiteterrace
Sherwin Williams Positive Red front door color
@coloradopaintmasters
Sherwin Williams Positive Red front door paint
@campgilmore

Sherwin Williams Positive Red reviews

View the photos of real spaces painted with this red that were not included in specific categories. Close-ups, painted furniture, storages and dressers, hallways, stairs and ceilings.

Sherwin Williams Positive Red front door paint review
@campgilmore

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What are Sherwin Williams Positive Red undertones?

Positive Red is a midtone, clear earthy red. The HEX sample leans red; this describes its measurable digital hue direction, not a hidden paint pigment. Warm bulbs can make it look creamier or more golden, while cool daylight may mute that warmth and pull it closer to beige or greige.

HEX value:

#AD2C34

RGB code:

173, 44, 52

Is Sherwin Williams Positive Red cool or warm?

warm
cool
Color wheel

At 356° on the HSL hue wheel, this dark red sits firmly on the warm side.

SW 6871 Positive Red HSL code: 356, 59%, 43%

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 Positive Red

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

Bedroom daylight mockup
Bedroom overlay
Sunrise
Morning
Noon
Afternoon
Sunset

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

Direction of sunlightVisible temp.HueDuration
NorthCoolBluishAll day
EastWarmYellowBefore noon
WestWarmOrange-redAfter noon
SouthWarmOrange-yellowAll day

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

Living-room mockup
Living-room overlay

4000K

2000K
3000K
4000K
5000K
6000K
7000K

Coordinating colors.
Colors that go with Sherwin Williams Positive Red:

Monochromatic color scheme

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

Darker shades

Complementary color scheme

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 Positive Red with a red hue, complementary colors are those with a green hue close to 176, such as Sherwin Williams Tidewater and Mountain Stream.

LRV of Positive Red

Positive Red has an LRV of 10.9% and refers to Medium Dark which means that this color reflects very little lightWhy LRV is important?

Light Reflectance Value scale illustration

Light Reflectance Value measures the amount of visible and usable light that reflects from a painted surface.
Simply put, the higher the LRV of a paint color, the brighter the room you will get.
The scale goes from 0% (absolute black, absorbing all light) to 100% (pure white, reflecting all light).

Act like a pro: When choosing paint with an LRV of 10.9%, pay attention to your bulbs' brightness. Light brightness is measured in lumens. The lower the paint's LRV, the higher lumen level you need. Every square foot of room needs at least 40 lumens. That means for a 200 ft2 living room you'll need about 8000 lumens of light – e.g., eight 1000 lm bulbs.

Color codes

We have collected almost every possible color code you could ever need.
Not sure what the difference between HEX and RGB is? We break down color models in plain language. Understanding color models

FormatCode
HEX#ad2c34
RGB Decimal173, 44, 52
RGB Percent67.84%, 17.25%, 20.39%
HSVHue: 356° Saturation: 74.57% Value: 67.84%
HSLhsl(356, 59, 43)
CMYKCyan: 0.0 Magenta: 74.57 Yellow: 69.94 Key: 32.16
YIQY: 83.483 I: 74.3 Q: 29.778
XYZX: 18.756 Y: 10.936 Z: 4.371
CIE LabL:39.473 a:51.989 b:27.161
CIE LuvL:39.473 u:94.986 v:17.478
Decimal11349044
Hunter Lab33.07, 43.365, 15.312

Color equivalents