Dried Thyme (SW 6186) vs Retreat (SW 6207)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- About the same: LRV 21 vs 21.
- Warmer
- Dried Thyme, both green-gray (Lab b* 8.1 vs 4.7).
- North rooms
- Retreat drifts less gray (chroma drop 0.8 vs 2.2); both keep about the same brightness.
- Trim that works
- White Mint SW 6441, #E0E7DA, LRV 78: the Sherwin-Williams white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 2.6, noticeably different. At 2.6, test both: on a full wall the difference will show.
See each color
Dried Thyme (SW 6186) is about as light as Retreat (SW 6207) and warmer: LRV 21 vs 21, deltaE 2.6 (noticeably different).
Side by side
| Measure | Dried Thyme | Retreat | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Sherwin-Williams | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | SW 6186 | SW 6207 | |
| Hex | #7B8070 | #7A8076 | |
| RGB | 123, 128, 112 | 122, 128, 118 | |
| HSL | 79°, 7%, 47% | 96°, 4%, 48% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 21 | 21 | 0 |
| Lab L* | 52.8 | 52.8 | −0.1 |
| Lab a* | -5.0 | -4.2 | −0.7 |
| Lab b* | 8.1 | 4.7 | +3.4 |
| Undertone | Neutral | Neutral | |
| Temperature | warm | neutral | |
| Color family | Green | Gray |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Dried Thyme (SW 6186), published as #7B8070
#6B776E
#8B8970
Retreat (SW 6207), published as #7A8076
#6A7774
#8A8976
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Which should you pick
Rules of thumb computed from the LRV and Lab values in the table above; no room test was done.
- Pick Dried Thyme (SW 6186) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 0 LRV points lighter (21 vs 21), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Retreat (SW 6207) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 4.7 against 8.1, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Dried Thyme (SW 6186) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 8.1), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Dried Thyme in other brands
Closest matches to Retreat in other brands
Common questions
- Is Dried Thyme the same color as Retreat?
- They are noticeably different: a CIEDE2000 difference of 2.6. Most people can see the difference between Dried Thyme and Retreat side by side.
- Which is lighter, Dried Thyme or Retreat?
- Neither: both have an LRV of 21.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: LRV and hex as published by the manufacturer, via PaintDB (CC BY 4.0). Color differences are CIEDE2000 values computed by this site from the hex values (data snapshot 2026-10-01). Color names and codes belong to their manufacturers.