If paint colors could have personality traits, Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze would be quietly confident. This smoky gray-green allows other colors to shine, while also making a statement.
If you’re struggling to find the perfect green, and none of them are quiiite right, get ready to put a ring on it, because Acacia Haze might be the one.
Today we’re going to look at Acacia Haze in real homes, peruse some palettes, peak at trim options, and finally dabble in dupes!
What Color is Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze? (9132)
Acacia Haze is a smoky green that is just a little more gray than the average sage green. It’s dark enough to work well on exteriors, but light enough to use on more than one wall.
Along with Retreat (which is from the same color strip) Acacia Haze is my recommended pick for a true and predictable sage color that goes with everything.
LRV of Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze
The LRV (Light Reflectance Value) of a color indicates on a scale of 0 – 100 how much light a color reflects (or doesn’t reflect). True black has an LRV of 0 and pure white has an LRV of 100.
In the paint world, we are working in a range of about 3 – 93 because no paint color is purely black or completely white.
So what is the LRV of Acacia Haze?
With an LRV of 32, Acacia Haze is right in the range of mid-toned colors. In my opinion, truly dark paint colors have an LRV of 10 or less. At 32, Acacia Haze absorbs more light than it reflects, but it’s not that much darker than a lot of popular neutrals.
It is probably too dark to use on every wall in your house, but in a bedroom, bathroom, or even in a kitchen with lighter cabinets, it would be fine.
Undertones: Is Acacia Haze Warm or Cool?
Acacia Haze is a sage green with cool undertones. It is on the warmer side of green, but there is so much gray in it that a cooler green would start to look blueish.
Here is a kind of extreme look at the warmest and coolest that Acacia Haze ever looks:
A lot of gray green paint colors are chameleons, and many don’t look anything like their swatch, but I find that Acacia Haze is an exception.
I know I stare at paint colors all day, but I really think that in real life, it looks just like you would expect. It doesn’t pull wildly to any other color.
(Check out Sherwin Williams Thunderous to see a real shape-shifting gray green.)
All of this being said, Acacia Haze acts like a neutral, and in my opinion can be used like one.
The Acacia Haze Color Strip from Sherwin Williams
Here is a look at the whole collection where you will find Acacia Haze, and you may recognize some of these other names!
Most of the paints from this color strip are very popular, and I do have a blog post for every single one!
You can go over the other shades here by clicking the arrow to expand, or clicking the title to go to the blog post.
Spare White is the lightest shade in this color strip. It’s a cool toned off-white that looks just a bit gray. (It has an LRV of 77, so it’s not actually white.)
Sea Salt is a gray green that is too light to really read “sage,” but has the perfect LRV for a light whole-home neutral.
I often recommend Sea Salt as a wall color if you want a neutral paint color that is a bit fresher than gray, but you don’t like warm beiges or creams.
Comfort Gray is one shade darker than Sea Salt on the same color strip. I find that Comfort Gray often does not look true gray, much like Sea Salt and Oyster Bay. It does however, read the most blue of all the colors on this strip.
I find Oyster Bay to be the most “aquatic” feeling shade in this color strip. It reads the brightest and least gray (in my opinion) and it strikes a balance right between blue and green. Oyster Bay is one shade lighter than Acacia Haze.
Retreat is one shade darker than Acacia Haze, and that is exactly how it looks. It has the same range of undertones, but it is just slightly darker and more anchoring.
Pewter Green dabbles between being a dark sage green and something close to a grayed-out forest green. This color is also beautiful and very popular!
(I also have a separate blog post for Pewter Green on kitchen cabinets.)
Ripe Olive is the last color on the Acacia Haze color strip. I don’t fancy myself a fan of olive, but I love Ripe Olive:
Isn’t that a beautiful dark green? This is the only color in this collection that doesn’t really look sage at all.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze vs Oyster Bay and Retreat
Really quickly, because a lot of people do ask, let’s look at the difference between Acacia Bay and the shade lighter (Oyster Bay) and darker (Retreat).
The LRV of Oyster Bay is 44, and the LRV of Retreat is 21, so Acacia Haze fills the gap perfectly, with an LRV of 32.
In real homes, Oyster Bay looks a little cooler (more aqua) than Acacia Haze, and of course it is lighter. Retreat, on the other hand, is darker and more green.
I personally think that the swatch for Oyster Bay is pretty deceiving! In real life I would have thought it was a grayish blue-green. Here it is on an island:
Now comparing apples to apples, here is Retreat on cabinets:
It looks much more green doesn’t it?
This isn’t the best photo, but it’s a fairly good representation of the color of Acacia Haze:
Despite minor differences, you can see here how this color is perfect for anyone wanting darker than Oyster Bay and lighter than Retreat.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze in a Color Palette
Now let’s take a look at Acacia Haze in a coordinating color palette!
Coordinating White Paint Color for Acacia Haze
For a white paint color that works well with Acacia Haze, you could use almost anything, but I went with Sherwin Williams White Flour.
White Flour is a creamy white paint color that can have a very subtle pink undertone, which is complementary to Acacia Haze.
Try Acacia Haze with Farrow & Ball Sulking Room Pink
In a palette that is otherwise full of neutrals, I wanted to toss in a true color. Originally I was looking at a shade of terracotta, but why not have some fun with it? Here I added Farrow & Ball’s Sulking Room Pink: a dusty rose-mauve.
This shade is similar to many historically popular pink colors, so if you are revamping a heritage home with Acacia Haze, Sulking Room Pink might be the friendly accent color you need!
Pair Acacia Haze with Sherwin Williams Gray’s Harbor
Gray’s Harbor is an equally gray shade of blue, that is just a bit darker than Acacia Haze. It is still to the green/teal side of blue, so these two look very pretty and harmonious together.
Using a blue will also help Acacia Haze to look more green and it will minimize the blue undertones.
Neutral Paint Color to Use With Acacia Haze
We can’t have a palette without a popular neutral! This time I chose Agreeable Gray, which is a greige color by Sherwin Williams that works almost anywhere.
This is one of those times that you could really choose any neutral. Acacia Haze looks equally good with practically any shade of gray, beige, greige, brown, or taupe.
Acacia Haze’s Complementary Color
Officially, “complementary colors” are those that sit across the color wheel from each other.
For Acacia Haze, this would be a purpley-gray color in a similar LRV range. I like to find an easy-to-use “version” of complementary colors, so this time I went with Perle Noir.
Perle Noir is one of my favorite purple paint colors (although yes, this is a short list) because it is like a charcoal version of purple. It can have blueish undertones, but that also works with Acacia Haze, so it’s a win-win.
For something similar that reads more navy, Sherwin Williams Cyberspace would also work well. It is a charcoal blue color with a much subtler purple-leaning undertone.
What Trim Colors Go With Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze?
If you own a home with dark wood trim, good news: Acacia Haze looks great with pretty much any tone of wood (as do most green paint colors).
I have included the dark wood tone that most heritage homes have, but this color will also work with oak trim:
Acacia Haze is neutral enough to go with just about any white!
Sherwin Williams White Flour was in my color palette, so why not show it on trim? It’s a nice alternative to Alabaster, which is a super duper popular creamy white. White Flour is a bit brighter, but Alabaster also works!
Finally, Sherwin Williams Snowbound is a nice middle ground for trim. It’s not punch-you-in-the-face white, but it provides a bit more contrast than creamy whites. It also has a more pink-leaning undertone, which complements Acacia Haze.
In these next Acacia Haze photos, you will also see Acacia Haze used on both the walls and trim, so that’s another option!
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze for Your Home’s Interior
Finally everybody’s favorite part: Real life homes!
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze in the Mud Room
It’s not too often that I get to show off a mud room actually!
Probably because they aren’t typically as photogenic as this one by @minttomodern:
Of course the natural tones of those puppers show off Acacia Haze at its finest! The other wall color is Benjamin Moore Moonshine.
If you like the partial sage look here, you will love my post: Fabulous Sage Green Trim Colors to Uplevel Your Aesthetic
Did you peep that dark wood door and trim? I think the colors look fabulous together!
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze on a Feature Wall
Moving on from the traditional board and batten, here is Acacia Haze on an elaborate two story accent wall at Katie’s house (@katp.93) :
The geometric design makes a big statement, but could easily be sized down for a living room or dining room.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze in the Bedroom
Here we see Acacia Haze not so much in a bedroom, as it is in a bedroom closet:
Lindsay and Dustin Aho (@silo.hill) have created a beautiful and stylish farmhouse on their acreage, and their bathroom is also an Acacia Haze dream!
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze in the Bathroom
I love all of the soothing natural colors in here. The gold hardware and lighting tops everything off.
Notice that they actually used Acacia Haze on the window trim as well!
I might become a tub person yet!
More matching Acacia Haze trim! It’s selling me.
One more because I have it and I have to:
If you love this look, you will love my post about color drenching.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze Kitchen Cabinets
Of course the real deal that everybody wants to see: Will Acacia Haze look good on cabinets?
You bet it will!
If you’ve been here before, you know I love sage green on cabinets!
Wait until you see the before of this kitchen!
This home belongs to Bridget (@bridgetrealestate). It was actually brand new when she decided to redo the cabinets!
Here’s what she had to say about the makeover:
“I told my husband I loved the house and was ready to sign but only if we could agree to get the cabinets redone as soon as possible. Everyone thought it was bonkers that I wanted to paint over my brand new cabinets in my house, but boy am I glad we did.”
What’s really bonkers to me, is how much better that stone looks with the new color scheme! It was totally lost in the dark kitchen.
The wall color, pendant lights, backsplash, and flooring, all stayed the same, but I had to go back and double check, because everything has new life!
The lower cabinets are Acacia Haze of course, and the uppers are Sherwin Williams Oyster White.
Love a two-toned kitchen? Check out my post: 27+ Fresh Two-Tone Kitchen Cabinet Ideas
This is your sign to paint your cabinets! Can you imagine if Bridget left them dark, just because it was more practical?
She would have missed out on the joy of that kitchen for years.
(I do think it was a bit of a missed opportunity to use Oyster White with Oyster Bay. Just kidding! Kind of…it would have been fun to say.)
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze on an Exterior
We have hereby established that Acacia Haze is a wonderful indoor color. So how about outdoors?
Front Door
Speaking of doors, here is Acacia Haze on the front door of @thecottageatwhitebear:
It’s a little harder to see the front door of this house, but Barbara (barbaraanne.art) also used Acacia Haze on the side door:
The siding is painted in Sherwin Williams Peppercorn.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze on Exterior Siding
I am sad to say that I wasn’t able to find Acacia Haze on an exterior, but I will do my best to show similar!
At least then you have some idea of what it could look like.
This exterior is Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which you may remember is just one shade lighter than Acacia Haze on the same color strip:
Oyster Bay does tend to look a little “brighter” than Acacia Haze, and not just lighter. So you can expect a slightly darker product, that has a bit more gray.
If you take a look at the area to the left of the front door, that will give you a taste of Acacia Haze.
Next, this is Benjamin Moore Carolina Gull, which we will compare to Acacia Haze in just a moment:
Carolina Gull is a bit warmer than Acacia Haze, so I purposely chose a photo where it looks cooler. I think this is a pretty good idea of how Acacia Haze could look on your exterior.
Acacia Haze Compared to Other Sherwin Williams Paint Colors
Ah the world of paint! Where would we be if there weren’t several colors that are difficult to tell apart?
Let’s take a look at some other Sherwin Williams shades that you might be considering!
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze vs Evergreen Fog (9130)
Evergreen Fog was Sherwin Williams Color of the Year for 2022, and it’s pretty similar to Acacia Haze:
You can see that Acacia Haze is a little bit cooler than Evergreen Fog, and just a touch lighter. The LRV of Evergreen Fog is 30.
Evergreen Fog is actually the equivalent shade to Acacia Haze on a very similar rival color strip:
This whole collection is nearly the same as the Acacia Haze one, but just slightly warmer.
Sherwin Williams Acacia Haze vs Dried Thyme (6186)
Dried Thyme is another popular gray green from the same color strip where we find Evergreen Fog.
Compared to Acacia Haze, Dried Thyme is darker and not quite as cool or gray. It is the equivalent shade to Retreat in that slightly warmer color strip.
Dupes for Acacia Haze from Other Brands
Now let’s just say that you can’t make it to Sherwin Williams (or prefer not to for some reason). Outside of a direct color match done by the store, what other options do you have?
Well as usual, I have dupes!
Benjamin Moore Acacia Haze Equivalent
I wasn’t able to get quite as close as I would typically like, in terms of finding a perfect Benjamin Moore color match for Acacia Haze.
In the end, I narrowed it down to two: Carolina Gull and Heather Gray.
Benjamin Moore Heather Gray (2139-40)
Heather Gray is the closest Benjamin Moore dupe for Acacia Haze. It has an LRV of 34.77, so it’s just a tiny bit lighter. It is also the slightest bit cooler.
All in all, not perfect, but Heather Gray would get the Acacia Haze job done, if you want a Benjamin Moore color.
Benjamin Moore Carolina Gull (2138-40)
Carolina Gull is another similar color to Acacia Haze, but quite popular in its own right.
Carolina Gull is a bit darker than Acacia Haze, with an LRV of 27.41, and slightly less gray.
Valspar Equivalent to Acacia Haze
Valspar gave us a run for our money with Acacia Haze, and I found two close color matches that are just a smidgeon off, but in different ways.
The best Valspar equivalents for Acacia Haze are: Secret Moss and Seafoam Storm.
*One important thing to note about Valspar colors, is that their LRVs don’t seem to jive with those of other brands, so we will just have to use our eyes.
Valspar Secret Moss (5005-2A)
According to Valspar, Secret Moss has an LRV of 31.96, which would make it basically the same as Acacia Haze.
We can see that Secret Moss is actually a little bit lighter.
Looking at the colors side by side, I think that Secret Moss is also just a hair more gray than Acacia Haze, but the difference is negligible.
Valspar Seafoam Storm (5002-1C)
Seafoam Storm is cooler and a little more gray than Acacia Haze. It is also lighter, but not quite as light as Secret Moss.
According to Valspar, the LRV of Seafoam Storm is 31.204.
Acacia Haze Behr Equivalent (Home Depot)
Color matches were a little easier over at Home Depot thankfully, with just one close option by Behr: Hunter’s Hollow.
Behr Hunter’s Hollow (MQ6-21)
Hunter’s Hollow is the best Behr dupe for Acacia Haze. It has the same LRV: 32.
You can see that Hunter’s Hollow is a bit warmer (more yellow) than Acacia Haze, but in real life these two are pretty similar. The undertone of the Behr color is less likely to look blue.
Here is one more look at all of the Acacia Haze dupes:
Acacia Haze Final Moody Musings
That about wraps things up for my Acacia Haze deep dive!
Shall we recap?
- Acacia Haze is a really pretty, not-too-light and not-too-dark gray green
- Use Acacia Haze on your cabinets for an unexpected pop of color in your kitchen
- Acacia Haze pairs well with just about any white or neutral, so it’s super easy to work with!
So yes, earlier I told you that Acacia Haze might be the one, but if not, you might like these posts:
