Raw Balsa Wood
DESS22 · #C8C0A6 · LRV 52 — warm yellow tone, light — bounces daylight without going clinical.
- 1Dorian Gray39
- 2Pashmina44
- 3Raw Balsa Wood52
- 4Agreeable Gray60
- 5Pale Oak69
What Color Is Raw Balsa Wood, Really?
Raw Balsa Wood reads as a warm yellow tone — light — bounces daylight without going clinical. The notes below cover how Dunn-Edwards DESS22 behaves in different light and the closest matches at competing US brands.
Best Rooms and Uses for Raw Balsa Wood
Raw Balsa Wood is an easy whole-room color for living spaces and bedrooms, and light enough to carry onto trim or a ceiling if you want a soft, seamless look. Greige-leaning neutrals like this are the safe whole-home choice when you want warmth without committing to a color.
How Lighting Changes Raw Balsa Wood
At LRV 52, Raw Balsa Wood is a light color that bounces daylight around a room without tipping into stark white. Its yellow undertone is the part to watch: it gets picked up by whatever sits next to it, so test it against your trim, floor and the room's main light before committing. It holds its undertone in most exposures, which is what makes light shades like this so forgiving room to room.
Most complaints about Raw Balsa Wood are a light mismatch. Upload a photo of your actual room and see it on your walls — then ask for the same wall in north light or evening lamps before you buy a single sample.
Need It From Another Brand?
Any paint counter can custom-tint Dunn-Edwards DESS22 directly. If you would rather stay in one brand's own deck, these are the closest stock matches, measured as ΔE2000. Under 2 is a difference you will not see on the wall.
| Brand | Closest color | ΔE | LRV | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sherwin-Williams | RamieSW 6156 · Sherwin-Williams | 3.7 | 52 | Color page → |
| Behr | Pale BambooPWL-91 · Behr | 1.7 | 53 | Color page → |
| Benjamin Moore | Make BelieveCSP-1035 · Benjamin Moore | 1.0 | 53 | Color page → |
| Valspar | Snake Charmer8004-23B · Valspar | 1.9 | 54 | Color page → |
| PPG / Glidden | HideawayPPG14-26 · PPG / Glidden | 2.0 | 52 | Color page → |
| Glidden | HideawayPPG14-26 · Glidden | 1.4 | 53 | Color page → |
Similar Dunn-Edwards Colors
The nearest shades to Raw Balsa Wood within Dunn-Edwards's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.
WCAG 2.1: AA is 4.5 : 1 for normal text, 3 : 1 for large text, AAA is 7 : 1.
Coordinated palette
Generated by hue-rotating #C8C0A6 in HSL space. Pair Raw Balsa Wood with one accent and one neutral — the swatches below are starting points, not final picks.
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