Color guide · Portola Paints · Gray

Magic Potion

Magic Potion · #BAB5BD · LRV 47 · cool violet tone

Magic Potion · #BAB5BD · LRV 47 — cool violet tone, mid-tone — versatile but shifts visibly with light.

Magic PotionPortola Paints · Magic Potion
The color, edge to edge.Use your own photo →
Magic Potion
PORTOLA PAINTS · Magic Potion · #BAB5BD
Brand · codePortola PaintsMagic Potion · all Portola Paints grays
LRV47Mid-tone — versatile but shifts visibly with light.
Undertonecool violet tone
FamilyGray
Hex · RGB · HSL#BAB5BD · 186, 181, 189 · 277°, 6%, 73%Display values from the brand. Match it at another brand
Sheen we recommendEggshell on walls · satin on trim and cabinetsWhich sheen where, explained
Where it sits, light to dark
  1. 1Retreat21
  2. 2Dovetail26
  3. 3Magic Potion47
  4. 4Upward57
  5. 5Sea Salt63
Undertone and depth

What Color Is Magic Potion, Really?

Magic Potion reads as a cool violet tone — mid-tone — versatile but shifts visibly with light. The notes below cover how Portola Paints Magic Potion behaves in different light and the closest matches at competing US brands.

Room by room

Best Rooms and Uses for Magic Potion

Magic Potion is versatile enough for full rooms but has enough depth to anchor a space, so it suits living rooms, bedrooms and cabinetry alike. Grays like this read as a modern neutral and sit comfortably alongside both warm woods and cool metals.

Light by light

How Lighting Changes Magic Potion

Magic Potion sits in the mid-range at LRV 47, so it shifts visibly through the day — lighter and more open in morning light, deeper and moodier after dark. Because it carries almost no measurable hue, it stays a true neutral and pairs cleanly with nearly any trim or floor. South-facing rooms will pull it lighter and warmer, while north light cools it down.

Test it in your light, not a showroom's

Most complaints about Magic Potion 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.

Upload a photoPainted in about a minuteFree, no account
Visualize in your room
Same color, different store

Need It From Another Brand?

Any paint counter can custom-tint Portola Paints Magic Potion 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.

Same deck, next chip over

Similar Portola Paints Colors

The nearest shades to Magic Potion within Portola Paints's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.

Contrast, for text and signage
Black text on Magic Potion · 10.4 : 1 · passes AA and AAAWhite text on Magic Potion · 2 : 1 · fails for text

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 #BAB5BD in HSL space. Pair Magic Potion with one accent and one neutral — the swatches below are starting points, not final picks.

COMPLEMENTARY
#BAB5BD + #B8BDB5
TRIADIC
#BAB5BD · #BDBAB5 · #B5BDBA
ANALOGOUS
#B6B5BD · #BAB5BD · #BDB5BC

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Jessica Williams

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