We recently had our foyer and two-story front stairway painted in Benjamin Moore Halo (OC-46). As you may recall from our 2024 home project plans, we painted our second-floor hallway Halo a few years ago and finally got around to hiring a painter to bring the color down the stairs and into the foyer. I am so happy with the result! Halo is a soft, light backdrop, perfect for those spaces where you want a light and bright color, but don’t want white. Read on for a full review.
Halo lrv
Halo has a light reflective value (LRV) of 71.74. LRV is measured on a scale of 0-100, with 100 reflecting all light and therefore being the lightest (click here for more information on LRV). At close to 72 LRV, Halo is a light color, but you would not look at this color on the wall and think it’s a white. There is a clear and noticeable contrast between the wall and white trim. Speaking of trim, Halo looks great with a number of whites. We have it paired with both BM White Dove (slightly warm white) and BM Oxford White (more of a neutral white) in different spots and it’s lovely with both.
halo undertones
The word on the street is that Halo is an “off-white neutral with gray-green undertones.” I’d say that’s pretty close, but my experience IRL is that it’s a greige with green undertones, unless your space is flooded with warm Western natural light. Most of the time, there will be enough shadow or cooler light in a room to make that gray show itself just a bit more than the beige. But, as with most colors (especially lighter colors) shifting light throughout the day will result in differences in color expression. Remember, light colors reflect light (rather than absorb it), so they are going to be more susceptible to variations due to exposure, other colors in the room, and even what’s outside the windows.
sample!
It is so important to sample potential paint colors in your space. As noted above, exposure and other elements in the room such as flooring, cabinetry, even large upholstered pieces will affect how a color expresses itself. How a color looks in your neighbor’s home will not predict how that same color looks in yours. In addition, never rely on images on a screen! One cannot trust that the color that appears on a screen is a true representation of the actual color. So sample, sample, sample! I personally use Samplize peel-and-stick samples. They use real paint to make them (not color-matched), so you will see what the actual paint will look like on your walls. And make sure you use a white background (not the existing paint)!
Have you used Halo in your home? Share your thoughts on the color below! If you are looking for more information on paint colors, check out these resources: