Upward
SW 6239 · Sherwin-Williams
Sherwin-Williams
Upward
SW 6239
Subtle blue, a cool color
- Color family
- Blue
- Sold for
- Interior and exterior
Sherwin-Williams Upward SW 6239 is a light, gray-softened blue with an LRV of 57, bright enough to carry a whole room while still reading as a color against white trim. Our method reads it as a subtle blue: cool, but with enough gray in it to stay calm rather than sky blue. People use it in bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms where they want blue without a nursery feel, and it is the lightest color on its strip.
Updated
Is Upward warm or cool? Undertones by the numbers
leans blue
Undertone
Subtle blue
A gentle lean, quiet on the wall.
Measured, Upward is blue first with a smaller amount of green and no red, and the color is faint: a gray with a clear blue tint rather than a blue with gray in it. Against a crisp white trim the blue shows plainly; against a warm white or cream the wall looks bluer still, because the contrast does the work. Warm oak or honey pine floors push it toward a cleaner blue, while gray tile and chrome let it go almost silver. Its nearest neighbor Icy SW 6534 carries more blue; Krypton SW 6247 and North Star SW 6246 are grayer, with the blue nearly gone. Upward sits between them: the blue is there, but quiet.
Upward in north, south, east and west light
North-facing rooms are where Upward turns coolest: the blue sharpens, the gray drops back, and a small north bedroom can feel chilly by late afternoon, so sample the wall farthest from the window before committing. South light is the flattering one; the warmth balances the cool lean and the wall reads closest to the chip. East rooms get a soft, clear blue in the morning and go cooler after noon; west rooms look flat until the warm afternoon light arrives. Bulbs at 3000K hold it true; 2700K warms it a shade and 4000K makes it icy.
Watch for
- Turns a sharper, cooler blue in a north room, especially under cool bulbs
- Reads bluer than the chip next to cream or warm white trim
- Goes nearly silver-gray beside gray tile and chrome fixtures
Best rooms and surfaces for Upward
Upward is a bedroom and bathroom color first. In a bedroom its light, low-key blue works on all four walls with white bedding and warm wood, and it does not read babyish the way a cleaner pastel does. In a bathroom it suits white tile and chrome, but it goes cold beside gray tile under cool LEDs, so check the bulb. It is popular for living rooms and open plans too, provided the room gets good daylight; in a north-facing living room a warmer neutral is the safer pick. On kitchen cabinets it reads as a pale gray-blue and needs a crisp white wall to look intentional. As an accent wall it is too light to make much of a statement; it is a whole-room color.
Upward on an exterior
Sherwin-Williams sells Upward for exterior use. In full sun it lightens toward a pale silver-blue, so on siding it reads softer than the chip; a house that wants visible blue should sample Windy Blue SW 6240, the next color down its strip. On a shaded north wall it holds its blue and looks a shade deeper. Extra White SW 7006 trim keeps the lines crisp, and a dark door in Iron Ore SW 7069 or Naval SW 6244 gives the pale siding something to hold on to.
Try Upward on your own walls
Upload a photo of your room, or the outside of your house, and TryMyHome renders Upward onto the walls so you can judge it in your light, with your floors and furniture. Your first five renders are free.
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Upward vs Sea Salt, Krypton and Stardew
Sea SaltUpwardUpward vs Sea Salt SW 6204
Upward is noticeably darker; undertone subtle blue vs subtle green.
Sea Salt SW 6204 is a little lighter than Upward and a different color underneath: green with a trace of yellow, where Upward is blue with a trace of green. Sea Salt is known for flipping blue in cool light; Upward starts blue and stays there. Pick Sea Salt for a spa-like room with warm wood and cream; pick Upward when you want a blue that reads as blue in every light.
Upward vs Krypton SW 6247
Upward is noticeably lighter; undertone subtle blue vs faint blue.
Krypton SW 6247 is the color people search Upward against, and it is a touch darker, LRV 52 to Upward's 57. By measurement Krypton holds noticeably less color: its blue and green are nearly equal and both faint, so it reads as a gray that hints at blue. Choose Krypton when you want a gray that only whispers blue; choose Upward when the blue should be clear against the trim.
StardewUpwardUpward vs Stardew SW 9138
Upward is much lighter; both have a subtle blue undertone.
Stardew SW 9138 is clearly darker, an LRV of 43 against Upward's 57, and it leans the other way: green and blue in nearly equal, faint amounts, so it reads as a blue-green gray. Upward holds more blue and less green. Pick Stardew for a moodier room or a bathroom that wants a gray with a sea tint; pick Upward for a lighter room that should read blue.
Questions about Upward
Is Upward a good bedroom color?
Yes, and it is the room it is searched for most. Its light blue holds on all four walls without reading like a nursery, and it pairs with white bedding, warm wood and a soft white trim such as Icicle SW 6238. In a north-facing bedroom it cools noticeably, so use 2700K to 3000K bulbs and sample the darkest wall first.
Does Upward work in a bathroom?
It does, with white tile, marble-look surfaces and chrome or brushed nickel. The trap is gray tile under cool LED bulbs, which pulls Upward toward a flat, icy gray. Keep the bulbs at 3000K or warmer and pair it with a crisp white like Extra White SW 7006 on the trim so the blue stays soft rather than cold.
What colors go with Upward?
Sherwin-Williams pairs it with Icicle SW 6238 on trim and ceilings and names Extra White SW 7006 and Natural Linen SW 9109 as accents, the warm linen keeping a mostly blue room from going cold. Beyond those, warm oak, walnut and brass bring out the blue, and a darker blue such as Naval SW 6244 works on a door or an island.
What is one shade darker than Upward?
Windy Blue SW 6240 is the next step down its fan-deck strip, a clearly deeper blue with more color in it. Upward is the lightest color on the strip, so there is no lighter step there; among its closest matches, Mild Blue SW 6533 is a step lighter and North Star SW 6246 is lighter and grayer.
Does Upward look gray or blue on the wall?
Blue, but quietly. Measured, it is a blue with a little green and enough gray that it never reads as sky blue. Beside a crisp white or a warm white it looks clearly blue; beside gray tile, chrome or a true gray wall it drifts toward silver. Under cool 4000K bulbs it looks bluer and colder than the chip.
Get a sample before you paint
Use the visualizer to narrow your shortlist, then confirm the finalist on your actual wall. A peel-and-stick sample of Upward, checked in morning and evening light, is the last step before a gallon.
- Made with real paint
- Delivered next day
- Peels off clean
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