Sep 14

Sep 14 Colour Crush: White

Which white is right for you? Resene Colour Expert Nikki Morris guides us through the top ten shades of white

White is white is white – right? Wrong. When you’re decorating, there’s white that you can buy as Resene White, and there are a slew of other whites with touches of yellow, green, brown or grey turning them into alabaster, chalk, ivory and cream.
Whites and off-whites pick up on other elements in the room. If you have lots of greenery out the window, expect your walls to take on a greenish look. Use a strong blue rug or furniture, and your walls will pick up on that.
Different parts of the room also reflect light differently. An off-white used under a window will look darker than the same colour used on the opposite wall. An off-white used on the ceiling will look much darker than the same colour on a wall because there is less light reflected. Use a half-strength of your wall colour on your ceiling for balance.
The paint sheen level can also affect the way the colour looks. A flat paint, like Resene SpaceCote Flat, will make the colour look muddier and denser, while a gloss finish like Resene Enamacryl will make it look cleaner and brighter.
That search for the right white is what makes our Whites & Neutrals palette so popular. With their yellow base, Resene Spanish White and Resene Pearl Lusta have the ability to lift a room and warm it. In their varying strengths, they take out many of the top places in the Resene Top 20 most popular paint colours each year. Conversely, colours like Resene Sea Fog have a cooling effect.

Deciphering Whites
Beneath each paint swatch on The Range Whites & Neutrals fan deck is the paint name and a code. Codes that start with Y for yellow or B for brown describe warmer whites – perfect for cool, south-facing rooms. Cooler whites have G for green and N for neutral, and these are ideal for taking the visual heat out of north-facing rooms.