Cat Mom, the quality of light is different in every location, both natural and man made, so it's really hard to weigh in on such a delicate choice.

I have three shades of white, which I mixed myself, in my entry. I'm the only one who notices, which was the point. To the eye it just looks like variation in the light. Is the BM 01 the same thing as their "superwhite"? That's the base I used for my tints. It's the whitest white I've worked with.

Have you tried mixing the two whites? Could be interesting :) It would bring up the Frostine, while warming up the Chantilly. Or mix one of them with the 01 to lessen the not-01-ness of them. You can measure using a disposable plastic spoon and an old food container. Just record your number of spoonsful.

As to whether the Chantilly is too bright, it depends on what you want the wall to be. If you want the walls to pop out, go for it. If you want them to be kind of invisible, go for the 01, since it's the most neutral. If you want cozy, go for the warmer one.

As my DH puts it, I'm splitting hairs, at least between the 01 and the Frostine. Like I said, they both seem to have the same intensity or brightness, one's greyer (colder?)--the 01, and the other--Frostine, is less grey(warmer, yellower?).

01 is different from Superwhite--less bright, and not sure, but perhaps more grey than the Superwhite. Superwhite is prob closer to Chantilly in brightness (Super being colder/greyer, Chantilly being warmer??).

I've been doing my best to find good online samples. From what I can see Chantilly Lace is very warm, i.e., pink. It should be very flattering to most Northern European complexions. Definitely warmer than Superwhite, but the latter isn't cold or gray. It's really super white.

Or, I guess it is gray, if you want to be terribly technical, in that white is the same color as black and pure grays lie in between. Paint grays are usually blue, purple (blue red) or taupe (blue yellow).

All I found for 01 was "natural wicker" which looked too colorful. Is that it? It's a warm yellow. The only good shot of Frostine I found had too confusing a background to say, but it looks like a pretty true white maybe leaning to the blue/green.

But all of this goes back to the check your paint patches in different lights and see how you like them. Try cutting a square out of a newspaper and viewing through it. Do the same thing with something dark, pref. black. Hold all your samples up next to them. Etc.

Try to see what your whites look like on an overcast or rainy day and compare to sun. Some tints look positively dreary on cloudy days and can be depressing. All the analysis in the world isn't as good as that gut feeling.

I sympathize SO much. Before I decided on the Maya wall and made my own tints to match it, I was going crazy with whites. I must have had 7 or 8 of them in patches all over the place. The workmen thought I was nuts. I hated them all!

Good luck!!

(And re names: Where's the denim+Clorox chip???)

Check out redroze's finished kitchen. She used Chantilly Lace on her cabinets, baseboards and ceiling.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg030117443299.html

Of the three in consideration, CL is the brightest of the whites. White (01) is hard to find online for some reason--it's just a ready-mixed color, on the same card as Super White, Decorator's White, Atrium...and it def has grey tones. Frostine, in some of my sample patches on the walls, appears almost identical to the 01, and in others, just that hint warmer (what I'm not sure is, how much that warmth will translate when painted all over--will it still read as a real, "pure" white, or slightly off?).

I mostly considered switching to the Frostine because it is a color specifically made for the Aura paint (rather than just one of their reg colors being mixed up using Aura). Have read that there is a depth of color you get using the Affinify colors (in Aura) vs using reg BM colors (in Aura)--though I don't know if that would still apply when the color in question is white. One of the other reasons I'd thought about changing my white with this re-paint, is that lately the 01 on our walls seems to have a "brittle" quality or look to it. Could be the color, could be the eggshell finish. DH is going to bring home qts of the 01, Frostine, and CL in Aura Matte for me to test out in larger sections. At least that'll give a more accurate representation of the color, as well as how the colors look in the finish we plan to use.

I'd thought of CL specifically because of red's kitchen! :-) Although, in her pics, it looks much softer than it does in the patches I'd painted here (again, pretty bright here, though a soft, warm bright, not brittle like my 01's been looking).

Thanks for your help so far! Will test some more paint later!

Hm... Depth of color for the colors.... Hm.... Must be some kind of chemical enhancer or something, or a specific formulation rule, such as none of a particular element.

The way paint works is you have the part that sticks to the walls and you have pigment. The pigments for commercial housepaints are usually suspended in a liquid medium (paint base) so that they're easy to handle and mix (as opposed to powder). The difference--the reason Benjamin Moore has such good repute--is in the other part. Cheap paint doesn't have as much binder in it, doesn't have the chemicals that help prevent fading, etc. That's why they get powdery with age. But within the same line, using the same pigment mixer, that's not an issue.

In theory, a color should be a color, no matter what the base, which is why I'm speculating that there might be some special additive, like the optical brighteners in some laundry detergents. But it's also highly possible that the people who say that are deluding themselves. Like that thing where the name of the color sets the mood.

None of which really matters. Just blathering here. The "brittle" look could be microcracks in your eggshell finish, or just age, or it could be a trick of the color. It could be one of those mood things.

What I'm getting off your conversation about them (really the best indicator) is that you like the warmth of the Chantilly, but it's too bright for your taste. The Frostine is maybe not warm enough, but is the right intensity. Mixing might well give you a just right. :-)

I don't recall where I'd read it (one of the forums?), but either way, I don't know if it would apply to the whites, even if it is true. How much of a discernible depth would it possibly have--it's white!

The current wall paint has only been up for two years so I doubt it's age. I think it might be the color itself (e.g the amount of grey in it) giving off what I'm calling a brittle quality or tone, or it could be the finish (eggshell).

We have a room that we recently painted that is not only in a more premium paint (Aura), and in a different finish than the rest of the house (matte), but it is an actual color that isn't white (Aura/Affinity--Pensive). Maybe after looking at that, the rest of the walls don't look as nice by comparison. Or maybe I'm just crazy--LOL!

LOL!! You're not crazy!!

If it is that they have some kind of chemical enhancers it could make a difference in whites, maybe even a bigger difference.

So I looked it up. This was on Wikipedia: 2007 Benjamin Moore introduces Aura® paint claiming it to be the Âfinest paint weÂve ever made an ultra premium high performance product for homeowners. It features proprietary ColorLock  a water-borne colorant system encapsulates color for unmatched color depth and durability, in a low-VOC formula.

When BM first introduced Aura paint, it could only be made up in the Affinity colors. Then, more recently, they made it possible for ALL their colors to be made up in Aura.

I'd read a post somewhere the other day, that stated that while you could have any color made up in Aura, the Affinity colors, the ones made specifically for the Aura paint, had a depth and quality that would be lacking in a (reg) color mixed up in Aura paint. Either it's BS, or...?

I'm off to test out the 3 choices in Aura matte (on a wall or two), and see if I like any one better than the other two. As if it were that easy!

Then I'll have to decide if I want to stick with matte or go with satin for the base molding (windows and doors/trim are stained). Can't wait for this part to be done!

PS I don't think I want to open the can of worms that is color-mixing. Then it becomes, "Should I add a drop more this or that?" "Should we go a hair lighter/darker/other?" "Will they be able to match this formula again, ever?" LOL

Ok, so I painted more swatches on the wall last night using the matte finish Aura--01, Frostine, & CL. Still can't decide. CL looked ok last night, but yellowish during the day in some of the sample swatch locations. Frostine looked almost peachy on some walls last night, but maybe it looks a little better this morning?

Could end up sticking with my 01 since it's what my eye is used to for white. Unless I pick up a qt of that Super White today to test out tonight.....(DH is going to shoot me!).

Well, Super White is super white. It's the whitest white wall paint I've ever seen. It might actually be too white to live with comfortably, unless you want one of those high design, super polished looks. Since you're looking at the whites against your old brittle white, did you try the trick of looking through contrasting paper, so that you can only see the swatch? That should help a lot.

Also, last night the swatches weren't hard dry. They aren't today. Give it a few days and go back and go back, and try to see at all different times of day etc.

Also, what kinds of lights do you have in your swatch locations? "White" lightbulbs have a lot of color. Incandescents are yellow, fluorescents are blue or pink or yellow, etc.

I get why you don't want to mix. With computer matching it's not a big deal, but I totally understand why you don't want to go down that road...

Picked up the Super White in Aura matte this afternoon, but haven't had a chance to test it out yet. Sometimes the one you think is a definite NO turns out to be THE one, so it was worth the $ to get it to be sure either way. Prevents the "always wondering" syndrome! Who knows, I could end up choosing it.....

BTW, my current wall paint, though I've described the color/look as perhaps having a brittle quality, isn't old by any means--it's only been up for 2 years. It's either the color itself, or the Aquavelvet paint/finish making it look less-than perfect to me . I am going to force myself to choose either my original color, Super White, Frostine, or CL, and call it a day, at least within the next few days. Painting commences next week!

PS plllog--I'll have to email you a pic of my fiber/felted wool wall hanging now that I know you're a fiber artist! I didn't make it. I've loved the artist in quention's work (her older stuff) for many years now, and lucked out finding this piece while doing a google search last winter/spring.

Catmom, I can't add anything to the expert discussion on whites here, but I wanted to share that we had all of the BM paints we used made up in Aura. While some were Affinity, some were not (in our LR, BR). All the colours have a real depth and richness, and we love the matte finish. So whichever way you go I would vote for Aura!

Good luck in your final choice.
Eliz

Oh, I am definitely an Aura matte convert! This is why we are repainting most of the living spaces now, only two years after painting them (with BM Regal Aquavelvet--eggshell finish). In November we painted a small bathroom (99% completed reno) an Affinity color called Pensive (a light cocoa color) in the matte finish and LOVE it! Thanks for another vote for the Aura though! :-)

I painted my Super White samples a little while ago. I realize they are not completely dry, but unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, despite its brightness, it actually looks a the tiniest bit warmer than White 01. Perhaps the lack of grey in the SW brings about that quality? Maybe that's what's been bugging me lately about my walls--the grey in them (in the White 01)???

If do end up choosing the SW, it'll prove my friend's axiom--you usually end up with the paint color you thought you wouldn't like! LOL

Very interesting thread on "White paint!" I had looked at some of the colours you mentioned last fall Cat and couldn't decide if they would be too stark white. Then I decided that maybe what I really wanted was actually a "hint" of grey but more cool than warm.

But your 'white' search could come in handy for painting trim, so thanks for starting this and good luck!!

You're welcome mariposa! I've read some people describe whites they used, ones with a touch of grey, as warm (because of the grey), so what do I know?

As of last night, DH didn't like the Frostine, and the CL looked yellow in most of the locations with it (even when I held up black folders on either side of the sample to block off the surrounding white 01 wall color). He liked the Super Wite the best, even better than our 01. I'm inclined to agree, based on color alone--it's definitely the "cleanest" and clearest of the whites. Have to decide if the intensity (since it is brighter than our current 01) is such that I'd like it all over. If it isn't, and we end up sticking with the 01, I'll feel better knowing that I at least tried out other "colors" and made an "informed" decision!

LOL! Well, Super White is super white!

The thing about gray is that some grays are blue and some are red, so some are cool and some are warm. Very very few are truly neutral. I get it about the brittle feeling (and meant "old" on the 01 as what was already on the walls as opposed to samples)--that could definitely be the gray undertone, especially if it's cool.

Do you have any manila folders to use as a contrast to the black ones? It'll give you a wider decision base.

I'd love to see your hanging! I have other people's fiber art all over my house too. :)

Cool might not be bad (fave color is blue!), but cold and dreary--that's another story! :-)

Will try the manila folder test later and get back to you. Leaning towards Super White at the moment. Perhaps it's the lack of undertones drawing me towards it (I am liking the pure whiteness of it).

Here's our wall hanging (or "felting," as we affectionately call it!):

The artist's name is Smadar Livne. This is one of her older pieces ('94?). We much prefer it over her more recent work (different style, media, etc.). We consider ourselves very fortunate to have found this one (last spring). It makes me smile whenever I see it hanging there in our LR (we flip flopped our LR and DR after the reno, so the room/space is right off our kitchen).

BTW, those blue pillows in the pic were knitted by my mom (in Nov). She made just the fronts, and then I sewed them to pillows I'd gotten on sale in Crate and Barrel (to go with them). They go perfectly with the wall hanging (IMHO!).

Cat Mom, the Livne piece is VERY cool! Thanks for sharing it. It has much more of a tapestry look than most felted art does. And yes, the pillows are perfect!

Want a laught? Before I scrolled down, while I was focused on the art, I thought there was a german shepherd sitting by your couch. (I.e., your pedestal.)

Thanks! Now I have to see some of YOUR work...!

No GSD's here--only two slightly (read: very!) spoiled kitty girls!

The cocktail table base is made from actual grapevines (we've only had it since a few days before Christmas). Who knew they grew to be so large? My friends were all trying to picture a table base made out of the same size grapevines that you see on those grapevine wreaths!

OMG, that artwork is to die for, and I love the colour blue your mum picked for the pillows. Is that your new living room suite?

And that table needs to find a new home. It does not look right there to be honest. Not with those leather chairs...

It would fit in perfectly in my room instead!! LOL

Where did you find it?

Thank you mari! Mom didn't pick the blue for the pillows though--I did. The yarn is hand dyed and hand painted (Colinette, Point Five yarn). I'd brought home a number of different skeins of the same type of yarn, but in different colors, and chose the one we liked best with the wall hanging and couch (ours is called "Jay"). Lucked out with the pillows themselves. They're a perfect match with the yarn's colors.

All the LR furniture is new: couch was delivered last summer, we got the wall hanging over the summer, pillows in Nov, and table came together literally days before Christmas.

No, you may not have my table! It fits perfectly with our couch (DH made a template for the glass guys and the grapevine guys using the specs from the glass-topped solid leather covered base table that "goes" with the couch).

I'd found the grapevine table guys online during one of my marathon cocktail table searches, and they custom made the base to "fit" our template. We got the glass made by a local company (they actually sent it out to be made).

DH picked up the paint today, painting will begin on Wednesday. We decided to go with Super White (it's always the one you think you won't like/choose....LOL). It's the "cleanest" white we looked at and we think it'll make our wall hanging and other furnishings really "pop." I found myself drawn to that swatch on our walls, and it made me smile, so I knew that was the right white for us! Hope I still feel that way when it's covering the walls and ceilings :-)

My thanks to those who weighed in!

Side note: the owner of the company that made our grapevine table base passed away in January--I had trouble getting to the SierrArts site to provide a link for mariposa, and finally googled the owner's name and found his obit. DH and I were upset to read that. He was super nice and so very helpful every step of the way through the ordering and delivery process. We wished that every purchase we ever made could be handled by someone as competent as he was (and as excited about his own product) and that it would go as smoothly. We received the grapevine base almost a month to the day before his passing.

Sadly, it seems the company has been closed (phones disconnected, website unavailable).

OMG, that's so sad that he died :-( Did you actually meet the owner?

Since your DH picked the colour, do you get to tell him you don't like it AFTER the painting is done???lol

You have exquisite taste amiga! Everything you do comes out just right.

Never met him, but spoke on the phone a number of times before, during and after we place the order and received tha base. Emailed some pics to him too (as I'd mentioned, they just made the base, we got the glass top locally).

DH didn't pick the color, he just picked up the paint at the store (I called in the order, BTW!).

You are way too kind. This decorating stuff is very challenging for me!

Big smile here, Cat Mom!! Glad you got a white that makes you happy.

plllog, we'll see when it's on the walls! Thanks!

I'm sure it will turn out right! Sometimes I agonise and then give up, so I admire that you put so much effort into what you want. I wish I had that determination.

Will you be painting the entire house in that colour?

I certainly waited long enough to furnish this place (we're in this house almost 10 1/2 years!), so it's worth getting what I like and want (within budgetary constraints of course!). Besides, as indecisive as I am, I'm also very stubborn. That's what I get for being a Gemini on the cusp of Taurus!!!

The main rooms/spaces upstairs will be painted Super White (kitchen/LR/DR/foyer/hallway/stairwell....)--walls, ceilings, and base molding (satin finish on the molding). Smallest bedroom-turned-office walls will be painted Spa (green) with Super White on the ceiling. Upstairs bathrooms, master bedroom and other bedroom; TBD when they're reno'd!

So, the painting began last week (while we were out-of-town visiting family). Looks really good so far! Clean, bright, and somehow warmer, despite Super White being such a bright white. Don't know if it's the Aura paint, or the "color" itself, but it does seem to have more depth than the previous paint--almost as if the previous paint just hovered on the surface, while this one appears to be part of the walls themselves (does that even make sense?).

When our friend is finished painting all the white paint walls/ceilings, he'll start on the office (using the green paint-Spa). I can't wait to see how that will look.

I'm so glad you like it!

Now let me get this straight. You are using the same Super White on ceiling and trim as well, but satin finish on base molding? Are you using flat everywhere else?

How great to come home to paint looking good!!

It's not finished yet, plllog, but it was nice to come home and see enitre walls covered with one color white!

Mari, the walls and ceiling are Super White in Aura Matte finish, the base molding is Super White Aura Satin Finish, and the doorways are stained oak (Golden Oak, Minwax).