which white

Phase 2 of "neutralizing" begins on Friday when we have the exterior of our home painted. The house is currently white, but we've been told it's too white. Actually, I do agree with the "too white" diagnosis. I believe the guy who owned the house before us--as an investment property--simply had the place primed and never really finished the job. So now we're going to pick off where he left off and have the house professionally painted. The color we've chosen? White. However, white is not white is not white...

After sorting through Sherwin Williams color samples for two days, I'm beginning to wonder which white is right. There's ibis white, pearly white, elder white, simple white, incredible white, aesthetic white, reserved white, nebulous white, Navajo white, site white, antique white...and the list goes on. There are blue-toned whites and yellow-toned whites; cool whites and warm whites; bright whites and subdued whites. What's a homeowner to do? After much consideration (and a vision that involved throwing the fan deck of color choices against the wall) I finally came up with a color combination that I believe will appeal to home buyers looking in our neighborhood: pearly white for the house, warm stone for the porches and caviar for the shutters and door. You'll have to stay tuned for the before and after.