Most clients arrive with a fan deck and a headache. The secret is that the light in your room decides the white, not the chart.
Read the light first
- North-facing rooms: choose a white with a warm, yellow or red base
- South-facing rooms: almost any white works; cooler ones stay crisp
- Rooms used at night: judge the white under your own lamps, not daylight
Test it properly
- Paint large card samples, at least two feet square
- Move them round the room: by the window and in the darkest corner
- Look at them morning, noon and evening for three days
- Hold them against the floor and the fabrics you are keeping
If two whites look the same, choose the warmer one. Cool whites get colder every winter. Maren, principal designer
Our style finder suggests a palette for your room in a minute, and every consultation includes a colour walk-through.
