"All of the window and door trim throughout the house is 5" painted white."

That means you have to do white blinds, IMO. And you can do treatments over/with the blinds.

I agree with funcolors. White would give you a more cohesive look. And yes, drapes in front of the blinds are lovely.

I have to disagree! I think you can have warm wood blinds and white trim. I tend to think it will give the space a richer look. Drapes will add to the texture and enhance the color in a room, imo.

As for the sliding glass door...well, I'm no help there as I struggle with that one myself.

I struggled with the same concerns as yours. I ordered the 2" wood blinds from J C Penny in white. My doors and trim are all painted White Dove by Ben Moore.

I love the wood (walnut) blinds as well and I agree that a white trim around the window frame does not mean you need to have white blinds; I believe either would work. I will have drapes on the window as well to balance out the sofa that's not placed directly in front of my bay window.

I don't have a picture to share as I ordered the blinds and they arrived with cords instead of wands so they had to be returned. Hopefully, I'll have my blinds in two weeks.

That darn sliding door is a problem for me, too. I don't know what to do with that.

provenance: "All of the window and door trim throughout the house is 5" painted white."

funcolors: "That means you have to do white blinds, IMO."

MAJOR caveat - if the shade of white on the trim doesn't match the shade of white on the blinds, it can look pretty craptastic. Been there, done that, used the t-shirt as a paint rag. Having that problem now except with cream/off-white plastic faux-wood blinds in kitchen/dr and hallway; my entire house has off-white trim (which I hate but can't do anything about right now) and the two just don't mesh right, the trim looks dirty. My living room has walnut blinds with chocolate tapes and I like the way they look (and this is from someone who does not like blinds as a rule), especially since most of my furniture is richly colored wood.

Eventually, when we can afford such fripperies, simple drapes will frame each window to soften the blinds, which I find a very harsh, severe look all by themselves, and all those nasty plastic faux-wood blinds will be replaced with proper wood ones to match the ones in the LR.

Can't help you on the sliding door problem. Every one I've had has been in a rental and has had either vertical blinds or drapes on a traverse rod.

Thank you to everyone who responded so far...it's looking like more folks go for the white blinds. I still like the look of the wood blinds, though. The cherry color is beautiful.

Does anyone else want to weigh in onthis? If you look at our pics, our fireplace is not white but wood and stone. Maybe I should have gone with a standard white paint grade mantel if we're doing all white trim and blinds all over? I really wanted more natural materials, though, so that's the way we went. Hopefully white blinds will stll look good with fireplace too.

The more I'm reading, the more I'm divided about which wsy to go. Aaack!

Amy

I have off white trim with honey-colored wood blinds in the dining room and a similar shade of shutters in the office. In the living room the shutters are painted to match the trim. Obviously, I break the rules. I'm finding that out more and more on this forum, lol.

Someone here has stained wood blinds with white trim and it looks beautiful. Is it newhomebuilder? Who knows?

It is newhomebuilder. I found this snap in a quick search. Hopefully she'll see this thread and share more.

I kinda assumed that the white blinds would be purchased to match the white trim. By now I should know better than to assume that what's obvious to me would be obvious to others.

The OP is buying a generic off-the-shelf blind, so s/he's stuck with JCPenney's idea of "white", which may not necessarily match or even play nicely with the white that's on OP's trim. (Should OP decide to go with the JCP white blinds, which are indeed well priced - I used to have the 1" version - I suggest locating both free shipping coupons and a nearby JCP store to return them if necessary.)

If s/he were interested in custom blinds and wanted the white, I would have said to make sure to get actual slat samples (not a printed brochure) to make sure that the colors matched. When I purchased my wood blinds I started out with this same assumption that I had to match the blinds to the trim and there were half a dozen different variations on white to choose from just in one brand. Enough to drive you right up the wall.

See that's what I mean. I would never say I "found" blinds and I certainly would never buy them if I didn't know for sure how they harmonized with or matched with trim, etc.

Even tho she stated that she "really liked the color", I shouldn't have assumed OP had shopped it down to two colors by a process that included proper samples and was at a point to pick the white she had chosen or the woodtone that keeps callin' her name.

Provenance, if you think both colors are good options and either would work for you interior, you might want to also consider what they're going to look like from the curb and how white or woodtone will work with the exterior.

Natal, thank you so much! I love newhomebuilder's entryway and use of blinds. They look great in her decor. And I really like the wall color. I wonder what it is? We have Sherwin Williams Blonde throughout most of our open areas. But our den (open with sliding French pocket doors w/mullions) is a deep Chinese red (still white trim).

Our trim is a very white-white. It matches white French doors and sliders, as well as the Anderson windows.

Johnmari, Thank you for sharing about the many variations on white. Now I'm a little worried. We really don't have $ to go for custom treatments. If I go with the white, maybe I should order, try one, and then understand I may have to return?

Funcolors(and others) can you share thoughts about what would look best with our exterior? Our house from outside is Dutch Colonial style, a beautiful gray blue (neither blue nor gray, changes colors in diff lights). We have white trim and porch, trim is plain and columns square tapered. Windows all have white mullions (panes). What do you think would look best from outside?

Also would appreciate if anyone has thoughts about our fireplace and has time to look at our pics. Would the style affect what kinds of window treatments would look best in the space? Our rug for LR is a geometrical sage/rust/golds.

Thank you all SO MUCH, I knew there was more to consider but I didn't realize some of the stuff about different whites and allthat. :)

Amy

I think the white is better. The walnut finish will make the rooms feel much darker.

So far I think it's leaning in the direction of white blinds. Well at least I won't have to worry about different wood shades conflicting. I am hoping that our very white trim will be okay with white shades. Will this look okay with a mix of mission/more contemporary furniture?

Any thoughts on how white vs. wood shades would look from the outside of the house would be much appreciated.

Amy

I have all white trim and doors, and went with wood blinds. I am very happy that I did.

I did use white (faux wood) in the bathroom. The white ones really show dirt quickly.

Good luck with your decision!
Jen

You can use either color.

Buying a custom color shouldn't cost any more than what you're paying at JCP. I ordered several white samples from yourblinds.com, found the perfect match and paid less than JCP would have cost.
Plus, even tho I had to pay a few dollars for the samples, it was credited toward my purchase.

Not every brand has a color that will match your trim/cabinets, so shop around until you find one that does.

In my guest BR I put in faux wood blinds that matched the hickory cabinets. Found them at HD ........they have LOTS of sample colors.

Johnmari, Thank you for sharing about the many variations on white. Now I'm a little worried. We really don't have $ to go for custom treatments. If I go with the white, maybe I should order, try one, and then understand I may have to return?

Yes. Absolutely. That was JM's point and what I assumed (and shouldn't have) you already knew. You need to have a plan to check the color before you commit.

Or, as Annz said, there are many other resources out there at about the same price point as JCP where you can obtain samples before you buy. My Lowe's for instance has a nice supply of take home color samples for blinds and plantation shutters.

You mention a mix of mission and contemporary - again, either would work.

Someone made the point the wood tones do not reflect as much light into the space -- that is accurate. If you have abundant natural light, might not be such a concern. But if you're having trouble deciding between the two, that factor is something to consider.

Exterior - Again, either can work. It's a matter of your deciding which choice, white or wood, is going to fit best with the design and look you're marching towards interior as well as exterior.

Maybe make a spreadsheet and list the pros and cons of each color choice to help you see which one 'fits' best at least on paper.

I love the floor stain in your kitchen, is it the same color you applied elsewhere(the 65/35 mix of chestnut/walnut? )

Kitchen floor color looks a lot lighter than elsewhere.

Amy, what did you end up buying?

Ina Garten, another one who dares to break the rules. ;)

Yes, that was me. Still not happy with my choice, but I think it has more to do with the color of stain than the word colored blind. I wish the blinds were less dark cherry and reflective, and more like a hickory color with a matt finish.

I am going to try and post a photo, and hopefully, my Photobucket account is up and working again. I have many things to share, including new CL buys. :) We'll see.

{{!gwi}}

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Yeay...it works!

I'm all for mixing stained wood and white. I think it looks much more interesting.

NHB, I have a furbaby who will take a nap wherever I throw my coat. :)...or sweater, or...anything.

Riley will only sleep on her blankets in HER spots, or on our bed. LOL Occasionally, we find her in an odd chair or the ottoman in our den.

newhomebuilder, love your house, what color are your walls and trim if I may ask?

Thank you! Walls are BM Decatur Buff, and the trim is white/white (don't know the brand.)

newhomebuilder, I also love your house.

provenance, this isn't going to help you because I love both white or wood toned blinds with white trim. In my house I decided to go with white throughout my house since I have large arts&craft molding everywhere with BM historical colors in my rooms. BUT my closed in porch has white walls and white ceiling with powder blue painted wood floor so I put a faux medium brown wood color blind there to break up all the white.

I also prefer stained blinds to white ones. In my old home we had white trim (but no window casing) and stained blinds. I liked the look-especially from the outside looking in.

{{!gwi}}