I have done both and like the white white the best. I also have a warm creamy white paired with a really pale butter yellow in another room and I love that combo . I had the pale yellow cut with white by 2/3 to get the right color combination because some of the creams just look dirty when combined with pale yellow. If you cut the yellow your using with white they instantly work together. The yellow I used is Cassia 92223 by ColorPlace at wal-mart. I just had Lowes color match it for me in Valspar.

Victoriajane,

I think you could go either way depending on the look you are trying to accomplish and the other finishes you use. I see a lot of white cabinets with soapstone, but there are so many shades of off white or cream colors. The cream colors are a warmer finish. I prefer the cream colors because it's not so stark. Are you going for a modern look, or and old world look, like European country? Also something to consider is the backplash. What are you using for that? It might help you decide which white you prefer.

I personally love the creamy. (I just posted a message where I have some pics entitled "I need advice to finish my kitchen" In one particular picture you can see the contrast for the white drywall behind it). White white looks a bit stark and sterile to me but that's just a personal opinion. I don't necessarily think your choice of chrome or glass, stainless or soapstone would be a factor. With white trim I would personally like the creamy contrast next to it. My vote is creamy

I wouldn't go as far as creamy if you are still going for the "vintage with a touch of industrial" look. But I wouldn't go white white either. Maybe a warm white rather than a cool white. The idea of mixing the yellow you want with the white seems good because even with as little wall space you have you still don't what those to clash.

Lots of variety and opinions out there on this topic. It sounds like you are in the early stages, so you might want to do a search....

Here is a link that might be useful: Search for 'which white'

As someone with a white white (not a typo) kitchen I'd love to weigh in on this. What determined our choice of pure white is the lighting in our kitchen. I could ooh and aah over all the gorgeous creamy or pure white kitchens in others spaces until the cows come home, but the only way to determine our "right" white was to look at them in our space.

As our kitchen is an interior space, "borrowing" natural light from adjacent spaces, that helped winnow it for us. Additionally, neither of the rooms from which the kitchen gets its natural light gets direct sun (as they're both north-facing), so that impacted our choice too.

The more samples (door and plain paint samples) at which we looked the more our eye was able to determine which would / should work for our space.

I have seen some creamy kitchens which are to-die-for lovely. I have seen some creamy kitchens which look dirty. I have seen some pure white kitchens which are elegant and subdued. I have seen some pure white kitchens which look tacky cheap and almost medicinal.

Anyway, this is my opinion. Any white can look terrific in the right space, and any white can look horrible in the wrong space. I would highly, strongly suggest you look at as many different whites as possible in the area which will be your kitchen.

I wish you the best of luck and happiness in your new kitchen!

(Here's my kitchen.)

Having just made this decision (although my cabinets are not here yet), rmkitchen's suggestions are spot on. How "white" or "creamy" a color will look in YOUR kitchen is entirely different than how it will look in someone else's. As rmkitchen said, the natural lighting AND the artificial lighting AND the other colors in the room will determine how "white" or "creamy" your cabinets will look.

In addition to the natural light, check the color with the type of lighting you'll be using. If you've got bright halogen, you'll see a different color than you would with warm incandescent. Also think about your floor; a large expanse of warm wood will reflect a warmer light through the space. Dark objects will make a creamier white look whiter, etc.

Get some samples from your cabinet maker and live with them, check them in all different lights. You'll be surprised at how easy it is to find your "right white".

Regards,
Alida

I recently faced the same decision and I echo what the others have said above---depends on your space and your lighting. One thing I'd add is that I found looking at samples side by side in my space was very confusing because you focus on the contrast between the two when those two won't sit side by side in your finished kitchen. I placed a creamy white sample on one wall and the stark white on the opposite wall and rotated them through the kitchen as the day progressed. In my case I found the creamy white to be easier on my eyes and a bit more relaxing. The color I chose is a buttercream base which has a warmer undertone. But the best advice is choose what you like!

I'm fussy about mixing white and off-white, so this thread makes me smile. I don't have much to add beyond RM's very thorough post, but if your trim is going to be white then IMO the cabinets had better match perfectly or be fairly far off (both distance and color). I would not like cabinets one shade off from, and adjacent to, white trim -- I'd be irritated and constantly thinking that the painter goofed. I ended up with a "soft cream" island and various pure white pieces (sink, backsplash) on the walls, but none of them are touching each other.

I feel your pain! I agonized over what shade of off white to get the cabinetry. We finally ended up with one that coordinated with both warm & cool colors without looking stark (I have a tendency to change wall colors often). We liked the color of the cabinets so much that we decided to paint all of the trim in the house in SW Alabaster too. Good thing it's new construction or my DH would have killed me. :o)

Sorry for the mess in the pics! It's still a work in progress.

Persnicketydesign, can you show me a close up picture of your hardware? I love your kitchen. I am still trying to pick out knobs and pulls. Your look like the birdcage type in this picture. Tell me more!

Although I'm basically echoing rmkitchen and alida, I couldn't stay quiet on this! I picked the whitest white available--the one my KD warned me against. But when he saw the sample door in MY space, he agreed that I chose wisely. My space has windows and natural light, but it's very filtered.

Even with my whitest white choice, I look at my cabinets sometimes and worry they aren't white enough--especially under the carrarra marble perimeter countertops.

So...just another voice chiming in to say that you really need to pick the right color white for YOUR space!!

Thank you for all your advice...now for a really stupid question...how was it that you were able to pick the exact paint color for your cabinets? Is it because your cabinets are custom and your cabinet maker painted them specially for you? My cabinet line is Elmwood and I am using their inset line which I thought was custom but now I'm not even sure. The kitchen designer showed me two paint samples at the showroom: white and antique white. Do I have any other options?

Thank you so much! They were supposed to install the granite today, but got sidetracked in Atlanta, so it looks like I'll have to wait until Monday. *sigh*

We're owner/builders and have saved a ton by shopping around to find good deals. Some of the best came from eBay...which is where the knobs & pulls came from!

The knobs were $1.79 and the 7 1/2" hanging pulls are $3.39. Both are in a matte black finish. I attatched a link at the bottom to the seller's eBay page (yourhomesupply) that shows picture of them. All of mine are out at the other house or I'd be happy to post a close up pic of them. :o)

We're also using Kalco's French Twist light fixtures for the kitchen and breakfast room. They have a birdcage look to them too. We won't be using the red shades though. LOL

Here is a link that might be useful: Birdcage Pulls on eBay

Victoriajane...ours are custom, so we could pick any color we wanted.

I just looked up the brochure on Elmwood's website and it looks like they have lots of different finishes available. Here's a link....

Here is a link that might be useful: Elmwood's doors & finishes brochure

Vitoriajane...mine was also a custom finish, but custom can range from bring in a paint chip and we'll make them that color to mix and match our standard colors, glazes and finishes(sheen, distressing, etc) the way you want. My cab company would do any of the above but I had a great KD who helped me marry a standard paint color with a very light touch of a standard glaze. It can all be so confusing when you first start.

As a suggestion, you may want to decide if you like glaze and whether glaze is in your budget (each manufacturer has different levels of upcharge for glazing and it can be very hefty--as much as 25% or more). Once you rule glaze in or out, then you can start with the standard colors. I borrowed every standard version of white/off-white from my KD before I narrowed it down. Some were very quickly ruled out, but I was stuck between two for a week or two.

And lastly, some local custom cabinet makers and some of the higher end custom companies do let you just pick a color. If you do a search at the bottom of the page you'll probably turn up threads with different shades of white people have used with custom cab makers. I remember reading through them when I was in the midst of this decision--why does "Dove White" come to mind? I'm getting old (or batty from all this construction).

We decided on white white (BM Chantilly Lace) because we live in a tropical climate and we wanted a fresh, cool feel. The cabinets are being installed now and I am really happy with the color. It is a white white but its not cold, it seems to have just enough warmth to it to keep it from being too stark. I will post pics soon!

We went with local custom cabinet makers and the paint choices were unlimited. For someone like me who rethinks every decision a hundred times, it would have been easier if they said here are your 3 choices. Instead I went with paint chips to every cabinet line I could find and held them up trying to match a chip to a cabinet color I liked. It took me forever. I ended up with Benjamin Moore Ivory White #925 which was an almost exact match for Cabico's Dove color. I'll post pics when they get further along with installation.

I wanted creamy white and I am like pluckymama as far as decision making. I too have custom cabinets and an unlimited choice of colors. I happened to luck out when my cabinet maker/GC left a cabinet sample from another job to pick the sheen and it matched what I was looking for perfectly. It happened to be a mixture of varying amounts of two colors and I never would have found it on my own.
Now I just have to pick the paint colors for the other 5 rooms.....

I went with a creamier white out of not wanting it to be too stark for my space. I agree with above posters saying you need to figure out what works in your particular light and space.

NEW QUESTION THOUGH - this came up this week as the painters are starting and someone above mentioned trim.

For trim and molding I am not sure. The trim or molding above the cabinets is already done and of course matches the cabinets. We will also have an area of built in bookcases in the adjoining family room also in the same off=white as the kitchen cabs. We are painting the trim which is now honeyed oak. Should we match the trim to the rest of the house which is a different white than the new cabinets or to the cabinets (which is a little greyer than the house trim, neither really white white but creamy in different ways)? These rooms are set off from the others, i.e., their molding will not touch or meet EXCEPT for two doorways.

I think I had decided with the painter to go with the trim color of the rest of the house - and by trim I mean windows and crown molding, with the exception of the crown above all cabinets (kitched and fam room) and also the two windows right in the kitchen smack between the cabinets. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Don't mean to hijack the post and perhaps I'll need to post independently??

victoriajane -- if I were you, I would start by borrowing the two samples the KD showed you. Bring them home and see how they look in your space; one of them may be perfect!

If neither is quite right, you'll also know that, and then you can explore your color options with your KD.

But don't make it more difficult for yourself: start with those two choices and only after you've dismissed them (IF they need to be dismissed -- as I wrote, one of them may be great!) look into other options.

Good luck!

katmandu -- I like what you and your painter decided to do (as pictured in my mind's eye) -- to have the trim around all the cabinetry (kitchen and family room) match the cabinetry, and where they meet the rest-of-the-house trim, you'll have the slight variation. I think it could end up looking really funny (as in awkward) if you don't have the same color trim near the cabinetry: your (and others) eyes will always notice that the cabinetry and trim are "off." In a more subtle location, like those doorways, it won't be obvious because, let's face it, doorway trim isn't usually a focal point ....

rmkitchen - I will definitely bring the two samples home. You're right, one of them could be just the thing. I agree with pluckymama - I am the type for whom an unlimited choice would be a nightmare. I would never be able to choose! I'd kind of like 3 choices, though.

The worst thing that happened to me was my custom cab guy saying the magic words, "we can match any color." Then I went to the paint store for chips and it was all over! I spent weeks with chips, tester pots, and poster board. Honestly, I gave up on what would look right in my kitchen. I had no idea what the new electric lights would make it look like and the natural light changes how things appear as the daylight shifts. To make matters worse, my kitchen will now be open to a cream colored DR/LR (painted by the previous owners and goes all throughout my apartment so I can't afford to redo) and I wanted anything but deep cream in the kitchen.

I brought by a parade of people to look at how this or that white would look with that cream until finally one said, "why don't you just get what you like." And I did. I like cool tones and my granite will have gray and blue, my backsplash will be smoky blue, my appliances are stainless, my faucet and hardware will be cool brushed chrome. So I got BM White Dove matched because it seemed cool and has a gray tone to it.

The cabinets arrived this week and the contractor looked at them and said, "oh, it's like a gray white." I wanted to hug him.

Any advice on what shade of white to use with white appliances? I am about to repaint my currently sage green cabinets and am concerned that either cabinets or appliances will look "dirty" with the wrong white. Thanks for any thoughts you can offer.

I used Dove White which is a neutral white - not too warm or too cool. It works with just about everything. Dove white is BM's number one selling white -

Remember too that oil paint will yellow the white with time, but latex will stay a truer white over the long term. I used oil - BM Satin Impervo, it is a strong hard finish. I love it! Soft on the eye, warm, not too jarring.

Thanks Brooke. I think I goofed and went the other way. Still not sure and can decide up until tomorrow I think as all is not primed but not painted. AHhhh!