Re you last comment, is you trim a different color then the bookcases? I’m on my phone so can’t see the photo very well. I’d repaint the bookcases and fp surround white. I think white goes better with grays and black and creams go better with browns and muted earthy tones. I also like the dark photoshopped ones above. If you keep the cream I think it will look more intentional and cohesive if you repeat that cream color in the room. Is it anywhere else? It doesn’t look like it from this photo. Looks like your rug has an off-white. I think it would be more challenging to repeat the cream and to make it look intentional and good. Again, my first choice I think would be to paint light. I would choose BM Simply White for the bookcases (it’s an off-white.). If you wanted a true white look at BM Chantilly Lace. I think a white also makes sense over the cream because of your rug colors. That said you will see the pink of the tile more going with white. I’d either repeat it or prime and paint right over it. (I’d go with painting it the same as the surround.) My second choice would be the dark color for thr bookcases and surround. I think that looks pretty sharp. Whatever you go with, even if you embrace the cream, once you add books and other items to the shelves that will make a big difference. The eye will be less focused on the cases I think. Please post an update with what you decide. :)

@MarylandHomebody that's true about the shirt, but we painted our kitchen Simply White and it looked green. We were painting over the previous owners dark green so of course at first we thought it was that. So we primed and painted again and still green. I hated it. Eventually we went with Opaline the same color we'd painted in the living and dining room. It's the palest blue/green/grey color. I love it and it completely got rid of the ugly shade of green we were seeing that I eventually figured out was a result of our green evergreens outside. I wouldn't have wanted to live with that ugly pea/yellow green and am so glad we repainted and didn't just take somebody else's opinion that it looks good when I knew inside it did not look good to us as that's ultimately what matters.

@User. I absolutely get what you are saying but I dont want to spend money on things I dont love either. I am taking approuch of each item should bring joy. While beige walls and lighter beige tan couch might work for this house - I dont like it. So the colors blend better but I still don’t like the items. And if move - bones of the house stay with the house but furniture goes with me so I want to like that furniture. And in the future replacing countertops and backsplash is in the plan. I ll look into options for replacing flooring just in the kitchen area too. And it so happens my favorite accent color is blue..and green. And definitely no black. We replaced most black furniture with white so not going back to black. The kitchen is small so bones of the kitchen are replaceable. I want To replace countertops and backsplash and possibly the flooring Just in the kitchen. Rest of the house has nice wood. That’s why I got upset alabaster turned more cream - for future vision. So I really don’t want starting to replace furniture with colors I dont like when i can Slowly start redoing the bones. Countertops and backsplash will cost the same as repainting the house and buying new couches and accents.

blue cancels yellow. it's your lighting. during the day they look whiter. This looks perfectly white to me. when you turn on the lights it looks yellow. yellow lighting. get 4000K bulbs in every light fixture in the room. every, single one. Look how yellow this is!! when you do that, take new pictures and come back. 4000K is a nice, bright white. when you start getting into the 5000 range, it turns very cool and blue. just stay w/the 4000K. Personally I'd paint the kitchen walls another color. the one that is currently there doesn't do much for the cabinets or the counter.