nepool, I love the picture in your first post. That door is beautiful and it looks so nice with the wood floor and the whole room. Are cased windows something a lot of people do? We have never had cased windows. Of course we have a window sill but not cased. Maybe it's a regional thing. Since you have stained trim maybe you can answer a questions for me. I am concerned that if I do all stained that it will limit paint choices in the future. My house has all white except the kitchen cabinets. I remember when we painted the kitchen having to find a color that went with the cabinet color (some stains have more red or yellow in them). My sister has stained trim and doors (in her words, ugly stained trim) and when she painted a room and didn't think about the trim and the dark blue doesn't look like she had expected next to the dark trim. I have a dark blue room with white trim and the contrast is striking. We don't even have a floor plan yet and these details are driving me crazy.

Trying to match whites is a very difficult proposition and not always the best to do. It's amazing how layering whites actually adds interest and contrast, which you actually need. We have divinity white cabinets from Medallion, and our trim is a creamy white, very similar, but not perfect. The white subways are crackled and bevelled, they add dimension, depth and a bit of shine. Have fun with it and chose the whites that suit you eye and work well together, whether they are on the grey side or creamy side, you'll need to decide. Cheers!

I think there are pictures in the forum representing almost every combination imaginable and there isn't any one combination that pops out in my memory as not having worked. Our interior doors and trim all match and are softer white. On the exterior, is the same. White trim, white door, hunter green shutters (which we're planning on changing eventually). I like it that way because the white is a nice contrast and to me it provides a more cohesive look. I think you should do what is most appealing to you.

I live in a 70+ year old Cape. This door had always been painted to match the trim. This year, I decided to strip it and stain it. Here are the results. Since all the trim in my house is painted an 'almost white', I wouldn't consider stripping the surrounding trim.