alternatives to Ben Moore China White

10 years ago

Hi,

I recently moved into a new (old) house and am in the process of repainting. In our old bedroom we had China White, which I loved, because it was the perfect soft clean color that read as white but not too stark and absolutely glowed in the morning light. I liked that it was neutral and *not* yellowy, that it looked clean and white in daylight but a little cozier and warmer at night with the curtains shut.

I know the same color can look different in a different house, though, so I made sure to try a sample of China White in our new bedroom, which has southwest light and not quite as much of it. It looks so very gray and shadowy in this room. I don't think it will work.

I also tried a sample of Dove Wing, which looks similar but lighter to China White in card form but on the wall in paint form looks a lot cooler and I worry it will be cold. I had Simply White on hand from the kitchen so I tried that -- way too white. (And in the kitchen I am currently struggling with the yellow it has.)

Should I get a sample made up of 50% China White? Will that change just the deepness/darkness of it, or make it look like a different color? Any suggestions on other whites to try?

Thanks!

Featured Answer

graywings123

10 years ago

I use Ben Moore Simply White. If you google it, you will see several discussions about it.

Comments (7)

tibbrix
10 years ago
I originally put China White on my wood trim in my kitchen, and at first I loved it because I thought it was so creamy. Fortunately, I stopped, because I came to dislike it a lot because it looked cold and drab, kind of dirty even.

Ended up going with the painter's recommendation, White Dove, kind of an all-purpose white, creamy, not too warm, not too coolÃ¢ÂÂ¦.
crl_
10 years ago
I was also going to suggest white dove. If you want to go a bit pink (sounds like maybe a bit pink would counter act that grey thing), maybe try cameo white.
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WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
I would not bother with 50% of anything because over time you may need more or have other things to match to it and it will be problematic.

I just moved into a place with China White all over and I know what you mean about how it changes. I thought it was creamier when looking at the card comparing it to pure white, but sometimes it reads grey and cold. when I painted it over white primer, I was surprised it was creamy in contrast. Doesn't feel it.

At my last house I liked Timid White and Sparkling Wine. They were both my moving over to the "white" side of the world after having been on the definite "cream" side. Both were very neutral and clean with no undertones - recommended to me by the BM color guru. One was a little whiter than the other. I forget which was which.
kristin_c
Original Author
10 years ago
Oops, sorry, the one I also tried a sample of, that I worried was cold, was White Dove (not Dove Wing like I thought). I'm not 100% set against it, though. Since I have the sample pint I think I'll paint *all* of it onto a wall and see how it looks.

I have Simply White in my kitchen and I'm not sure how I feel about it. It's not quite white enough for me in the kitchen, but too white when I swatch it in the bedroom. :/

I will look into Cameo White and Timid White (looks like that's the lighter of the two you mentioned wendyb). Thanks.
WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Here is Timid White in real life.
WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Do you know about LRV on the BM website? It stands for "Light Reflecting Value" and basically indicates how close to white. 100 is the highest. 0 is black. I find it a very helpful tool to zero in on the right shades, especially useful when comparing to something you are familiar with.