One important step is to hold the chips up next to your appliances (or color samples of your appliances, if you don't have them yet). Unless the appliances are black, which pretty much goes with anything, you should see how each color plays off the stainless or the particular shade of white or the color that each appliance is. Do this in different lighting conditions--daylight, nighttime, etc.

If it's hard to imagine from just a chip, could your cabinet maker give you some wood scraps painted with a few of the whites you like? Then you could hold the scraps up to your appliances, and anything else the cabinets will be next to (wall, backsplash...).

forget about chips. you need to go through the color fan decks and choose a few that appeal to you. get pints mixed and apply to some door sized boards. my cabinet maker gave me some primed doors so i painted those. you could also paint large (3x3) squares on the walls but i prefer the boards. imo, chips are completely useless. and don't try to choose the color in any other room or house. it will appear completely different depending on reflective light and surroundings. i spent weeks and hundreds of dollars on samples and i finally chose my white when i got sick and tired of painting those stupid boards! -btw: mine is SW dover white.

I agree with KateKouros,
look at all the whites and start to narrow down the ones
you love.

Everyone said WhiteDove was the way to go. But, I found a
color I fell head over heels in love. It is called
Powdered Snow by Behr. Ben Moore mixed a paint color that
is exactly like this Behr shade. And I am thrilled with
the look. It is a soft, creamy white that is not too
creamy but not stark white. It feels like a snowy day.
For me and my space with the natural light, the floors,
walls, counters... it makes my heart sing. Love it.

Get what you love and don't be afraid. You will find that
color that makes it all come together.

~boxerpups

Some white kitchens that are not all BM dove white...

BM Oyster Shell and Linen White

BM Cloud White

BM Cloud White

BM Woodland Snow

BM Linen

BM Super Satin White #2

BM Dove White

BM Dove White

BM Sea Shell

I, too, am going for white painted cabinets. I'm not sure what type, though -- oil or latex? And is it better to spray or brush? I know that Christopher Peacock cabinet makers use Fine Paints of Europe oil paint, spray the primer, apply 1-2 coats of high gloss, then brush on the final coat. I have seen some folks here on the GW who have used Latex paint and are pleased.

Any opinions?

Thanks!

I too want to do a white kitchen. I thought I wanted it pure white, but when I brought home a door painted in that it was too shocking white. I've been seeing a lot of posts about Dove White too, but haven't seen the color.

Boxerpups thanks for posting the pictures of white kitchens. I can never get enough of those. Of course most whites look the same in pics. Agree that you have to see the color in your own home, preferably on a door in the same wood you're using.

Those of you who have white, can you give us more details on the painting? What type of paint, number of coats, etc. Any tips for a finish that holds up well? Were yours finished off site or in your home?

Also I have white trim in my home. If you have white trim, baseboards, crown, etc, did you match it to your white cabinet color?

Appreciate any details. Thanks.

Mine are creamy white, a colour chosen by my KD, painted off site with a lacquer finish. Our trim is BM cloud white.

Hiya Lu...

We are also painting our cabinets white and we finally got to the point of choosing a color. Unless the lighting in our kitchen tells a different story over the next couple days, we're going with BM Ivory White.

We went to our local BM store and bought samples, painted a few coats on scraps and placed them in the room to get a true representation of the color in our space.

There arent too many online photos of kitchens with the color we choose but enough to confirm that we'll like it with our soapstone counters.

As far as what type of paint - our Paint-pro at the BM store suggested BM Satin Impervo.

~ D ~

Our kitchen cabinets are painted BM Simply White. Our trim throughout the house is Simply White as well. I just found the inspiration pictures that I liked and then painted some sample pieces. Make sure you see them in the light of the kitchen...mine looks different throughout the day due to the big windows. For us, Simply White won over Acadia White because it was not too bright white, but not too creamy yellow. Good luck!

Another beautiful white kitchen! Thanks for posting pics Angel.
Did all of you have your painting done onsite in your home? Is the wood maple?

I think your white depends what is going on with floor/counters/backsplash/wall color. A color changes depending on what is next to it...when you look at whites find the brands total white color and take that with you to compare other whites...that will help you see what the color's undertones are.

Then look at your swatch next to your countertop material, floor, and any other key color in your kitchen (wall color/fabric/backsplash). Your cabinets are probably the biggest painted space in the room - that is going to be your defining color - so keep in mind what the cabinet color will do to the other materials.

There are cool whites (with blue/grey/green undertones) and warm whites (yellow/orange undertones). You want to keep a balance of warm and cool - and of course, decide what feel you want in your kitchen. I think most people prefer a warm white for cabinets since it is such a large part of kitchen color scheme and cooler colors can make a room feel stark if there is alot of it everywhere.

Definitely paint some big samples on board - totally worth the cost of the paint - many company's have sample sizes these day- hold that up in the room - against the other materials you are using. Look at it in the morning, afternoon and evening light if you can.

BM White Dove is a warm white - I chose that for my cabinets and they are starting to arrive - they don't look creamy at all - in fact they look very white but are not stark. When I was looking I googled some of the colors I was considering and came up with lots of images - that can be helpful to a point. But a photo really can't distinguish too much between whites.

Another set of eyes can be very helpful...are you using a painter at the end of your project? Have them come over and look at your samples...they often have a better sense of what everything will look like together.

Island- the wood is maple and the cabinet maker painted them at his shop before he brought them to the site. They were sprayed and then have some sort of clear poly or glaze to protect them (sorry, not sure of the technical name).
They are easy to maintain...I just wipe any spills or dust with a damp cloth, and use a mild soap if it is too stubborn.
Good luck- hope this helped!

Michael Hudak is a paint expert who did a wonderful tutorial on painting cabinets successfully. Here's the link:

Here is a link that might be useful: Paint your cabinets in 6 steps

angel411: what color are the walls in your kitchen? I am struggling with a neutral/ivory color to compliment my white dove cabinets. Yours look great!

We matched the color of white trim we had throughout the house (SW Dover White) because I had lived with the white for years and still loved it. By going with the trim color, I was a little more confident that the cabs would like they belonged with the rest of the house. If you love the color of your white trim, that could be an easy answer to a very tough question.

Our walls are SW Honied White and I like how the white trim pops just a bit against the walls but the low contrast makes it look unified and airy.

typeprof

Here is a link to her kitchen thread in which she lists the color, BM Edgecomb Gray, and discusses how it looks in different lights way down near the bottom of the thread.

Here is a link that might be useful: Angel411's Farmhouse Kitchen

thanks irishcreamgirl. I read the thread and pulled out my swatch-hard to believe its edgecomb gray! Lighting is so tricky. I am still searching...

laurainlincoln, thanks for posting your kitchen photo. Your kitchen is absolutely beautiful! I have been trying to choose paint for my cabinets, and SW Dover White is at the top of my list right now. I would love to know about your counter tops and backsplash. Everything in your kitchen is coordinated beautifully.

I chose before I discovered GW. I asked the KD what was the most popular white. She directed me to Dove White which turned out to be the most popular here as well. She even had it on display in her showroom. Here lies a word of caution. In my home, where we get tons of natural light, it appears very white! You would think it was a different white than the showroom. So, all these whites can appear different depending on your situation.

Thanks michelnow - it is quartzite Madre Perola - I love it, hope that helps!

I chose BM Sailcloth. It's creamy and definitely not bright white. Cabinets are going in now, it looks beautiful.

Thank you, Laurainlincoln! I am going to try to go and see if I can see a slab in person.

ellendi, You are so right about colors looking different depending on the lighting in your home. I am also considering SW Nacre, which is a darker cream than Dover White, but will coordinate nicely with my wall colors: SW Relaxed Khaki and SW Wool Skein

I narrowed my choice down to 2 whites, including the winner, Cloud White. I have a different theory on how I arrived at this one. They both looked great with my Bianco Antico, but since I was using an oil based white paint, I knew it would get a bit creamier. So I went with the whiter of the two which was BM Cloud White. Indeed it did get creamier just after 6 months. It is the perfect color for me.

I think they look a little whiter in this picture than they really do:
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