Choosing the best warm white for your living space often requires a careful review of the amount of light the space gets.
Both the shades listed below are on the warm side, but neither has a strong tendency to drift towards yellow.
Greek Villa and Alabaster are both a creamy white. Alabaster is a bit on the sootier side and will fade as the room darkens. Your family room and even your bedrooms may be well served by this color.
Greek Villa will glow with energy if you use it in a room that gets a lot of sun. It’s also an ideal backdrop for pastel tones, both warm and cool.
Greek Villa
Greek Villa by Sherwin-Williams is a great option for a monochromatic paint job. You can use this on ceilings, walls and trim for a clean and tidy look.
The sheen you choose will be especially critical when you put this color to work. On the walls of your sunroom, office, kitchen and bath, consider a satin finish to reflect light and bounce energy around.
In bedrooms, your family room or your library, flat or eggshell would be best.
Use this color as a backdrop for rich blends. Because this color already produces such a glow, you can use it to brighten deeply saturated colors.
If you’re looking for an accent wall color, consider a teal like Connor’s Lakefront or a navy such as Dark Night. Glossy green plants will look wonderful against this color.
Keep your lighting subtle and simple. Greek Villa will bounce a lot of light around the space. If you like to lower your light exposure at the end of the day, consider simply lighting a candle or using a wall sconce to create enough of a glow to maneuver by.
It won’t take much light to brighten a space coated in this color!
Avoid bright white tones. Greek Villa is a stable color; as noted above, it’s unlikely to be easily pushed towards yellow. However, pairing this color with white will leave your Greek Villa walls looking tired and dirty.
If you’ve already got white melamine bookcases, consider roughing them up with 120 grit sandpaper. Fill in any chips with wood filler and prime them with a stain-blocking primer with good cling.
Use a fine foam roller to apply a consistent layer of primer and avoid brush marks. Take your time!
Always allow primer to fully cure before you apply a topcoat of paint. If you have the space, lay the cases down so you can prime and paint one flat surface at a time.
Once they’re primed, you can customize your bookcases. Paint the interior in an accent wall color and the exterior in Greek Villa for a custom look.
If you choose to paint the whole house in Greek Villa, you can easily change the energy of this color by choosing a second color for each room.
Your living room may be best suited to brown as a second shade, from your leather sofa to your tan carpet. The kitchen might be brightened by a deep red, such as Poinsettia on your photo frames or at the back of your open shelving.
Do take care when applying this color to all the bedroom walls. If you need a dark space for best quality sleep, it may be a good idea to use this color only on your ceilings and trim.
Use a deeper shade, such as Jasper for your walls.
RGB: 240, 236, 226
Hex Code: #F0ECE2
Greek Villa Paint Color Samples
Would you like to sample Greek Villa paint color? I recommend using a peel and stick paint sample from SAMPLIZE. Peel and stick paint samples are very affordable and easy to use. They are also clean and environmentally friendly!
Advantages of using peel and stick paint samples:
- EASY TO USE: Simply move your SAMPLIZE paint sample around the room to test under a variety of lighting conditions.
- AFFORDABLE: Budget-friendly solution and no more buying inaccurate swatches, rollers, wasted paint.
- SUPER FAST DELIVERY: Depending on your location, 1 day delivery is possible.
- ORDER FROM HOME: Save a trip to the store looking for samples.
- NO MESS: SAMPLIZE uses real paint samples with zero-mess
- NO WASTE: No leftover cans or wasted paint.
Get your peel-and-stick real paint sample of Greek Villa here.
Peel-and-Stick Paint Sample – Greek Villa (7551) – Sherwin-Williams
Visit SAMPLIZE store here to see all of the available color options.
Alabaster
If Greek Villa thrives in sunlight, Alabaster from Sherwin-Williams will thrive in the light of a fireplace or a bank of candles. It’s a less energizing, more soothing shade.
For those who love the cottage style, this is a warm and yummy color that would be an ideal choice for a small space.
If you’re going to commit to an off-white, make sure you use it on your ceilings as well as your walls. A white ceiling will either leave the room looking unfinished or make your off-white walls look dirty.
Alabaster is a luscious color when paired with browns. Not only is it a terrific foil for rich wood tones, but this color also throws a beautiful shadow tone.
Stick with warm browns with a strong red base, such as Terra Brun. Colors with too much green will pull Alabaster into dullness, rather than the clean look you would otherwise enjoy.
Fans of blue will need to plan ahead a bit. Avoid sky and royal blue. Instead, look for shades that are on the sooty side, such as Luxe Blue.
The smoky Wood Violet would also be a wonderful choice for a child’s room or as an accent color in an office.
Because Alabaster has a touch of smoke, you can have a bit of fun playing with sheens. If you intend to paint over paneling or a heavy texture, make sure you do the necessary prep work.
Caulk over all the visible seams to prevent light gaps. Patch damaged areas with several light coats of spackle or joint compound. Prime the whole wall and check your repairs, priming again over any touch-ups.
Consider using at least an eggshell finish when applying Alabaster, especially in rooms that need a bit more energy.
Flat can work wonderfully in sleeping spaces, but this color will provide a rich comfort if you can stand a bit more gloss. Think about the yumminess of a plain bowl of vanilla ice cream on a warm day.
Alabaster will chalk as the light fades. Again, if you really need a dark sleeping space, don’t put this on the walls of your bedroom in any sheen.
Use a flat blend on your ceiling and a semi-gloss on the trim. Try a rich brown, such as Hickory Smoke on your walls.
Keep metals warm as well. Rubbed bronze hardware, from kitchen cabinets to door handles, will glow against this shade.
Your copper kitchen tools will demand their own display! Brass, from bright to antique, will also work beautifully against this color.
Alabaster is also a lovely color against which to display houseplants. Paler natural fibers, including sage-green seagrass baskets, will stand out beautifully.
Unlike Greek Villa, Alabaster will take a step back against paler, more subtle greens.
Make sure you create a large sample of this color if you plan to pair it with pastels. It is unlikely to lean yellow or create any competition for your pastel shades, but it is likely to fade a bit and turn muddy, especially against blue, lavender, and aqua.
RGB: 238, 234, 224
Hex Code: #EEEAE0
Alabaster Paint Color Sample
Get your peel-and-stick real paint sample of Alabaster here.
Peel-and-Stick Paint Sample – Alabaster (7008) – Sherwin-Williams
Visit SAMPLIZE store here to see all of the available color options.