White walls in homes

Grey is the new magnolia

I hate white walls and paintwork which is the fashion where I live and DH won't consider coloured paintwork.

Oh for the gorgeous bright colours of my childhood.

We have big rooms and high ceilings and I think white would look ridiculous.

Tge lounge is being redo as we speak. It was a deep red previously but is now going to be a very deep pink - I think it's called Russian velvet. I had to check the change with the neighbours opposite as they tell me that our red walls cheer them up.

My new flat will be all white, at least initially. I may have a feature wall in my bedroom and the sitting room but I am looking forward to obliterating the 90s feel it has at the moment.

Fresh and clean and with beautiful walls to display my pictures, the difficulty will be being sparing with the many, many paintings and pictures I want to display. Until I moved and saw them in boxes I didn't realise I had been quite so prolific in my collection of them

I have had all white walls, ceilings and woodwork since 1989. I find that the reflective properties together with maximum light from the windows (i.e. no blinds or curtains covering the glass during the day) wonderful for mood and general health.
Recently, as we changeover to LED lighting I have ensured that we buy daylight bulbs rather than the more traditional warm white as the difference is spectacular.
I find homes in "neutral" colours incredibly depressing, like living in a bowl of porridge.

Our house is all white inside. Lots of colourful art and teal blue accent pillows.

We've moved home recently and most of the house is white black and grey which I dislike. In the lounge I have red curtains and throws to match a large predominantly red wool rug we have. I'm getting used to the click clack floors everywhere but the black and white kitchen and bathroom is too modern for us. Black shower walls and floor, black kitchen worktops both with white walls yuck!!

Ceilings have to be white though.
We have over the years bought a couple of houses that had coloured ceilings and one with patterned wallpaper on the ceilings.!

White is too clinical for me but I like pale colours.
I think our hall, stairs and landing is painted in Timeless Witzend

Magnolia isn't cream, pink or off-white, in fact it's difficult to describe CanadianGran. Probably all three together would describe it! Warm, creamy, pinky white? I think our whole house was painted that when we bought it.

If I had an old cottage or beams I would probably go for white.

This thread reminds me of an eldery uncle who came to visit me in my very first house in 1977. Every wall, ceiling, and door was painted white, he had a wander around then promptly asked where the cows had gone to out of my Cow shed!

I had to wonder at so many pink (magnolia) interiors. I've only ever seen a few magnolia trees, not native to my area, and they have been a soft pink. Then I googled it and realized it is an off-white paint colour. Cultural differences I guess! I have never heard of off-white or cream called magnolia.

I’m surprised so many others, like me, love white walls. I don’t know anyone else with their entire house painted white inside.
My old cottage has low ceilings and small windows so all-white and lots of mirrors. I’ve just had light grey carpeting laid everywhere except kitchen and bathrooms.
White is clean, bright, stylish and shows off nice old furniture and grouped pictures and ornaments (not many. No clutter)
My little bedroom is bare and plain but has a homemade patchwork quilt in lovely fabrics.

All the walls in my house are white. It’s an old cottage dating to 14 C with dark beams and low ceilings. It makes the rooms feel bigger and reflects the light. I introduce ‘colour’ with soft furnishings and carefully placed pictures on the walls. My last house was Victorian with high ceilings and big rooms. White walls would have been ridiculous. We used dark colours in some rooms, light duck egg blue in the bedroom and wallpaper in others. It suited the house ...

I am so envious of those with plastered white walls.

We have an old (Victorian) house, and the plaster isn't great. We should have had the walls skimmed when we moved in, but instead we had them wallpapered. Now that all the furniture and carpets are down it would be a big job to strip them all back and have them re-plastered.

It would be so much cheaper and easier to redecorate, though, and I would love a blank canvas.

We have white walls in the living room. I was a bit unsure at first. But I really like it now. I think it was called ice white. We tested lots of different shades of white before deciding on which shade. Unbelievably they were all quite different.

Witzend I agree....we have used Timeless on our walls, and in some rooms (and below a dado rail) we have accented with Dulux Polished Pebble, a lovely, light soft grey. Gloss and ceilings, brilliant white. Loojs very fresh.
However, daughter has just painted her entire house brilliant white, with one accent wall in each room a mid- grey (B&Q Brooklyn) and it looks really great, fresh, clean and dramatic.

Had all white for a good number of years now. Last moved 10 years ago and all walls were white. Decided I would like a small change and went for Jasmine white. After two years felt it looked grubby,, everything back to white again.

My daughters just moved into a new house....white walls everywhere.... my house has very pale grey walls everywhere....think I prefer mine. But can see the appeal of the ‘touch up’ when a scuff appears from nowhere.

I love white walls. We paid the builders extra to have white everywhere instead of magnolia and we have kept them for the last 20 years.

I have off white everywhere pretty much. Love it. There are so many slight variations on white now, mine is a Farrow and Ball colour called pointing, which has been colour matched to a Deluxe paint. It is great. I would highly recommend it.

Next door has an all white interior - brilliant white matt. It looks stark, perhaps would have been better in shades of 'almost white', which would have been warmer.

Our home has walls painted in a very soft lemon - almost a "lemon white". With white woodwork. In winter this gives the rooms a slightly "warm" feel and (IMO) is less "chilly" than 100% pure white. In summer it feels somewhat "Mediterranean ". So (for us) it's a colour scheme for all seasons.

Matter of choice but going for pastels much easier to cover (when you get tired of them ) than the likes of burnt orange 'eek'/f'lamingo pink? 'more eek and many other in your face colours .

I read a few years ago that the colour of Almost Oyster (a pale taupe) by Dulux was their most popular shade of paint for walls. Due to age/illness it has taken a while but I have done the whole house in that colour and I just love the way the colour changes depending on the light in each room. I am continually being asked what colour it is. During this time I have mostly chosen white accessories and soft furnishings (some in a darker taupe/mink) to contrast and I absolutely love how warm and modern it looks. I will be moving on some time soon but I already know what colour my new home’s walls will be!

Our first house (1963) was very small and all white inside and I thought we were the last word in modern decor. Since then have lived in three Victorian houses and two late 20th century houses, and used colour differently in each of them. Definitely like plain painted walls rather then paper now as a background for pictures and other artwork/junk. Current kitchen has grey (warm cement) walls except for the long wall opposite the windows which is teal/kingfisher (see thread in colour names) which picks up the glass tiling. Units are grey. Much admired by young relatives so must be doing something right!