Really love all of your reviews!! Why is picking paint so stressful lol. We are in the middle of a new build and I took a piece of our kitchen cabinet to sherwin williams and they color matched it to HRW. We have an open floorplan for our north facing (on the water with plenty of windows) family room/dining room/kitchen and looking to keep the vibe coastal and light. Other than keeping with the HRW for the walls, what color would you suggest? Sherwin Williams suggested extra white but I don’t want the walls to look dingy next to the HRW cabinets. Then I read your other blog about using pure white for north facing rooms but I’m nervous mixing whites! Maybe the safer bet is finding a gray or greige so it doesn’t come off like we are trying to match the whites…??

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If you want a crisp look, HRW would be gorgeous with Naval! Some might even look at Extra White, but I find it a flash too cool :).

So that leads me to this post about high reflective white! The guys at the store said it can’t be made in anything but high gloss and I thought that was odd. My painters use emerald designer so the Ultra white would be a good choice. Do you think that would be good for the bedrooms facing opposite directions? Also, would I want to do the ceiling the same white? Right now its just whatever white people “normally” use since its original to the house. I am covering gray paint in both rooms. My vision for at least graces room is to put really bold and bright colored furniture and art in there so I was thinking it would pop on a really clean white.

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Kylie, HRW is apparently close to Milgard’s fiberglass frost window frame, which we may use in our new waterfront house. If so, we may use it on our kitchen cabinets, because they will abut a window. We will probably go with a light beige or greige on our walls and light beige/tan with a touch of gray LVP. We are considering a navy blue gray like BM “In the midnight hour 1666” for our island cabinets, but we also like the colors in this photo of you sitting on a blue island: https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/meet-kylie/ What are the colors in that kitchen? Thanks, Kevin

i am planning to use Sherwin william Alabaster Egg Shell for Walls and Flat color for ceiling. What are your recommendation Sherwin William colors to use it for Trims and doors that will be go well with Alabaster.

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For the girls rooms, I put a sample of pure white in there and it looks so warm, almost dingy depending on time of day. I also did a sample next to it of Extra White and that looks good at some times of day but does lean blue I fear.

If you’re wanting a white house or white trim, then HRW could be a great choice for you. It’s bright and simple and will be WHITE looking. Just remember, it WILL pick up cues from its environment based on the exposure of your home and other factors like grass, trees and water.

I love your advice. It’s always spot on. Quick question…I’m painting an accent wall in my northern facing master bedroom SW Naval and I’m not sure which white would work best everywhere else. Lots of good light from 5 large windows (bay.) I want a clean look, thinking of SW High Reflective White for tray ceiling, trim and other 3 walls. New carpet being installed after I paint so I’m not committed to a carpet color yet. Do you think that will work?

Been really appreciating your reviews on color . My question for u is , I have a house ( ranch ) that faces North & south . I’m considering doing sw worldly grey walls throughout. Would HRW be a good option for trim, closets , and ceilings?

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Why isn’t it used as a ‘color’? It doesn’t have enough tint/colorant to offer any hide. ‘Hide’ refers to how well a color covers another color. If you take Sherwin Williams High Reflective White off the shelf as it is, you’ll be five coats deep and might STILL SEE your old color through it.

HIGH REFLECTIVE WHITE! That’s right; I would do the same color on the walls, trim and ceilings and just let the change in sheen do any shifting for you (and there will be shifting).

Hey Brandi, for versatile and true, Behrs Ultra Pure White miiiiight be a bit better. But between SW and BM – YES HRW is great, just make sure you read this! https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/why-is-sherwin-williams-high-reflective-white-so-hard-to-get/

I am having my girls bedrooms painted. They are both on a second floor, across the hall from each other. So Graces room faces West and Lucy’s Room faces East.

When it comes to specifying white paint colors for my E-Design clients, High Reflective White is one that I refer to all the time. Why? Let’s find out!

Any advice would be amazing, my husband can’t tell the difference between any of them so I’m all alone spinning in circles

Richardson Gratings, a Newport company operates from a single location at 820 linden avenue, rochester, new york 14625, united states.

Hi Paula, if it were ME, and I had what you’re explaining, I would choose Pure White. Extra White would be a hard no, and while I love HRW, I’ve seen Pure White turn out so STINKIN’ GOOD so many times, that it’s hard for me to not automatically go there. I know, the small samples make it so DARN HARD and things really only come to life on teh larger scale. I hope this helps :).

Oh I’m also having a very light carpet in there, some warmth but not much. It’s called homemade ice cream from Shaw. I will be putting a big area rug over it through to try and protect it from the small children haha

I was planning to use HRW for my trim to go with Aesthetic White and SW just told me they can’t make that color in Pro Industrial semi gloss. My painters are coming Monday! Now I’m scrambling trying to figure out what to do, not to mention the shortage of paint. Eek!

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My cabinets are being refaced soon and my cabinet maker needs my white paint color YESTERDAY! They only use Sherwin Williams and the only colors I can come up with are Pure White, Extra White and High Reflective White. It is really hard to look at the colors in my home because the cabinets are that bad orange oak so the light is reflecting that on the paint swatch. My floors are a LVT in a somewhat warm color but can look yellow in the wrong light. Anyway the backsplash tile has a mixture of whites to a warm tan/beige as I wanted something a little different than plain white. To the point….it seems like everything has a gray undertone to me! So at this point I am leaning towards High Reflective White. I have 3 different samples and they all look different though. One I got from Samplize, one from the Sherwin Williams store and a piece of actual cabinet refaced material and they are all different. It is maddening and at this point I am just going to close my eyes and point to one. Is this normal to go through. Surely it cannot be this difficult!!!!! It seems like every decision I make I regret i.e. the floor color, my wall color……Thank you for all the free content you put out there to help people. I binge watch your reviews while on my treadmill!!!

If it were me, I would 100% stick with Alabaster and not mix and match whites. Some people do Extra White, but it will have Alabaster looking creamier than usual.

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If I choose HRW for the kitchen/laundry cabinets in our new house, should I use it for the ceilings and baseboards/trim too??

My contractor used extra white as the base for the HRW, and my entire basement now looks BLUE. Is there anything that can be done? Perhaps a top coat using mixing method #1 as you describe in the article (adding white to the can)? Or should we just repaint with BM Chantilly lace…

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As far as white paint colors go, High Reflective White is one of the more flexible ones and can accommodate a WIIIIIDE range of colors. It’s more about what you might NOT do vs what you can do…

High Reflective White is actually a BASE that’s used to create other white paint colors; its intention isn’t to be used as an actual paint color. However, Sherwin includes it in the fan deck, and I, for one, have used it DOZENS AND DOZENS OF TIMES.

The previous owners painted the interior trim of my home SW Extra White. 🙁 They painted the walls SW Anew Gray with the Ceilings 50% of SW Anew Grey. Our house faces SW and NE. Anew Gray is just too dark of a color for our home, and while I’d like to do cozier colors or slightly warmer whites (like Pure White or Alabaster), I just feel that’s impossible with Extra White Trim. I love the look of Sea Salt with Alabaster, for example, but can’t do this with our trim and existing bright clean white kitchen cabinets. I can’t stand the ceilings and want to paint them white, but we have crown molding that is Extra White (that’s what they said and they left swatches of Extra White on their painting record but the paint on the walls looks different from the Samplize Extra White that I bought for comparison). I was thinking High Reflective White for the ceilings. I need flexible ceilings and trim for my colors…but I feel stuck. Also, is High Reflective White too stark for walls in my daughter’s bedroom that is SW facing?—Will that direction help warm it up? Would love your thoughts. I’ve spent HOURS on your site. Just ask my husband…he wishes I’d just pull the trigger and pick something already!!

The headquarters of Richardson Gratings, a Newport company are located in 820 linden avenue, rochester, new york 14625, united states.

Kylie, I am having a DIFFICULT time deciding on a trim and ceiling color! My home can be dark in the afternoon and evening but most of the house is light during the morning. I’ve decided on Alabaster for the walls with one accent wall done in Linen. I’m leaning towards High Reflective White for the ceiling and trim because it is so neutral. I’ve gotten samples of Extra White but I don’t want the blue tint, and the Pure White doesn’t seem like it would be much different than the Alabaster. With all the reviews of the problem with “hiding”, I’m afraid to use the HRW. What are your thoughts?

High Reflective White has an LRV of almost 93. With an LRV THIS HIGH, it’s one of the most LEGIT WHITES on the market (learn more about LRV HERE).

Just be careful when sampling. The undertones in white paint colors can be OVEREXPOSED if you compare them to the white paper or poster board. The best way to pick a white paint color is to compare it to OTHER white paint colors that are similar.

YES! While there are MANY gorgeous white paint colors for cabinets, High Reflective White is a great one to look at if you prefer a cooler paint color palette or some of the popular white quartz or marble countertops.

And believe it or not…well, actually – read this, it will make more sense https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/why-is-sherwin-williams-high-reflective-white-so-hard-to-get/

Welllll, if it were me, I would do Alabaster on the ceiling too. If you partner a whiter white with it, Alabaster can look that bit more yellow in comparison. Alabaster often likes to be the whitest white in the space!

Whites are hard because while they have their own UNDERTONES, they’re VERY SUSCEPTIBLE for picking up reflections from their environment. Everything from the cool gray-blue of northern light to the reflection of your grass, your neighbour’s brick wall or your bright red sofa can reflect onto white walls, changing how they’re perceived.

Our living room has 17ft tall ceilings with a big wall of windows also facing east. I did Sherwin Williams pure white in that whole room. Two of the walls can lean to the gray side depending on time of day which is a bummer.

And while I could go into gratuitous detail here, I’ve written a helpful blog post showing you HOW to get High Reflective White made.

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Hello! I have bright white cabinets. Would HRW be a good choice for white paint? I love black and white, stark, and clean!

These days, softer whites are on more people’s radars, but for those looking for a cleaner, whiter approach, High Reflective White is VERY popular, right up there with Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace.

Like with every paint color, I highly recommend using SAMPLIZE. Samplize is a peel & stick paint sample that you can easily move around your room for over HALF THE COST of traditional sample pots – and they deliver right to your front door!

Hey Sharon! It’s hard to know for sure what to do without seeing your home, but off the bat, you CAN do Extra White with Alabaster. I would also do Extra White on the ceiling. The challenge you’re having is that Extra White is a real bugger ;). The formulation changes from trim/cabinet paint to wall paint. Samplize has WALL paint on their samples, which is brighter/cleaner – Extra White on trim/cabinets is a touch warmer/softer. SOOOOO, to use Extra White on the ceiling, you would have to ask them to custom tint Extra White in ceiling paint to be a bit warmer, so it matches your trim (you might need to take a piece of the trim in with you).

So you have bright white cabinets and want white walls? If so, this COULD work, but it can depend on which white your cabinets are. If they look bright white but HAPPEN to be a bit cool or slightly warm, you might see the shift. I would get a large sample (Samplize) of High Reflective White and place it against the cabinets. ALSO, make sure you read this blog post. https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/why-is-sherwin-williams-high-reflective-white-so-hard-to-get/

Oh, I’m so sorry to hear this! I can’t see adding white making enough of a difference and would recommend moving over to High Reflective White or BM Chantilly Lace (i love Chantilly).