How and why I use white

It's rumored that my favorite color these days is rust.

That would actually be TRUE.

But I have another color that I'm particularly partial to.

Are you guessing what it is yet?

Yeah. You're right. It's white.

But my twist on white is a little different than the traditional. Why this works for me is because this room holds many SHADES of white. And that helps to warm things up.

I've never had a 'white' room before until I created my bedroom, so I had to give it a whirl.

While I certainly don't have an all white house, there's alot of white influence sprinkled throughout.

White is a magical highlight trick. Even two of my beloved steps got it with it. :)

My house tends to have a cave feel, especially on a cloudy day. This little white coffee table helped to lighten and brighten the center of my woodsy livingroom. It acts as an ever burning light.

 And I make absolutely no apologies for not slipcovering my sofa. Instead, I throw on whitish pillows to get the feel I'm after. This makes the pillows stand out rather than blend. And creates a very non fussy kid friendly sofa to boot while still achieving 'the look'.

If you look up in the livingroom, the antiqued white screens greet your eye.

Do you think if I removed the screens from the room, there would be the feeling of more room?

The answer is no. I did just that not long ago to try them elsewhere and know what? The room became SMALL without them. The screens appear to widen up the sunlit picture window, therefore brightening up the entire room. So they stay.

Even my dark faced fireplace got lit by our little white friend. The brightness made an amazing difference.

This little table is PERFECT for any dark corner. It's like an instant sunbeam. With style. :)

Another reason I like white is for enhancement factors. It's the perfect backdrop for darker objects, like my other favorite color, rust. :)

A white light makes the white light appear to shine even brighter.

My kitchen is actually on the darker side. Black countertops, woodsy cupboards... yet it doesn't feel dark. I compensated with not only lots of windows, but lots of white.

And when I replaced the darker sign with this lighter one, it made me even happier.

There's something I always try to avoid when decorating. It's the dark cave syndrome. Dark cabs, dark backsplash, dark floors would have this area looking like a black hole. Add a white simple board and batten treatment to the backsplash and you suddenly have instant sunlight pouring in. High contrast is the key to avoid dark hole decorating.

Decorating with many shades of white is an easy way to play with the white trend that's taking over blogland. Even if you don't THINK you could live in a white room, there are all kinds of ways to pull it in to your decorating to help with problem areas.

And... it just looks nice. :)

Why am I nattering about white today anyway?

Because my friend Marianne over at Songbird is hosting a white party to celebrate her 1000 followers! Now THIS girl knows white!

And if you join her white party, she's offering THREE giveaways! Well, I want one! I want a Marianne original all the way from the Netherlands thankyouverymuch!

Want a chance to win something pretty and white too? Pull your post together quick and tell her why you like white. Then join in!

And considering following her. You'll love her thoughtful musings and her delightfully decorated home. Her photography is simply outstanding.

Celebrate your whites today and come on out to play. ;)

Could you live in an all white room?

(you can find links to all of the above photos from THIS post)