Shades of white

Shades of white are colors that differ only slightly from pure white. Variations of white include what are commonly termed off-white colors, which may be considered part of a neutral color scheme.

In color theory, a shade is a pure color mixed with black (or having a lower lightness). Strictly speaking, a "shade of white" would be a neutral gray. This article is also about off-white colors that vary from pure white in hue, and in chroma (also called saturation, or intensity).

Colors often considered "shades of white" include cream, eggshell, ivory, Navajo white, and vanilla. Even the lighting of a room, however, can cause a pure white to be perceived as off-white.

Off-white colors were pervasively paired with beiges in the 1930s, and especially popular again from roughly 1955 to 1975. In terms of paint, off-white paints are now becoming more popular, with Benjamin Moore having 152 shades of off-whites, Behr having 167, and PPG has 315.

Whiteness measures the degree to which a surface is white in colorimetry.

Web colors
Below is a chart showing the computer web color shades of white. An achromatic white is a white color in which the red, green, and blues codes are exactly equal. The web colors white and white smoke are achromatic colors. A chromatic shade of white is a white color in which the red, green, and blue codes are not exactly equal, but are close to each other, which is what makes it a shade of white.

White
White is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light that stimulates all three types of color sensitive cone cells in the human eye in equal amounts and with high brightness compared to the surroundings. A white visual stimulation will be void of hue and grayness. White is the lightest possible color.

Chalk white
Chalk white is a tint of white resembling the chalk color.

Ghost white
The web color ghost white is a tint of white loosely inspired by traditional representations of ghosts. There is no evidence that this color name was in use before the X11 color names were formulated in 1987.

White smoke
The web color white smoke is displayed on the left.

There is no evidence that this color name was in use before the X11 color names were formulated in 1987. The color is also known as Cultured Pearl, one of crayon colors issued by Crayola in its 16-pack of Pearl Brite Crayons.

White solid
The web color white solid is displayed on the left.

There is no evidence that this color name was in use before the X11 color names were formulated in 1987. Sometimes also known as Ghost White, the color has marked blue hues, although is otherwise very close to being completely white in the RGB color system.

Baby powder
The Crayola crayon color baby powder was introduced in 1994 as part of its specialty Magic Scent crayon collection. It is a very light yellow.

Snow
The web color snow is displayed at left.

The first recorded use of snow as a color name in English was in 1000. The color snow was included as one of the X11 colors when they were formulated in 1987.

Ivory
Ivory is an off-white color that resembles ivory, the material out of which the teeth and tusks of animals (such as the elephant and the walrus) are made. It has a very slight tint of yellow.

The first recorded use of ivory as a color name in English was in 1385. The color ivory was included as one of the X11 colors when they were formulated in 1987.

Floral white
The web color floral white is displayed at left.

There is no evidence that this color name was in use before the X11 color names were formulated in 1987.

Seashell
Seashell is an off-white color that resembles some of the very pale pinkish tones that are common in many seashells.

The first recorded use of seashell as a color name in English was in 1926. In 1987, seashell was included as one of the X11 colors.

Bone white
Bone white is a yellowish-gray shade of white which represents the color of natural, unbleached bones.

Cornsilk
Cornsilk is a color that is a representation of the color of cornsilk.

The first recorded use of cornsilk as a color name in English was in 1927. In 1987, cornsilk was included as one of the X11 colors.

Old lace
Old lace is a web color that is a very pale yellowish orange that resembles the color of an old lace tablecloth.

It is one of the original X11 colors.

Old lace is used as a color of a certain kind of Caucasian skin type in art.

Cream
Cream is a color that is a representation of the color of the cream produced from the milk of cattle.

The first recorded use of cream as a color name in English was in 1590. In 1987, cream was included as one of the X11 colors.

Beige
The color beige is displayed at left.

The first recorded use of beige as a color name in English was in 1887.

The term originates from beige cloth, a cotton fabric left undyed in its natural color. Items that are of beige color in real world applications are typically closer to brown than they are to white.

Parchment
Displayed at left is the color parchment. In 2001, this was made into one of the colors on the Xona.com color list.

Antique white
Antique white is a web color.

The color name antique white began to be used in 1987 when the X11 colors were first formulated.

Champagne
The color champagne is displayed at left.

The color's name is derived from the typical color of the beverage champagne. The first recorded use of champagne as a color name in English was in 1915.

Eggshell
The color eggshell is displayed at left. The color eggshell is a representation of the average color of chicken eggs.

Dutch white
Displayed at left is the color Dutch white.

Dutch white is one of the colors on the Resene Color List, a color list popular in Australia and New Zealand. The color Dutch white was formulated in 2000.

Bone
The color bone is displayed at left. This color is a representation of the color of bones.

The first recorded use of bone as a color name in English was in the first decade of the 19th century (exact year uncertain).

Vanilla
The color vanilla is a rich tint of off-white as well as a medium pale tint of yellow. The first recorded use of vanilla as a color name in English was in 1925.

Flax
The color flax is displayed at left. The first recorded use of flax as a color name in English was in 1915.

Navajo white
Navajo white is a whitish orange color, and derives its name from the Navajo Nation ethnic flag, a flag that uses this color. In 1987, Navajo white was included as one of the X11 colors.

Alabaster
Displayed at left is the color alabaster. It represents the whitish color of the mineral alabaster.

Alabaster has been used as a color in English since at least 1594 (in Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece), but the origin of the RGB coordinates is not known.

Linen
An X11 color, representing the whitish color of the linen cloth.