Nature of White: To the human eye, white is a brilliant color that can cause headaches for some. Too much bright white can be blinding.
Culture of White: In most Western countries white is the color for brides. In the East, it's the color for mourning and funerals. White is often associated with hospitals, especially doctors, nurses, and dentists. Some cultures viewed white as the color of royalty or of dieties. Angels are typically depicted as wearing white. In early Westerns the good guy wore white while the bad guy wore black.
Using White: In most cases white is seen as a neutral background color and other colors, even when used in smaller proportion, are the colors that convey the most meaning in a design. Use white to signify cleanliness or purity or softness. Some neutral beige, ivory, and creams carry the same attributes as white but are more subdued, less brilliant than plain white. Use lots of white for a summery look. Use small amounts of white to soften a wintery palette or suggest snow.
Using White with Other Colors: Used with light or pastel tones, white is soft and Spring-like and helps to make the pastel palette more lively. White can make dark or light reds, blues, and greens look brighter, more prominent. Red, white, and blue makes a patriotic palette.
White Color Palettes: These color palettes feature black and white with other colors.
Language of White: The use of white in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.
Good white
- White as the driven snow - pure, clean, innocent
White elephant - rare, valuable but perhaps unwanted
White knight - someone who comes to another person's rescue, someone perceived as being good, noble
White list - list of good or acceptable items
White sale - sale of sheets, towels, other linens
Pearly white - teeth, especially very white teeth
- Whitewash - cover up, conceal
Whiteout - zero visibility
White flag - surrender
White lightning - moonshine, illegal whiskey
White elephant - rare, valuable but perhaps unwanted
White knuckle - something that is fast, exciting, or frightening
Snow, pearl, antique white, ivory, chalk, milk white, lily, smoke, seashell, old lace, cream, linen, ghost white, beige, cornsilk, alabaster, paper, whitewash.