Benjamin Moore Linen White OC-146: Undertones, Best Uses, & More
When it comes to choosing the best cream paint color for your home, it can be hard to commit—some are too yellow and day-glow, and others are just flat and bland. And then there’s Benjamin Moore Linen White – one of the timeless shades in their Classic Collection.
Linen White has been around a long time, popular with those who want a soft, subtle warmth on their walls. However, it’s not quite right for everyone, so let’s see how it could work for you and your home.
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WHAT TYPE OF PAINT COLOR LINEN WHITE?
Linen White is tricky. While its LRV (which we’ll talk about shortly) suggests it’s a soft shade of white because it has more undertone, it tends to read more like an off-white – yes, it’s that strong.
Sure, you can use Linen White on your trims or cabinets, but finding a range of wall colors to coordinate with it (on a whole home scale) might be challenging. There are way safer warm whites to explore (but you do you, boo!)
If you want creamky warmth, some of the more popular shades of white certainly have that, but most have NOTHING on Linen White, making it a great choice if you want a good nod toward cream without the weight/depth of a traditional creamy shade.
Don’t worry; this will all make sense shortly.
THE LRV OF LINEN WHITE
The LRV of a paint color indicates how light or dark it is on a scale of 0-100, with 100 being the whitest, brightest white (which isn’t even available; the whitest we get is 95).
The white range runs from approximately 82-95.
Even with the absence of a true white, you can easily see Linen White’s softness (when you compare it to a real white, THAT’S where you really see things jack up!)
This wall color stretches Linen White’s comfort zone as it’s not an easy one to coordinate with – consider yourself warned!
Linen White has an LRV of almost 81, so while it winks at the white range, it also gives a solid nod to the off-white range, especially when considering its degree of color/undertones (coming up next). Long story short, don’t expect Linen White to act like traditional warm white paint colors by ANY stretch of the wildest imagination.
Not sure what LRV is? It could save you paint lovin’ life – read all about it HERE.
WHAT ARE LINEN WHITE’S UNDERTONES?
Without a doubt, Linen White has a yellow undertone. While it’s not as yellow as colors like Benjamin Moore Vanilla Ice Cream or Mayonnaise, it ain’t messin’ around.
Create a Timeless Kitchen Palette
Yellow often leans yellow-orange or yellow-green. The nice thing about Linen White is that it doesn’t strongly favor one, but it does have a bit of a gray undertone. Whereas the previous whites are cleaner, Linen White’s yellow-gray undertone offers a calmer, more muted approach to what is still a considerably warm, creamy shade of white…ish (I’m still hard-pressed to call it white regardless of its LRV).
This warmth can be a great choice if you have a north-facing room, but it could look a touch dingy in some lights. If you have intense southern or afternoon western light, sample it carefully to make sure it doesn’t look TOO warm when combined with that warm sunshine!
North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?
Here’s your Peel & Stick sample of Linen White…
WHAT’S THE BEST WHITE TRIM COLOR WITH LINEN WHITE WALLS?
Usually, I don’t mix and match whites (once in a blue moon). This means that if I have white walls, I’m likely to repeat the same white on the trims and cabinets. However, because Linen White has so much color/yellow, I’m hesitant to do so as that will limit you so much in the future – Linen White is not a natural trim color.
So, what do you do?
I’d check out Benjamin Moore Simply White for the trim and treat the walls more like a creamy off-white than a traditional shade of white – white trim will encourage this.
WHAT’S THE BEST WALL COLOR WITH LINEN WHITE TRIM OR CABINETS?
This is a big question. Because Linen White has a good degree of yellow, it’s super fussy about its wall color partners. This topic is SO huge that I’ve dedicated two blog posts to it.
The Best Wall Colors to Go With Cream Cabinets & Trim
Common Questions When You Have Cream Cabinets & Trim
I will say that thanks to its higher LRV, you can likely lighten several of the colors suggested in the above blog posts – but sample and compare CAREFULLY.
Long story short, Linen White can be a beautiful paint color for walls. However, as a trim or cabinet color…I wouldn’t do it (maybe 1 out of 100 times…maybe).
WHAT COLORS ARE SIMILAR?
With how fussy it can be, I recommend comparing similar shades to see which one settles best for the look you want. This said, I’ve been railin’ on about how fussy it is due to its creamy hue, you might not find it creamy enough!
- If Linen White isn’t as warm as you want, check out Windswept, which has a similar approach, but less gray undertone.
- For a more traditionally warm shade of white with less yellow, Benjamin Moore Cloud White and Sherwin Williams Alabaster are by FAR more flexible.
- Benjamin Moore Cream Froth is a pretty one if you like the look of Linen White, but want it a bit cleaner.
- For a soft, creamy look with LESS yellow, Benjamin Moore’s White Down is a nice shift calmer.
Benjamin Moore Cloud White cabinets
Benjamin Moore White Down
WHAT COLORS GO WITH LINEN WHITE?
Thanks to its yellow-gray undertone, Linen White is somewhat flexible regarding wall colors for adjoining rooms.
- A wide range of popular grays, including Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter and Stonington Gray.
- Colors with a bit more ‘color,’ including a ton of light greens and blues, especially those with a similar soft gray backdrop.
- Slightly richer shades of tan and beige.
- SO many medium to dark shades of green.
And MUCH, much more.
READ MORE
The Best Creamy Off-White Paint Colors
Warm Off-White Paint Colors That AREN’T Beige!
Warm Off-White Paint Colors That AREN’T Yellow!
NEED HELP?
Check out my Online Paint Color Consulting – I’d love to help!
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN 2020, UPDATED IN 2024
I was convinced Ben Moore’s Linen White was the best choice … until I read your opinion on it. Back to square one. Yikes!
Hi Kylie,
I’m trying to find a trim color I like for my linen white walls. Simply white seems a little bright. I’ve seen other blogs suggesting cloud white or white Dove. I was even thinking of darkening Simply White by 25%, thoughts? Thank you Kylie!
We painted our home office with BM Linen White. Our whole house trim paint is BM Base 1X white, a neutral white. The linen white walls look nice with the trim paint.
We don’t get a ton of direct light in our 1930 modified 4-square. All of the walls (in all bedrooms, living room, dining room, hallways, and even the bathroom) are painted BM Pale Oak and the hallway is painted BM Desert Twilight. The trim throughout the whole house is BM Linen White. It’s gorgeous! Very soothing, extremely calm, pleasant. We must have really lucked out given how finicky so many designers think Linen White is. Our kitchen is another story…when we painted seven years ago, we painted the kitchen walls Linen White (in addition to the trim, but matte). It’s not the best and sometimes the walls do like a bit dingy (kitchens get dirty too!). We are now doing a kitchen remodel and trying to pick a new wall color but want to keep the trim Linen White since that’s the trim color in the whole house. We’re considering BM Simply White and BM White Dove. I’m going to paint some samples as I’m not sure how much I’ll like having the walls lighter/brighter than the trim. The new custom cabinets going in will be painted BM Clay Beige. Excited!