Settled, side by side

Shoji White is a warm off-white with a greige base — a little grey, a little pink, no yellow. At LRV 74 it is soft rather than bright, and it has the quality of light through a paper screen: even, warm, forgiving. It is the white for people who find true whites cold and creams too sweet.

Le Cygne — the swan — is a warm, matte ivory from the French house Ressource. It has the chalky, light-absorbing quality of old lime plaster, which is why it looks so at home on Haussmann panelling and ceiling roses: it softens the light rather than bouncing it around. Cream is present, yellow is not.