It seems like everywhere there is white, more white, off white and then neutrals. While many default to white as a safe option, there are a whole range of whites and neutrals to choose from that can help bring out the best in a project.

Resene has created a new Habitat Plus – whites and neutrals, to help designers get their clients thinking about what sort of look they are trying to achieve with their neutral colour scheme. It can be viewed online, or free copies of the guide are available from local Resene ColorShops, Resene resellers and Resene representatives.

Choosing to paint a room in white sounds easy and safe, but just as much time and energy can be spent choosing the right white, than a bolder colour. The best place to start is with the Resene Whites & Neutrals collection, which is home to a host of whites as well as darker neutral colours — greys, beiges and blacks.

The Resene Whites & Neutrals collection is made up of 28 palette cards, with 12 individual colours on each card, often organised into colour 'families' or varying strengths of the one colour. Some of the colours have up to six strength variations, which comes in hugely handy when building a tonal colour scheme.

White and neutral paint colours are so popular that they dominate the Resene top 20 paint colour list each year, with Resene Alabaster currently topping the list.