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OFF-WHITE’S LACK OF PURITY IS ITS PUZZLING ALLURE

Variously known on house-paint color-swatch charts as “egg shell,” “cream,” “oyster,” or “off-white,” a group of colors that are almost but not quite pure, unadulterated, luminous white can look dirty or elegant, depending on the purposes for which they are used and, as always, on the effects of lighting and of the colors that surround them.

When they veer a bit too far from white’s pure-austere party line, they run the risk of falling into the zone of light taupe, that curious cousin of beige. When it comes to off-white, think white in shadow on a gently cloudy afternoon — or whenever it isn’t reflecting light with its usual, full-on gusto.