A shade of white, more towards oyster then cream and usually matte. As a background colour within interior design, whether it’s the stone work, the flooring or the sofa cover ecru is a good background colour for accommodating all others.
As a textile colour it comes into its own in a chic and urban environment when the weave carries a light reflecting design–such as damask, a herringbone or satin twill weave or a stripe. For the country, or a more rustic look ecru in hemp, linen, cotton or wool, handwoven and even in natural state: jacob’s wool, noil silk, hemp sheets, hand weaves…looks good.
In any style, an écru ground colour is a good foil for white and off-white, for embroidery, as a softer whitework and Italian quilting.