Well it hasn't even been a day but after leaving the "whiter" white on the quilt top wouldn't you know it but by the end of today it is actually looking just as cream as the other!!! How crazy is that?! So, as suggested, and thanks very much for pointing this out to me..I have spent the afternoon considering how best to detract the eye from the glaring "ick" as best I can. I think I will quilt it quite densely in length-wise rows to help accentuate the column effect and give the eye an uninterrrupted fluid run from top to bottom. I'm thinking I might use an 80wt thread seeing I'm quilting so densely and will outline the HST first to stabilise them. Thanks again everyone..most appreciated. Hmmmmm, variegated thread or cream...hmmmmm