The genetics that determine variety (feather colour and pattern) are complicated. If you can get a copy of
Genetics of Chicken Colours, it will help tremendously. I understand that the printing is nearly sold out, so act fast if you want a copy.
www.chickencolours.com
Henk's chicken calculator is
awesome, but realize that it makes a guess at the genes carried by a particular variety. The reality is that most varieties can be made with several variations--particularly in the e-allele, and this means that the results are not necessarily consistent with actuality. This is particularly true with recessive white, which is an OFF Switch, preventing colours or patterns that are genetically present--every recessive white chicken can have a unique set of colour/pattern genes hidden by recessive white.
One thing the calculator is VERY good for is seeing how different gene combinations interact. Select a variety, then go in and change one of the individual gene settings--then see what happens if you do the same thing on the opposite gender. Change back and try a different gene change, or perhaps a couple of gene changes. LOTS of non-stop fun!
In general, if you pair like colours/varieties together, the offspring will also be of the same variety. However, recessive genes can pair up if carried by both parents, and give different results. Examples of this would be if your black pair produced white or lavender chicklets--if they did, you would know that each of them carries a copy (is split for) that gene (white or lavender, depending on the chicks).
