diff --git a/pd/nw/css/c64.css b/pd/nw/css/c64.css
index 28a0f4059ab27b348e4f045e8907e7c16e13ea03..1045bf06f50518314cafc0794253ecc3fb405220 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/c64.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/c64.css
@@ -109,11 +109,11 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.obj {
-    outline: 1px solid blue;
+    outline: 1px solid #a49aea;
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid #a49aea;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/default.css b/pd/nw/css/default.css
index 41afd9b96c4b5e9ce80d45e7f606877c9426b9a6..c256cd42c7f64b7aef69a873a83f158dfbdf5d49 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/default.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/default.css
@@ -137,16 +137,22 @@ mark.console_find_highlighted {
     outline: 1px solid blue;
 }
 
+/* We're dynamically creating the svg background data in javascript
+   (in pdgui.js) so that we can change the stroke color of the svg msg box.
+   We store the color as the third argument to "outline" below. Since the
+   outline is 0px it won't show up-- this allows us specify the color here
+   in the style sheet and retrieve it in javascript when we build the svg
+   background. */
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
-    background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
+    outline: 0px solid blue;
+    /* background-image: url(../msg-box.svg); */
 }
 
 p.msg::after {
     content: "";
     height: 100%;
     width: 5px;
-    background-image: url(../msg-box-flag.svg);
+    /* background-image: url(../msg-box-flag.svg); */
     position: absolute;
     top: 0%;
     left: 100%;
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/extended.css b/pd/nw/css/extended.css
index 585717e0336cb008e67269f31383657fa09da109..1523d29d7afb84cbc5130e84b87aa5c187c32580 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/extended.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/extended.css
@@ -106,7 +106,7 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid blue;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/inverted.css b/pd/nw/css/inverted.css
index a063b47843e5ff92529a997ac5ecb13e060fd7fe..8605587f8a6b935391af0a68664d419c000dbaf8 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/inverted.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/inverted.css
@@ -114,7 +114,7 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid #ffff00;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/strongbad.css b/pd/nw/css/strongbad.css
index aa3d02ae01e06c585cb36dc9a2962e6a15c8d66c..b603c8aa0f2a9fde72c408da1a186c5840600752 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/strongbad.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/strongbad.css
@@ -109,11 +109,11 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.obj {
-    outline: 1px solid blue;
+    outline: 1px solid #0b560b;
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid #0b560b;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
@@ -190,7 +190,7 @@ text {
 
 /* for an object that didn't create */
 .obj .border.broken_border {
-    fill: #f7f7f7;
+    fill: transparent;
     stroke: #f00;
     stroke-dasharray: 3 2;
 }
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/subdued.css b/pd/nw/css/subdued.css
index 620dece5755fdbd5538c4224489472fb69d58159..073b1d6c308b34374cbb2797a45446cad0bc042b 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/subdued.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/subdued.css
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@
     display: table-cell;
     padding: 3px 2px 3px 2px;
     /* box-shadow: inset 1px 0px 0px 1px #000; */
-    background-color: white;
+    background-color: transparent;
     white-space: normal;
     word-wrap: break-word;
     -webkit-margin-before: 0px;
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid blue;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
@@ -184,7 +184,7 @@ text {
 
 /* for an object that didn't create */
 .obj .border.broken_border {
-    fill: #f7f7f7;
+    fill: transparent;
     stroke: #f00;
     stroke-dasharray: 3 2;
 }
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/vanilla.css b/pd/nw/css/vanilla.css
index 4386735dfa2e54dde79d803365b9b3ddd69a2319..6aa0a5f0b728f0937f30c091d998b846c7688d0a 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/vanilla.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/vanilla.css
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid blue;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }
 
diff --git a/pd/nw/css/vanilla_inverted.css b/pd/nw/css/vanilla_inverted.css
index 10d9f752fe1f2e822f290f7a323bfc8ddf1d4778..48920bbab2982e413caca3c8a5ed5d79e5626539 100644
--- a/pd/nw/css/vanilla_inverted.css
+++ b/pd/nw/css/vanilla_inverted.css
@@ -94,6 +94,10 @@
     fill: white;
 }
 
+#bubbles {
+    stroke: red;
+}
+
 #new_object_textentry {
     /* max-width: 10ch; */
     min-width: 3ch;
@@ -113,7 +117,7 @@
 }
 
 #new_object_textentry.msg {
-    outline: 0px solid transparent;
+    outline: 0px solid yellow;
     background-image: url(../msg-box.svg);
 }