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Design Dilemma
dashley

Exterior house colours

dashley
9 years ago
Our home's locale experiences green summers and white winters.
It it time to paint( again!) and we want some suggestions. We have been leaning toward a dark siding colour but are open to ideas please! As you can see the window framing is very narrow:(
I am sick if brown but our roof is brown so....?
Painter starts next week! Yike!
Featured Answer
  • decoenthusiaste
    9 years ago
    Certainteed · More Info

    Kenilworth Private Residence 2 · More Info

    Comments (19)

    • Brandi Nash Hicks
      9 years ago
      How about a red color,go for it...or a dark blue with gray trim and red door

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    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      Thanks Brandy. I love red and considered that choice: two things stopped me, fading and selling.
      I have been looking at very dark gray eg Ben Moore Kendall Charcoal but recently saw a house in a very dark blue on Houzz and will look again. What BM white would you recommend? This is great to have some help!
    • apple_pie_order
      9 years ago
      Agree on white trim. Which depends on the paint for the siding.
      dashley thanked apple_pie_order
    • libradesigneye
      9 years ago
      color would be charming - you have neo victorian farmhouse lines
      Think red is easier to sell than gray/ dark gray - people fall for the charm of it.

      But, if selling is in the near horizon, the color for the body would be a creamy off-white with deep pine green trim. And the reverse, deep green on the house with creamy white trim. Those are your sales winners. The white is traditional . . . if your interiors are a bit eclectic or you are more comfortable with contemporary, go for the darker green. Back w colors to test for you . .. .
      dashley thanked libradesigneye
    • libradesigneye
      9 years ago
      What about this historical lafayette green? I say be brave and put it on the siding since you have lots of windows and eaves / overhangs for contrast trim -
      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/lafayettegreen
      coupled with warm white trim? bm winter wheat
      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/winterwheat
      White door too OR
      Or flip the colors - white house, green trim,
      You can do a green door which will be classic

      If you want more modern bounce to either palette,
      just shift the door shade to a periwinkle tone - test Periwinkle door - bm blue pearl
      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/bluepearl

      This assumes window trim and sashes can be painted. If you have alumnimum finish tan windows, then you want a softer mossier green on the siding and possibly a red door .. .
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      Thanks ...green didn't even enter into my head but I certainly agree on your house design description, neo Victorian farmhouse. I never could give it a name as we built ourselves and it is certainly eclectic in and out. Back to my colour deck to check out your suggestions. Oh, the window sashes are all paintable:)
    • PRO
      Cope Closet Concepts
      9 years ago
      My home is surrounded by trees that are very lush in the summer. It's painted a greenish teal color with cream trim and in the summer seems to blend in with the trees. I love it. On the ideas for you, I do like a dark gray or blue with white trim. And definitely a different colored door for simple fun. Just make sure it is something that makes you smile when you pull into the driveway at the end of a long day.
      Good luck!
      dashley thanked Cope Closet Concepts
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      It seems most contributors are steering me away from gray and suggesting a true colour. I am excited but nervous! Yes, having me smile as I pull into my drive is key! Painter starts power wash tomorrow and prepping on Thursday! Yike, got to make a decision pronto! Keep those suggestions coming: paint chip numbers would be a bonus!
    • libradesigneye
      9 years ago
      Gray with a brown roof is just not going to be great . . if you want it to be even more modern, here are some shades of blue-green / muted blue green grays . . .
      First up, the darkest - this is a less traditional green, though it is historic so it definitely was used in historic times, probably not on most homes . . . it is really a teal. . bm yorktowne green
      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/yorktownegreen

      If you want a soft mid-tone blue-green that is muted and really charming, bm templeton gray is a terrific color - you can do the entry door in one shade down bm knoxville gray . . . off white trim like bm french canvas

      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/frenchcanvas
      http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/templetongray#ce_s=templeton gray

      Because of the green undertones, either of these blue greens would work with the brown roof, and be terrific with white trim and door.

      It is time for you to paint some plywood samples and carry them around your home, looking at them in the am , afternoon and pm light - paint different siding samples . . . every latitude is different, and each home has its own personality ..
      dashley thanked libradesigneye
    • qam999
      9 years ago
      Just a bit more encouragement for you: exterior colors can be much more saturated and intense than interior, because the exterior is seen in bright sunlight against other intense color blocks: bright blue sky, white snow-filled world, green forest, or for that matter raging gray storm clouds. A gray house is not necessary.

      Paint stores have lots of great color chip selections....I'd find some of those and then do the plywood sheet idea with 3 or 4 different colors, as another poster suggested. And when you think you have a winner, just quickly paint a corner of your house and live with it a few days to seal your commitment. Good luck!
      dashley thanked qam999
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      Thanks again. I have gone back to my colour palette and am having trouble with blue or green although I can see a sagey green maybe. Can anyone look at Ben Moore CSP 150 Windy City, very dark brown grey: CC 540 Stampede: CSP 180 River Silt?
      Theses could also have a vibrant front door...?
      All with creamy white. Looked at so many blue and green houses and know it isn't me.
      So once again I appreciate your thoughts of the brown/gray colours.
    • libradesigneye
      9 years ago
      last modified: 9 years ago
      The brown grays can work with some brown roofs - roofs that are brown gray. Also, generally the roof needs to be darker than the house. The grays you pulled are around 19 LRV, while your roof is around 30 LRV .. so, you've picked out colors darker than the roof.

      If you want to test a sagey green - test this one http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/drysage

      The creamy white look you want you can't get if you pick an interior creamy white. For what looks like creamy white outside, you need a shade like winter wheat . . so I hear you want something really modern looking and you love the deep tones . . if your roof wasn't a part of your facade, you could maybe fake it . . but your roof is really golden, so what happens when you pick a dark tone is the roof becomes the star that jumps forward to the eye . .

      and a dark brown gray house just is not going to give you the zing you were hoping for . . .

      I'm going to suggest red again then .. test one, anyway . . you might surprise yourself . . bm cottage red .. http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/pm15#ce_s=cottage red
      [houzz=
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      dashley thanked libradesigneye
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      I am attaching more pictures of brine roof as it is quite brown grey and darker than first photos showed. Trouble with sharing pics, right? I totally get what you are saying about siding darker than roof, really good point as my house shows a lot if roof surface. Ok, got to go and buy samples and get them on the walls. I usually have a good eye for this but brother I am struggling this time. Probably just don't like my brown roof!
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      These roof shots were taken this morning and it is cloudy. Lighting is everything isn't it!
    • dashley
      Original Author
      9 years ago
      Seems I don't type very well in the early morning! Oooops!
    • apple_pie_order
      9 years ago
      If you have an extra shingle, take it with you to the paint store. If you don't, then take a photo that includes just the roof shingles, or enlarge one you already have. Print a large copy on 8.5 x 11 inch paper, hold it up to the compare with the roof, and take it with you.

      Have you tried the Sherwin Williams online paint visualizer? Fun, easy.

      BM has perhaps 50 giant paint chips about 11 x 14 inches, each for $3.99 at our local shop in S. California. I'm not sure if they intend them to be returnable, Our local shop no longer carries the tiny bottles of paint samples.
      dashley thanked apple_pie_order
    • libradesigneye
      9 years ago
      I know you will find something you love - and it might be one of these warm grays .. just kept looking at your first posting - (not brown i hope) . .. so try a few things. The greens and blues around town you are looking at are likely not nearly as sophisticated a shade as the ones we've been suggesting and with color - shade makes all the difference. I trust your eyes to know when you've got the look you want. . . fun to kibbitz - thanks for inviting us. I'll keep watching and rooting you on.
    • Ellen
      9 years ago
      last modified: 9 years ago
      Just curious, dashley -- what colors did you decide to use? I have similar colors on my house right now, and need to paint within the next year. I'd love to see what you chose!
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