Sunglasses?

OK seriously - What style of house and what part of the country?

Are these victorian type houses. I wouldn't do beige but how about greens or blues? White would stand out but not last long. Get a brochure of exterior paints and they have pics with so many different combinations. How about a rust color?

Actually, I do wear sunglasses when I look at them!

I live in New Orleans and the houses are Italianate style.

We're tempted to do white, but like you said, it won't last more than a couple of years down here. I've been driving around looking for suitable color schemes, but haven't found anything yet. I've noticed that saturated (crayola-crayon-like) colors are becoming very popular.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Let's see:

Fresh bright white with a glossy black front door. Black garden furniture and vivid colored flowers in brightly-painted pots.

Very deep rich French blue with a glossy white front door. White classic English-style garden furniture with brightly colored tables. White-painted and Oriental-style blue-and-white pottery garden stools and pots. White pea gravel walkways.

Very very deep sage green with a cottage red front door. Wood garden furniture and wood planter boxes with various herbs and vegetables. Red-painted accent tables and cushions.

Silvery grey with a deep periwinkle door. Modern strong-lined silver garden furniture and pots. Ornamental trees in various colors in the pots and a concrete walkway for a strong modern look.

A neighbor just down the street painted their house (one story with prominent garage) an olivey woodsy green. It's stunning. We all have yards that are fairly small with lots of landscaping and they have a woodsy look in front of theirs so the house recedes a bit and looks so inviting. I think an olivey mossy green would be a welcome respite from the two yellow standouts and provide the perfect foil. Yours would look elegant and refined. I would probably do a black door on that.

Red

red, that sounds really great ; I'm picturing fresh moss..............

Why not contrast with purples and blues? Then you'd really stand out.

BM Blue Nova? BM Bistro Blue? You could do you trim in something wild like Calypso Blue. Put 'em over the edge with BM Lemon Grove shutters.

Then you could plant yellow flowers in your garden and steal the neighbors' thunder.

Talk about your sunglasses!

I think I like Teacats black and white idea better, though.

I'd love to have a wild colored house though... just once.

Does anyone happen to know if gray exteriors look dingy after a short time? White doesn't last here with all the mildew and no one else in my family wants a vibrant color to match the neighbors.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far.

How close are the houses together? I think that would make a difference too. Maybe look at a some pics of the Mediterranean hillsides for beautiful scapes of those type house colors together.

I had grey and it lasted for years (until I painted it white and moved away). How about grey with crisp white trim and a red front door?
(I also love the olive green idea- a neighbor of mine also has that color and looks lovely)

I live in your neck of the woods. We have BM add Mildewcide (M-1) to your exterior latex paint. We've been in this house 20 years and never had any mildew. In our south facing alley we get mildew on the wooden fence, but none on the house. It really does work. My DH said any paint store will have the mildewcide additive.

Guess what? This morning I woke up, looked out the window, and saw the painters going over the neighbor's house with an army green/khaki color! I can't wait to see what color it is when I return home this evening. I definitely preferred the bright yellow to this hue of green.

Guess I better wait for them to finish before I start making any plans!