What exterior colors should I choose?

12 years ago

I want to paint the outside of my little farmhouse this spring, but I would like help deciding on the colors. The main issue for me, is the bright blue metal roof.

A bit of background on the house:

It's in a rural area, on 107 acre treed property, set well back from the road.

The house was built sometime before 1876

We are going to open the sunroom (out front) back up into a porch.

The upstairs windows are mostly white vinyl, but the downstairs ones are brown metal so changing their color is almost impossible. We will be swapping out windows as we redo the rooms inside, but that's going to take a while.

At the moment I am thinking yellow with white trim might be nice ( I have a crush on yellow houses!), but I'd love some other suggestions. Thank you.

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Comments (8)

User
12 years ago
I love your house! Love the style and shape and it looks like it has been very well maintained. Since you can't do anything about the brown windows -and they look perfectly fine to me--- I would paint the siding a light beige (not quite yellow) that would look good with both the darker brown and the blue. You could paint the trim white (the wood that is now painted brown) but I think I would leave it brown, that way the downstairs windows would not be the only dark brown on the house. And I think a porch would be marvellous!
powermuffin
12 years ago
I think that yellow will make the roof sing - but not in a good way. You may end up with a clown-looking house. I like kswl's idea of beige, or a taupe that goes with both the blue and the brown. Some smokey greens might do well too. Once you pick out the main house color, I would consider repainting the trim at the roof line. The white you have now, really makes the blue stand out. Good luck!
Diane
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Just in case you decide not to "Hunter Orange" your door, my suggestion would begin with the garage door: Being a dark valued color, as it is, placed in a light valued exterior, as it is, always creates a very strong visual contrast and will pull everyone's eye directly to your garage door. Dark juxtaposed with light always creates the strongest possible contrast. Assuming you don't think your garage door is a strong design feature for your front façade, and that, perhaps, you may not want a strong visual contrast there, I'd begin by painting the garage door a light valued color harmonious with your brick. Then, I'd do the columns, window trim, fascia, etc., to match the garage door. That leaves the front door. You have two choices: 1) A high contrast, using either value or hue; or 2) Harmonious blending, using the same paint as the garage door and trim. Always important to select all of these together, at one time, rather than piece-meal, one at a time. Good luck on your project!
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OK...oil based poly STINKS for WEEKS afterwards. And it turns the 'orange yellow' you are describing. And it will turn ANY COLOUR you choose to an orange tone. If you like the idea of the finish off-gassing for 30+ days while you try to find a place for yourself and kids and dog to live, you are welcome to go with it. I'm not a fan of oil based. The VOC contents are ASTRONOMICAL (880 g/L in one of them...compare that to the CARB requirement of LESS THAN 175 g/L in California). Many of these finishes are illegal in California and the 11 states that have adopted the CARB II indoor air quality requirements. It is a myth that oil based finishes are TOUGHER than water based. Polyurethane is polyurethane is polyurethane. The issue is when you go for the same PRICE TAG as the oil based finishes. A low-priced oil based finish (that has been on the market since the 60s without so much as a PRINTING up date on the can let alone a recipe change) is DIRT CHEAP. Why? Because those companies made their money DECADES AGO. Now they are just enjoying the HORDES of money from the investment they made in the 1950s (nope...not kidding). If you get a 'dirt cheap' (aka DIY level product from Home Depot!!!) water borne poly you will get what you paid for = a DIY level finish that is not as tough as the toxic stuff from the 60's. The TRICK is to work with HIGH PRICED water based finishes. The stuff that comes in 2 part products (call the finish and the hardener/catalyst). They carry big names like Bona or Loba. They carry high price tags (like double or triple the cost of the toxic stuff). They also carry VERY IMPRESSIVE wearability. The big boys from the big boys (Bona Traffic HD or Loba 2K Supra AT) are the toughest finishes outside of a factory. They are MAGNIFICENT. The PROFESSIONALS that work these finishes are the best of the best as well (or should be...some hammer swinging 'guys' give it a go once in a while and it shows...). And those people are not CHEAP. Why? Because they took the time out of the schedules and money out of their own pockets to attend the 3-5 day training courses for these finishes. Only the DEDICATED do that. Everyone else just looks it up on Youtube. My quest to you is: How happy would you be to find the house unlivable for as many as 30 days because of the stench? Are you a migraine sufferer? Do you get nose bleeds? How about your kids? Does anyone in your family have 'sensitivities', allergies, asthma, COPD, etc? If anyone has any of these things I've listed, then oil based is out. I've seen people get nose bleeds from sleeping in a home with freshly finished floors with oil based poly. Some vomit. Most have BLINDING headaches. Migraine sufferers can't go further than the front steps...the smell stopping them from entering the house. Just because it says 'can be walked on' in 1 day and furniture back in 5 days...doesn't mean the SMELL is gone.
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pommy_girl
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks kswl, it looks better than it actually is :( We purchased it about a year ago and have been slowly upgrading the inside...think pine paneling everywhere!

If I leave the trim brown with the brown windows, should I paint the second storey ones white? The dark brown seems to make them look so small.

powermuffin, the blue roof was definetly not our purchase, oh, I so wish the previous owner had gone for red or even green. Fortunately (financially speaking) the roof isn't going to wear out anytime soon, so I'm stuck with it.

I hadn't thought of a smokey green. I'll have a look at some.

Just so you don't think I'm not completely out to lunch, here is my yellow house inspiration picture :) Of course, this house is a whole lot nicer than mine!
ellendi
12 years ago
You like yellow, than go for it! But, a lighter yellow than your inspiration picture.I agree that a bright yellow could give it a comical look.
If indeed you want yellow, then start another thread and let's "collect" yellows that you can try. More real life pictures from GW members.
daisychain01
12 years ago
My grandmother's cottage always had a blue roof (altho it was ashphalt tiles). Now the roof is boring dark grey, but we paint the trim the same bright blue as your roof. The main body is cedar that has weathered to a beautiful grey. The blue looks great with the trim (I think), so I'm voting for grey with a mustard door and trim.

This is the only pic I have. I'd do a darker grey than our cottage.
pommy_girl
Original Author
12 years ago
Sorry, I didn't mean I wanted yellow, I was just posting that pic so you didn't think I was absolutely crazy :) yellow was just something I quite liked. I'm definitely looking for alternatives.
lazydaisynot
12 years ago
Your house looks darling and the setting sounds wonderful. I was just googling images to find a nice example of the yellow/blue combo, but you beat me to it. I think a very soft, creamy yellow with white trim would be really pretty.
pommy_girl
Original Author
12 years ago
daisychain, thanks for the suggestion of grey, I think it's something I'll check out. A mustard color front door sounds intriguing. You have a lot more snow at your cabin than we have here in Nova Scotia this winter!

lazydaisynot, thanks. The house needs some work and so does the property...we have a 50 year plan!
Creamy yellow is pretty, I have just painted my kitchen a very soft creamy yellow with white trim, it looks really nice.

What exterior colors should I choose?

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What exterior colors should I choose?

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