I have paid lots of money over the years for professional advise ... sometimes I take and sometimes I don't. There isn't just one perfect color for your house/trim/door. If you hire 5 more color consultants I will bet that they all come up with different suggestions and I bet none will say that your house looks fine just as it is ... after all you paid them to come out and make suggestions! You seem to be stuck on what was said by the consultant, but obviously you didn't agree with her or you wouldn't be posting here! It really is ok if you do your own thing, really! Here is a free consultation! If I bought your house today, this is what I would do: - paint house body BM Nantucket Grey - paint house trim a non-stark white color - ditch the shutters (I call them wasp condos) and beef up the trim around the windows - paint the front door a nice glossy deep red from Fine Paints of Europe - solid granite latern posts, for birdhouse too - since I hate having to paint them - paint fence same white color as trim - get rid of asphalt and replace with pavers That's what I would do. What do you (not some sonsultant) want for YOUR house?

Janet, you have my sympathy as well. I would only add that you should pick colors that make you feel happy. I know the trend is toward neutrals, but if this is your long-term home, I would not worry about painting for resale, but to choose colors you really like and that flatter you. Look in your closets and see what colors are prevalent -- that is a good clue. Several years ago, I lost both my mom and dad just a few months apart, and shortly after the loss of a very dear friend. I was devastated as you might imagine. Fortunately for me, DH and I had just purchased a fixer-upper, and we had always agreed that we wanted to paint in colors we loved. We ended up painting in a warm palette of spring greens and warm, buttery yellows, and every time I stepped into the house after work, my spirits lifted. We just sold the home, and despite my agents suggestion that we "soften" the paint colors a bit, we did not. We had multiple offers after 5 days on the market it, so our color choices didn't even hurt us financially, and I am convinced that that they helped me through a very difficult time. My best wishes to you and your family.

I agree with Lori. It's best to pick from all the colors already in your brick -and there are many. It looks like that's what they did when they chose colors the last time, although I wouldn't have favored the orange so much. There are lots of pretty shades of red in the bricks you could choose for you door, several to choose from undo the window. The wine looks like a mis-match in my opinion. I'm not big on paint colors but my description of paint I would choose would be a rustic red.

These comments are so helpful. THANK YOU! @Patricia Colwell, why not blue? @Jilly, I'm delighted you suggested Bella Blue. It looks beautiful in the picture you posted. And we have a cat named Bella, which would be a strange reason to paint our whole house Bella Blue, but still... ;) @cat_ky, thanks for the input on the reddish trim. It's funny, my husband hates it but I have liked it. (We bought the house this way so did not select the colors.) @Circus Peanut, thanks for these suggestions. I will check out Bunglehouse Blue on the visualizer. @Greta Greite, what would be your first choice? We don't want something completely neutral like tan or gray. Our street is very eclectic - lots of grays and tans but here and there there's a bright teal house, a dark red house, a yellow house, etc. @Angela Tollefson, I'm excited to check out Newburg Green. I would've been misled by the "green" in the title (just like "Gentleman's Gray" is actually blue, it seems). @Sabrina Alfin, I love the ideas about boxing out the posts. The paint altogether came off of the cedar as it is, so it's only a matter of time before that happens once we repaint. Thank you, all! And if others have more ideas, too, I'm happy to hear them. I am OBSESSED with paint colors right now.