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Exterior Design Dilemma Paint

exterior painting-colors?

5 years ago

We are planning to paint the exterior of our ranch home for the first time. The colors are a bit dated! Open to suggestions. Light grey with white shutters? Other ideas? We are planning to keep the door unpainted for now- not sure if it would be a clash though!

Featured Answer

phuninthesun

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

Beautiful house. The shutters really should come off. What color is your roof and can your window frames be painted? Could you possibly post a pic of your entire house from straight on?

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Comments (14)

Denita
5 years ago
Agree with removing the shutters. You have great windows and those shutters just don't fit the style of the house or the size of the windows.

Shutters vs Shutters

http://www.oldhouseguy.com/shutters/
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Thanks for reply, sorry I'm still a little confused. Probably I'm not explaining it right. Let me try again. So the exterior color of the door is brown and the inside is white. So there's two door jambs, 1 holds the hinges and 1 holds the strike plate (and then the top section that connects the 2), and then there's 2 sides of the door, 1 swings into my condo and one is next to the hinges. What colors would you paint those 4 things?
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STOP right now . Painting brick is IMO the fastest way to devalue your home. Those shutters have to go all of them right now. IMO the least of the issues is the paint. Beef up those posts , clean out the gardens growing in the gutters and make sure they are functioning properly . Have the bones checked that is all the electrical, plumbing roof etc those all need to be in top shpe before any pretty stuff planned and that includes painting . Are you planning interior renovations ? If so do all those before doing the exterior. Often interior work affects exterior facade .
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Cat F
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks for the input. I never even considered removing the shutters. I will try to get a better photo, including getting an accurate color of the roof. I don’t see why the we wouldn’t be able to paint the window frames, I guess? Any color ideas?
mehdiadeco
5 years ago
Hi Cat,

I just thought I'd try something, using Sherwin-Williams' color visualiser on your photos:

The color is called Lazy Gray, I 'painted' your shutters grey too so they would blend in as if you removed them. What do you think of the result?

Best,

Mehdia
thinkdesignlive
5 years ago
You have existing warm tones that need to be taken into consideration (looking at the stone planter box by the front door) so don’t go too cool grey. Yes, take your cues from the roof color and go from there. Look at the tones of the mortar on that stone wall as a cue. Honestly, a new front door would update much more than just a paint color.
Contemporary Remodel in Tiburon, California · More Info
thinkdesignlive
5 years ago
And I also agree that the shutters do not work.
laurahahe
5 years ago
I think it would look great with a dark gray. that would make your doors and windows pop
PRO
Creative Visual Concepts, Kevin Strader
5 years ago
There are some interesting details (projecting beams over the large windows) that are getting lost since everything is basically the same color. Can't tell for sure but it looks like the shingles have some gray/taupe tones. The body color of the house doesn't really work with the roof. I would look at deepening the color and then using maybe a darker tone of the same paint to highlight those features that are hiding. If you're interested is seeing some virtual makeovers check out my web site, Creative Visual Concepts.
Cat F
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks, everyone. I agree, there are many warm tones throughout the outside and inside of the house, which is why it’s hard to come up with a nice color in the grey family. I like the idea of making the shutters more muted and playing up other structural details by using darker shades of the same color. Any other color scheme ideas?
PRO
Creative Visual Concepts, Kevin Strader
5 years ago
No specific colors, as there are hundreds, but if you are leaning towards the grays look for those that have some brown tones. Stay away from the cooler gray colors. Sounds like a trip to the paint store is in your future.
thinkdesignlive
5 years ago
http://www.mariakillam.com/webinar-sales-page/
Cat F
Original Author
5 years ago
Here is a shot from the front. Also, the shingles are a dark blue-grey color.
Cat F
Original Author
5 years ago
Hi All,

I liked these color combo possibilities in the photos below- 1)cream with dark blue or black shutters, 2) light grey (with beige tones) with dark grey or black shutters, 3) cream with khaki shutters.

Do you think any of these would work, given our door and dark blue-grey shingles?

I was also thinking about painting the window frames (white??) to make the shutters fit better. Or would that look odd?

Thanks!
Cat F
Original Author
5 years ago
Photo inspirations mentioned above!

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