I thought I would like the black but no, the soft blues and greens you have been shown are lovely.

Here I tried Hague Blue by FnB with bright trim. Love this color! So deep.

I agree about green color, might look Xmasy.

With muted trim

and the same blue hue just darker

Loved Raccoon Fur and Hague Blue. What about BM Black Forest Green?

The Hauge Blue just looks black to me on the screen as does Racoon Fur. Still, I think I will get samples and paint them on this weekend.

Anna, I just looked up black forest green, E-46. Have never seen a Ben Moore "E" color before, apparently an exterior color line. Good to know!

Ma - I do love an MG! Nice way to think about it. I'm Jewish, so decorating for holidays isn't something we do. It's probably also why I'm so hyper aware of things looking X-Mas like! The two houses across the street have green shutters and don't strike me as X-Masy. Their bricks are a bit more orange, maybe that is why?

The OP indicated she didn’t want a Christmas-y look. I agree. We’re residing the house in a green color and while i really love the look of a red door, I’m planning to go with plum. I don’t decorate seasonally or for holidays.

BTW, OP, I forgot to say how much I love your door and your townhome overall. Love those old brick homes. Is the door real wood?

Thanks Anna. Yes, the door is real wood. We had it refinished last year and I think they did a great job. I'm Jewish and don't do holiday decoration either. (Probably why I'm on the watch for not looking too Christmas-y.). Plum is beautiful with green. Sounds like a good alternative.

I'm going to get Hauge Blue F&B samples and Racoon Fur today and give them a try. Maybe another green too? Wish Farrow and Ball had a green that strikes me.

Beautiful place. I vote for the Raccoon. Will you be adding window screens like your neighbor's?

Thanks Apple Pie. Yes, we will be adding screens. The mosquitos are horrible here and I can't wait. However, I think screens really change the look of the house and are so dark. Our screens are being custom made. Do you have any recommendations for how the screen part can look more aesthetically pleasing and less dark than the ones nextdoor?

There are several types of screening material. Take a look at them to decide. Some people prefer the look of a full screen instead of a half screen like the ones next door. Full screens don't have a light/dark contrast between screen and glass.

I believe the historic commission said we have to make them half windows instead of whole. Not sure why.

I put more colors up this weekend and would love your feedback.

"Limestone" trim

"String" trim

"Hague blue" shutter, note trim on side shows Limestone swatch on top and String swatch below.

"Studio Green" shutter, This trim shows string on top and Limestone below.

Feedback please!!!

Wow! I like them all. On my screen the shutter/limestone combo shows the limestone as much more white than the 1st picture. Is that correct in “real lighting”?

Anna - The only difference I can imagine between the two Limestones is that the first picture is of the bottom of the door frame, which perhaps is not getting hit with as much sunlight as the sample that is higher up on the door frame.

Someone pointed out that if I paint the trim a lighter - limestone instead of string, it will certainly get dirty and not look that bright white over time. I don't know if that is a reasonable way to choose color - what it will end up looking like vs what it looks like now.

IMO the shutters are all wrong for the facade they look like they are tacked on and the units on either side look so much better without them. I do love the window boxes though and a nice big planter between the basement windows would be nice in black with a black door

Can’t wait to see the finished project. Love your shutters and when they get fixed, they’ll look lovely on your historic home.

Does anyone have a recommendation for BM or SW paint that is a very dark navy and doesn't look purple at all?

Just a screenshot of what came up. I’m sure you saw the same thing. No personal experience with navy paint. But try samplize.com for large format samples from either of those paint companies.

Anna, I can't get over how different colors look when they are up vs when they are on a sample or on the screen. I love the sample dot for the hague blue - what I see on screen is totally what I am going for, but check out how much brighter it looks on my actual shutter. Frustrating.

Patricia - The door is solid wood, which we just had refinished so are not painting it. Also, the shutter design is original to the 1853 house and historic commissions require we keep them up. I actually love shutters. The pintels on these are original to the house and need to be restored so they hang correctly. Ironically, the perfectly hung shutters are usually the cheap knock offs put up in the 1990s, and the ones in our neighborhood that look all off kilter are usually the historic originals.

I think the Hale Navy looks great. But you’re wanting something more muted? Did you like the green you sampled? Have you considered a dark green-black?

Have you thought about hiring a color consultant?

Love love the shutters. This is what REAL shutters look like!! Can't read all the posts but are you looking at historical colors? BM has an HC line that I like, the colors just feel right on/in historical homes.

Makes me homesick for Society Hill :'(

I have not found a green I like and wonder if I will have an easier time finding a super dark blue.

I've talked to a few color consultants, then looked at their portfolios and am not impressed. One other consultant is in the running but she just want to suggest colors, send big samples painted on paper, and have me hang them and decide ($350). She said she could drive by and look at them for an extra $350 and asked me what time of daylight is the best to look at paint?

I wouldn't mind paying $700 or even $1,000 for a consultation but this person just doesn't seem as professional as the one I used for interior color consultant. The interior consultant insisted that the color be painted on the surface and not use paper swatches. She insisted on coming by at multiple times to catch different day light. She was excellent, cost $2,000 and was worth every penny. Unfortunately, she was doing the small job as a favor to me 6 years ago as she really only takes whole house jobs in the $500,000 range and won't come to do the exterior. So, I don't think I am any closer to finding a good color consultant.

Greenfish - Yes Society Hill houses are beautiful. I have looked at a lot of colors on those houses for ideas, however, the brick in Society Hill is much darker and when I put those paint colors against my orange bricks they look very off.

How about “noir” by Pratt and Lambert? It looks like a very deep blue-black on my screen.

Personally, I like that the Hale Navy seems to add some brightness. And it would be a different look, in a good way. We have a lot of historic brick homes in Baltimore, Frederick and Annapolis. That blue would be lovely.

Kendrah, thanks for educating me on the two types of shutters on your home. Also glad you had the stone assessed. Ask the various Historic Commissions if they have referrals to color-consultants.

I have three more samples to paint but my shutters are getting full of swatches so I'd like to paint on a board of wood instead and just hold it up to my house. (I think it is pine?) Can I paint the dark color samples on the board as is? I don't have any primer, but I have some cans of paint in the basement that are Ben Moore "Regal" interior primer and paint in one. They are OC colors, all off white. Should I use this as a base or just paint straight on to the board?

The colors I'm trying are:

2062-10 Polo Blue

2129-30 Blue Note

2061-10 Deep Royal

If these aren't the right ones I will move on to others suggestions made above. Thanks all for you ideas and support!

Goobering was fun. I'll post pics tomorrow as it is getting dark now.

Polo Blue is the closest I have come to a deep blue that does not exude purple undertones. I wish it were even darker. There must be something between Polo Blue and black in Ben Moore or SW (I prefer testing those since the stores are close to my house.)

Is it possible to ask for a particular color but have it made more saturated or darker or do I just need to find another color?

^^Yup. Just know that if you ever need to repair or repaint, it may not match exactly...

How about this? swatch-fdp-peaceful-275278.ashx

Finally, blues that don't read purple: Ben Moore Blue Note and Polo.

The colors in these photos look much brighter than in person, so they might not be the best representation. Still, they give a general idea.

Thoughts on both, either? Am I close to the mark, on it, or still far?

Any thoughts on the two trim colors with these, darker top is string, bottom is Limestone, both FnB colors.

Blue note

Polo

Blue Note

Polo

Blue note on left, Polo on right

Yes, please take pictures from farther away.

Sure. Will do.

Here are the two colors from pics above in a wider shot. The are on the boards sitting on the sidewalk. Ignore the bottom bright color. It is the tops squares on the boards.

Top left. Looks fabulous.

Thanks for the affirmative on Polo (the one on the left).

I looked today at SW Anchors Away, per recommendations above, and think it is not as deep or dark as BM Polo. Unless I can find any other navy that is deeper than Polo, I think that is the one we will use. We figured we would go with Polo as overtime it will get dusty and chalky looking on its own and likely end up looking more like Blue Note.

Next, to find a trim. I think I am leaning to a more ivory or cream instead of tan. I like the limestone color above that is FnB. I might consider using BM and having them mix the FnB limestone color formula. Any thoughts on that?

Also, thoughts on gloss? I am tempted to go super glossy for the shutters, just for a pop of bling, and they will be easier to clean. If I went with a glossy shutter but a slightly less glossy trim on windows, is that strange? Should they both have the same level of gloss?

I love rich, glossy shutters. Regarding the trim, not an expert but I think going just one level down on gloss would be fine. I think a high-sheen trim, especially on a light color, might look "cleaner" when shiny, no?

Hope someone else chimes in. Can't wait to see the finished project.