FYI Google "why not to paint brick".

Derek Hurd

Gravitas, Inc.

112 E 33rd St.

Garden City, ID 83714

208.367.1184

www.gravitaslc.com

It’s already getting painted, the samples are on.

The brick is subtle, and the best part of the house. Remove the paint samples on the brick, and paint your trim & garage door, remove the shutters, and fix the area around the garage to cover the concrete.

I do see many more painting their ranch style homes to give it more curb appeal and modern look, for those that move away from the classic "ranch" look. I think brick can be painted really well, although you might here otherwise, especially with the products out these days (Sherwin-Williams has a great selection) Do note though, there will be much more upkeep every 5 years of so. I would steer away from painting the eves white as well... just keep the white to the bricks.

If the brick is white, thoughts on the tan for the eves, gutters and garage door?

I agree with caledesign's comments. The shutters really don't work with the house and window styles. Whatever you decide, paint the downspouts to blend with the siding.

If you don't want to be so overwhelmed by all the color choices, I would suggest for the eaves to do a half strength of the white you have used for the body of the house, since eves typically will cast the darker shadow. (Think about the eaves as the outdoor "ceiling".) Shutters and window sashes are typically the darkest part of the color palette. With your iron railing and stone work in the front I think a deep iron grey or tan would look nice. I'd consider adding a splash of color with a bold accent door (blues/reds etc)

Thank you for that advice! I agree with the shutters. What about the gutter color? @ Ziebart Construction

If you can afford it, can the eaves be sanded back to natural wood and stained? that look is really beautiful, particularly on a midcentury home.

or, consider this: eaves are one way that light bounces into your windows. if you paint them a dark color, that may darken your interior. I'd definitely not match the white on the bricks though, that could look funny. so in a nutshell... pick a color different from what's on your bricks, but not too dark.

Would you paint the gutters the same color as the eves?

The cardinal rule for choosing gutters that will look good, not just function well, is to choose a low-key color. You’re generally left with three options for color: same as your siding, same as your trim, or same as your roof. I'd probably lean towards the trim color for your home (color around your windows or door).

What if I did the white on the brick, the light tan on the eves, gutters, downspouts and garage door. And then a charcoal or black on the shutters with a bold door color?

Paint the downspouts the same color as the brick. They should not stand out. The rain gutters should relate to your roof color. The soffit should be painted white.

What do you mean by the eaves? Is that what I mean by a soffit?

The rain gutters run along the front of the house and are heavy so the same color as the roof would be dark gray, and yes the eves and soffits are the same and my brick color is a very soft white...

re: the shutters: personally I'd want to remove them. even if they're original, I don't really like that look on a mid century home. but if you like them and want to keep them, I agree that something dark like the charcoal or black you mentioned. and yes to a bright door!

Ok, so white brick, the tan shown in the picture above on the gutters, downspouts, eaves and garage door, charcoal shutters and bold door? I will Probably keep the shutters until I can replace them with nicer ones. @BF

Downspouts should match the house, not the gutters. They are not a design feature and should be unobtrusive.

https://www.lifeofanarchitect.com/residential-architecture-101-shutters/

You do not want real paint you want to use this product that allows your brick to breath. You can put it on full white, or you can do something a bit more subtle and allow some of the color of your original brick through. It will look fabulous. Get this at Home Depot

I think the tan will look very bland against the white brick.

I'd choose something for the gutters that blends in with the roof. Soffits, garage door and downspouts white. Remove shutters. Front door bright.

Dark downspouts against a light background (especially when they are numerous and snake-y) look like varicose veins.

Paint them the colour of the brick.

@okibujp, thank you for the visual!! That was so helpful. I now see what everyone was talking about regarding the shutters. Would you mind creating a visual with the bm ballet white on the brick. SW Tony taupe on the soffits, gutters and garage door and SW Riverway on the door? Thanks for your help!!

nicky0782, using the SW color snap visualizer, Duck White 7010 was the closest I could find for the BM Ballet white which leans to yellow. This is just a visual. The colors on screen will look much different, so do not buy them unless you test first.

Looks like Nicky is set on the white paint, but, I also think its a big mistake. The house is very attractive with the brick itself. I would do the eves, and the trim, and leave the brick. I do like painted brick in some instances, but, this is not one of those instances. Quite honestly a painted brick house, would be a big deal breaker, if I were looking to buy. Everyone likes low or almost no maintenance. I dont know anyone, that says, Ahh, so much fun, this is the summer, I will spend, painting my house again. Some houses are wood, or other materials, that require all that painting maintenance, but, a brick house, should leave some time for owner fun.

Why would you want your downspouts to stand out? oukibujp first rendition is lovely if only the downspouts were painted to match the house, the downspouts not the gutters.

Nicky, Paint is typically acrylic. It's like putting the brick in a plastic bag. The paint will pop and have to be scraped, especially if you live in an area that goes below freezing. It's a guarantee.

You can still have the white paint appearance if you use the Limewash at full strength. It will appear to be white paint but will allow your bricks to breathe and you will never have any popping or peeling paint.

Yes, I am set on painting the brick @ cat_Ky. The brick has peach or pink undertones depending on the day which is hard to see in the picture. And there is an addition on the back and of course that brick color was no longer available.

If I limewash the brick so it is able to breath will it completely cover the brick. I don’t want the brick showing thru@ Beverly. Thanks

Nicky....I thoroughly empathize with your desire to paint that brick. I had a mid century rancher in Virginia that was that gawdawful peachy orange brick. I begged and begged the dear hubs to let me paint it white but he refused. Decided I could hate the house and still love him, but honestly, there were times......
Never could warm to that house (the inside was fab, fab, fab) and was a happy camper when we sold it and moved to lil condo in Florida.
So, for all you who are “never painters”, just remember you aren’t the one having to live in it.

No flowerboxes beneath the windows. Embrace the simplicity of this lovely ranch.

Yes, Nicky, it will be pure white. Just don't take any of it off once applied.

https://romabio.com/masonry/

Can u make It any paint color? I do not want bright white.

Doods, thank you! Yes, mistake on the downspouts. They should blend in with with color of the house.

Oh okibujp wasn't criticizing your rendition. I got the impression that Nicky was thinking of painting gutters and downspouts all the same color, and not having the downspouts same color as the body of the house.

House with contrasting gutters/downspouts.

I really love the mockup that okibujp posted above -- the white one with black trim. lately I've been obsessed with that color combo, I love it on old and new houses alike.

nicky0782, I have a house from 1955, and based on the photo taken when it was new, the brick was painted from the beginning. not sure when or how often it was repainted, but I'm guessing the last time was about 4-5 years ago. I've lived here nearly 2 years and can't spot any problems so far. in fact, the only part that's peeling is the wooden garage. not even the side of the house that gets pummeled by the summer sun is flaking. plus, we have a lot of moisture here (seattle).

Yes, tsjmjh, some people do paint their downspouts to contrast with the house and, as evidenced by the photo you posted, it looks awful, don't you agree?

Thanks for all of the advice! I think I am going to paint the brick the ballet white and the downspouts! Get rid of the shutters. Paint the gutters anonymous by sw with the eaves and garage door in intellectual gray which is 2 up from anonymous. And the door a bold color!

White brick is a classic look in the southern states. I love it. There will always be the never paint brick-ers, just as there are the never paint stained wood-ers. There is a valid reason in cold clines for the former, otherwise. follow your heart. Your plan now seems fine.

How about a rendering with Grover’s changes, natural brick, and okibujp’s dark widow trim? And definitely no shutters!

This ranch does not need "a serious update"...

To each his own, but I don't see this house looking updated by painting the brick. To me, that's a step in the wrong direction.

I think you'll end up with a white box...please think about this.

Yes, tsjmjh, some people do paint their downspouts to contrast with the house and, as evidenced by the photo you posted, it looks awful, don't you agree?

I'm a little biased since that was my custom built house, lol. It was designed by a prominent architect and his firm and since I let him have free rein with the exterior, we always laughed and said we had a house with "gutter art."

I couldn't find a better photo; it made sense when you saw the FLW lines and rest of the house. (FLW did contrasting gutters/fascia/eaves but didn't like to use downspouts, which is why most of his houses leaked.) And our gutters/downspouts weren't "painted"; the color was picked by the architect(s) and gutters were custom made with baked enamel finish that never chipped or faded.

I just realized your windows are vinyl (?) so they can't be painted. you might want to look at a mockup that reflects that. I had mentioned above that I love white houses with black (or another dark color) trim, but I wonder what that would look like if you can't paint your windows? possibly too much white after all?

also, just a quick aside: are you painting the concrete patio? I painted mine dark grey, and it shows everything. I feel like I have to sweep / clean it more often than normal. sounds weird, but the concrete walkway next to it seems to be more forgiving when between sweepings. I'm guessing it's because concrete has some subtle color variation and texture to hide the crud, if that makes sense.

I just remembered there's an apartment near my neighborhood that has a similar mid-century brick feel as your house, and a similar color scheme as what you're thinking. it has vinyl windows, but they painted inside the casings and the skinny trim around them. I really like how they did a two-tone thing with the bottom part being darker.

my picture doesn't exactly do it justice, but I think it looks terriffic.

if you're into the modern look, maybe consider those really big metal house numbers as an accent? this is an opportunity to have fun with other accents: light fixtures, etc.

(sorry this is not a great photo)