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theresa_pondok

Exterior paint color!

5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago

Please advise on what color best suits the exterior of this old house


Comments (157)

  • 5 years ago

    I think it's beautiful. And I wouldn't go so dark on the door. I like the color of the current door.

  • 5 years ago

    Just put shutters on the four windows flanking the entry. It will still be balanced and add interest. I’m presently painting my house dove white - trim and all! I’ll post a pic so you can see how it turned out for grins. I think your white trim makes yours look creamier. But I think it is pretty. I like layered neutrals.

  • 5 years ago

    Honestly, I think shutters only on the two lower windows flanking the entry would be enough. But I’m not a pro, just an opinionated homeowner. ;)

  • 5 years ago








    Theresa Pondok thanked groveraxle
  • PRO
    5 years ago

    I would paint the downspouts and wire conduits the same color as body of house. No shutters. I think expresso color for front doors might work. The White Dove is doing exactly as I predicted from the color analysis. Going yellow. So your front doors have to work with that. Dark brown would probably work. SW Urbane Bronze could work. There are other choices too. I don’t think a color such as bright blue will suit the heritage of your home. You can bring color by planning your landscape to bring lots of beautiful colors year round.

  • 5 years ago

    Beautiful. It only needs landscaping.

  • 5 years ago

    yes Flo reading you sure were right. i dont hate it but it's a tad bit more yellow then id like. my husband loves it at least :)


  • 5 years ago

    wonder how hard it would be to get the door to the wood and stain it

  • 5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Flo Im also not against repainting the stucco- that was actually the fastest part of this whole project so far- only took them half the day. What would you do? I think either making the door work or changing the stucco are the 2 easiest fixes. Then again I also may be imagining things- it tends to take me a while to adjust to change.

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    I would do the stucco whiter then the trim bright white but I am not a fan of yellow on exteriors of vintage homes.

  • 5 years ago

    I think, since you say, you would be up to redoing the stucco, that I would get it repainted. It needs to be whiter and not so yellow. I wouldnt even decide on a door color, until you have the color changed. The primer made things looks so nice and crisp and clean. The yellowy color looks a bit on the dirty side. I just looked at your interior pictures. You have done a beautiful job of restoring this house. The entire house looks crisp and clean and very well done. The outside needs that crisper clean look too.

  • 5 years ago

    Ok Flo- this was the trim paint i believe. The trim would be too much to redo. What would u suggest for stucco based on this? We did sample alabaster as you suggested but it was almost identical to the trim and we had hoped to have a bit of contrast. Seems like we need a more grey white? The other question is we had also considered a blue grey like sw opaline- is this something that should be back in the mix or are we settled on finding the right white? You were totally right about the dove white- we sampled it for a week but somehow it just looks different on the walls now

  • 5 years ago

    This is the dove white on other sides of the house- its actually not awful in general but against the white trim something is just not right

  • 5 years ago

    Flo any thoughts on bm sea pearl?

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    here is sea pearl up top, and I added a few others to go w/the stone


    I used Light Pewter in my kitchen. it's a very nice shade. very light, soft gray w/no blue tones.

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    I will check on Opaline. Bbl

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    And sea pearl.

  • 5 years ago

    Thanks Flo. Honestly, Im ready to do whatever you tell me at this point! I think the way you analyze the numbers with the whites is imperative. Just looking and even sampling doesnt seem to work so well. I put a pic of the trim color in the comments above for reference. Thanks again

  • 5 years ago

    For reference the photo below has alabaster (red arrow) and white dove (blue arrow) samples before we painted

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    OK Theresa, here is the DNA info. BM Seapearl (OC-19) has an LRV of 76 (so it has less light reflective qualities than the others). It has a 90 Lightness factor, so it is light; it has a Chroma of 5.3 so it has some "color" (toward neutral gray); and it has a Hue Angle of 99, so it is in the Yellow Hue Family, cool segment. The BM 1464 Light Pewter (Beth mentioned) has an LRV of 67 so less reflective than Seapearl; has a lightness value of 85, so less light; chroma of 4.5 not so much color and a Hue family of 96, which is Yellow Hue family warm segment. White Dove (BM) has an LRV of 90 so very reflective; a Chroma of 4.5 so not much color; and a Hue Angle of 101 which is in the Yellow cool Hue family. SW Opaline 6189, has an LRV of 74, so similar to Seapearl; a lightness value of 89 so pretty light and Chroma of 4.6 BUT it has a Hue Angle of 134 which puts it in the Green Yellow Hue family cool segment. I would avoid this Opaline. It will go green on you. I can't get any info on the trim color unfortunately, but to my eye, it looks pretty bright white so I think it can work with an offwhite to a clean gray/neutral. What we want is a Chroma difference of .20 to have enough difference between the trim and the stucco body. I will check my listings and see what I can recommend. But can't do it until possibly late tomorrow.

  • 5 years ago

    Thanks so much Flo! I will eagerly await your recommendations!

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    I have been checking out off white colors off and on all day and the problem I have is not knowing the exact color and DNA of your trim. There are literally hundreds of off whites. One that MIGHT work, is SW Eider White. It has a LRV of 74, so less reflective probably than your trim, it has some Chroma, at 3.5, but not a lot, so not too much color; and it is in the "cool" Yellow Hue family. You definitely would have to get a sample of it if you haven't tested it already. I think it will be pretty for the stucco, but I truthfully, can't be sure. If I knew your trim color and could analyze it, and see if it is at least .20 different in Chroma, then I would see this as being a good body color. Others I looked up are Dune White, Toque White, Moderne White, Pearly White. I like Pearly White SW 7009, with a Chroma of 5.4, Yellow cool Hue family and the LRV is 79. So it would be a pretty sure good difference from your trim color. BUT, I fear it might look dingy. One other option, is to get the trim color and have them add black (keeping track of precise amounts) to give it enough of a tint that it would look softer than the trim color. I think I would try that before getting a whole bunch of other samples. Is that possible. You obviously have a wild "natural" light situation, so hoping this info helps you get closer to look you love! Make sure to view from a distance, since most views will be from a pretty good distance. Whites and off whites are hard!

  • 5 years ago

    Thanks Flo! I will look at the eider white though i see some complaints online about it leaning pinkish. Ugh picking a white is harder then i ever imagined!

  • 5 years ago

    Last question tonight Flo- any thoughts on sherwin william snowbound?

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    Sure, Snowbound is in the Yellow Hue family at 96 on the Color Strategist Color Wheel, and has a LRV of 83. It is firmly in the Yellow Hue family so under most good lighting situations, it is cool so will tend to be "perceived" as more white. But it does have some Chroma at 3.6 and colorfulness at 93, so some "perceive" some pink, but that is the lighting and personal eyeballs. I have used Snowbound on interior walls and it can be a bit tricky, so I think I would avoid Snowbound.

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    Eider White has good bones for your trim color, so worth a try. Again, largely dependent on natural light and individual "eyeballs". It should be enough different in Chroma against your white trim to make a slight difference, without being too much color. the only way to know for sure is with samples. But I would do sample boards, not paint on the house. Samplize.com is great source for samples without buying a ton of paint sample pots. Total cost is lower and they ship pretty quickly too. I use these all the time because it is the true color and is mat/flat finish. Sample paints are satin finish which makes a difference as well.

  • 5 years ago

    Here's something nobody has mentioned so far. Do you live in an area where it snows in the winter? If so, you may want to reconsider using white, or make sure the white you use doesn't look 'dirty' or too yellow when the snow is on the ground. I saw a lot of that when I lived up north. I live in FL now and I still cringe when I go back and see it.


  • 5 years ago

    Since Flo mentioned Moderne White, I thought I would let you know that it looks decidedly soft gray against white windows. At least it did on my exterior. Happy to send you a photo.

  • 5 years ago

    Flo i got some more chips from ben moore but couldn't make it to sw today. any thoughts on distant grey or white diamond?


  • 5 years ago

    or super white


  • 5 years ago

    Flo- painter wants to stick with ben moore- thoughts on decorator white for stucco?

  • 5 years ago

    Just wanted to officially close up this discussion with some final photos. We stuck with the cream (Dove white) and I actually really love it. Soft and inviting and different from all the grays out there :) thanks for all your help!

  • 5 years ago

    Just wanted to officially close up this discussion with some final photos. We stuck with the cream (Dove white) and I actually really love it. Soft and inviting and different from all the grays out there :) thanks for all your help!

  • 5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    It is beautiful! Only downfall the spiders like it too! ;-) Seriously it is really lovely, very elegant!

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    Sorry I didn’t get notifications on your thread. This last Houzz revision is terrible. But you sound like you are happy and that’s great. It looks nice. Classic.

  • 5 years ago

    It’s beautiful. I just adore your windows.

  • 5 years ago

    Thank you! Not sure why the photos loaded so funny. Will try again

  • 5 years ago

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  • PRO
    5 years ago

    What color are front doors? Is that a dark blue? They are really pretty!

  • 5 years ago

    Flo they are ben moore deep royal

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    Just have to say what a lovely house and your windows are stunning.

  • PRO
    5 years ago

    Love the Deep Royal front doors. Great choice. I have to make a note of this. Thanks!

  • PRO
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Man, oh man it looks really really good!

  • 5 years ago

    Looks good! I love the warm white and the white on white of the trim. Great choice for the front door.

  • 3 years ago
    last modified: 3 years ago

    Thought I would stop back in to show the final product after some landscaping finally!


  • PRO
    3 years ago

    Thanks Theresa. The house and property looks beautiful!! Appreciate you posting results!! Thanks!!

  • PRO
    3 years ago

    Cute Halloween decos too. 🕷🦇🐈‍⬛

  • 3 years ago

    Wow! It looks so gorgeous. The dark door is just the right blue. It’s such an elegant home and I’m glad you used classic colors. All your holiday decorations will stand out too. These are adorable. Happy ending!

  • 3 years ago

    Beautiful home! What color did you use on the trim?