HELP select paint color for exterior trim to go with charcoal paint?

Zach

last year

last modified: last year

Even though this house is MCM, our focus is to make it a home we love vs. traditional MCM.

We were originally going navy blue; however, we now strongly consider the following dark charcoal color instead:

- BM Soot

- BM Wrought Iron

- BM Graphite

We're considering a mustard yellow or

dark red front door. We also plan to (maybe) re-white-wash the brick.

We don’t have money to do anything beyond paint. Landscaping isn’t in scope for this posting.

We do not like brown/red for the body. We

also want a dark color.

Questions:

1) What color should we paint the trim?

2) What color should we paint the door?

3) What color should we paint the screened in

porch?

4) What color should we paint the

carport/walkway/porch)?

5) What color should we paint the rear door?

Featured Answer

Kay

last year

last modified: last year

Beth, that's not the point. The person asked for help with paint, and the first comment suggested an architect. I think it's out of line, and doesn't help anything. I just don't understand why the question can't be answered without recommending expensive, and time-consuming, unrelated, options. It's a consistent problem that I see on this website. Someone asks for help, and people say "Hey go spend a ton of time, and/or money and do this unrelated thing instead." Zach asked for paint help. Their house does need a bit of TLC, but it's otherwise fine. Zach doesn't need a contractor to tell them to upend their life, when they asked specifically for paint help. Paint cost is definitely not comparable to an architect.

Also, I disagree, it's fine to paint a house which has landscaping, and not every house has to have every tree/shrub/greenery removed in order to paint it or enjoy it.

I guess I'm just thinking too many people come for help and get none, because the "pros" just want to up-sell/cross-sell.

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Comments (22)

Zach
Original Author
last year
btydrvn
last year
The first thing i would do is remove all the landscaping….which is overgrown to the point it is not salvageable…holding off on adding anything new until you have the exterior done will make that job much easier….

then begin by repairing and replacing the damaged or rotted areas ….and evaluating the structural stability of the screened porch….anything that needs replacing will provide the option of “personalizing” or minimizing the MCM look…changing siding sections..treatments to the brick..stone…and working on the concrete walkways…one option would be to layer wood decking over some …or all …of the concrete…making a firm step toward a more earthy than MCM statement…

Finally …and obviously…the best route would be to hire an architect for a full new plan …which may not cost as much as you think…but with a vision ..this could become an interesting one -of-a-kind home..
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Beth H. :
last year
last modified: last year
100%, get the landscaping in place first. paint can come after that.

those hedges are horrible (sorry). Can't even see the front area, the door, or the siding.

some of that wood will need replacing.

go over to Brick and Batten and look up their mcm style homes to get ideas of before and afters.

also, no whitewash on the brick. doesn't go w/the style. masonry paint (Romabio) in a solid coverage is better

similar style. see how they did the brick and the siding? (and no hedges?) you can see the home.

when you get the money, shoot for this redo
btydrvn
last year
Removing the landscape will open up a full view of the house….which will also inspire lots more options for change
btydrvn
last year
And make the house much easier to work on..
Kay
last year
last modified: last year
I like a charcoal gray, or black, if you want it more contemporary. If you like vintage, another warm brown would be lovely. I definitely favour yellow, with dark colours. I think it would be amazing!

Not sure why everyone is talking about landscaping, and architects when you said you don't have money beyond paint. It's like asking someone for a recipe for cake, and they start organizing a wedding. Completely tone-deaf and out of place xD
Zach thanked Kay
PRO
Beth H. :
last year
last modified: last year
kay, a lot of the landscape can be DIY. doesn't need to cost an arm and a leg to pull out hedges, redo some sod, flower beds, etc. (unless they're elderly)

But it doesn't make any sense to ask about colors and advice when you can't even see the front of the house.

something like these concrete pavers can be a DIY project. doesn't cost a lot.

This color is BM Iron Gray and Seapearl
palimpsest
last year
I would not pick out any individual parts of the house with different colors and I don't think I would pick out most of the trim in a different color. I think I would just do the horizontal cornices in the trim color. This may be your opportunity for a very dark blue. The many bright colors for the door will work with a dark gray/dark blue primary palette.

To me it looks like the most deteriorated part of the siding is just a shed in the carport. Could it just be removed entirely?

Are all your windows real, operable windows? Much of the glass area in my 1965 house was just plate glass set into a wood frame and held in by quarter round. Some of the window frames were literally 2x4 lumber.
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
last year
Fixing the landscaping can be essentially DIY over time - removing the bushes might require a bit of help, but a landscape plan can often be a free or low-cost amenity at a local nursery - in exchange for buying some or all of the replacement plants there. It's always a lot of bang for the buck.

If you are going to "whitewash" the brick with another white, or a blue, I think that you will want to pick up that color in the trim - at least some of the trim - as well.

I see a lot of cleaning and prep on the siding, seems to be a lot of mildew/fungal staining? that all has to be remediated before paint or stain, I believe.

I agree that current color is not good. I am a big fan of Urbane Bronze on siding, especially when paired with a creamy rich white. - then accent color on the doors can be a golden sand, or a pretty mid tone, or not-too-dark blue, or red. Perhaps Bue on the doors, and a similar blue on the undersides/ceilings of the overhangs.

The above will work with a dark gray too, but a whiter white for a crisp effect.
palimpsest
last year
I don't hate the style/idea of the current landscaping, it looks like the hedge conceals outdoor lighting and it acts as a rectangular horizontal mass that mimics the massing of the house. It's just a little overgrown. Vintage houses often look nice with vintage landscaping, it's all a piece.

I think a lot of current styles of landscaping have gotten awfully theme park-ish, ten pounds of crap shoved into a 5 pound sack. That often suits houses that take the same approach with their facade, but it doesn't always look quite right on a vintage house.
PRO
Beth H. :
last year
last modified: last year
Kay, I get that. wasn't trying to downplay the painting part. my only complaint was "you can't see the front of the house".

It's going to cost a pretty penny to get that house painted because of all the prep work that has to be done. More than usual.

those hedges are just horrible. sorry, but they are. they completely block the front of the home. Getting their hands dirty doesn't have cost anything. I gave examples of mcm inspired front yards that don't have to cost a lot.

I don't see the point paying 8K for painting the house, and then fretting over a door color that nobody is going to see!

But yes, I do agree w/some dark colors and the bright door.

and I like some of that natural cedar (it can be sanded, stained and varnished) next to the darker tones

use this for the brick tinted to any color

Doing the brick in a white, and the siding in a dark gray (or a blue) but leaving some of the cedar (re-staining it) could look something like this.

BM Gentlemans Gray

here's their front. Now look at the second pic

they already have that porch covering/car port. removing the hedge/shrubs, painting the brick, the siding, and perhaps re-stain the wood around the front door, could give a similar look to this after shot.

similar front. (with the covered patio section) I like the dark trim around the windows(if their windows are white)
Zach
Original Author
last year
last modified: last year
@Kay THANK YOU!!! I’m new to the forum, but literally for every post, 50% of the people who respond ignore my question and just throw out very expensive things to do to your home… it’s so common it almost comes across as intentional or part of the community culture.

Thank you again for saying something, I was beginning to lose faith in the forum.

For everyone else:

I’m not asking for landscaping or architectual recommendations. We will also be addressing wood-rot issues - but I don’t have questions for the forum on that. I’m just seeking advice/recommendations for trim color to go with one of the colors (BM Soot), per my OP.
PRO
Beth H. :
last year
last modified: last year
zach, the advice I gave doesn't have to be expensive. a lot of what I suggested is perfectly doable for young, able-bodied people. I know because I've done it on my own home.

If all you want is a trim color to go w/soot, pick something like Simply White or Behr Swiss Coffee. (I prefer Behr paint to BM, believe or not). Why not get some samples and do a portion of the house so you get an idea how it looks?

I only mentioned the hedge so you could actually see the front of your house and the colors you're painting.

Around your front door area I would sand that wood, stain it a cedar color, seal it, and have the natural wood color. it will look a lot better than doing a dark color around that recessed door.

I also mentioned doing the Romabio masonry, and not the limewash. if you like the mcm look, do a full coverage and not a limewash.
Zach
Original Author
last year
I get it. Thanks for the paint advice.
Zach
Original Author
last year
@palimpsest - What specifically would you treat as trim and do in a different color (roof line - currently no gutters FYI), carport/walkway, screened in porch?

What color for the trim?

- We do not like brown/red

Many of the windows are being replaced with vinyl. I’d prefer not to focus this thread on much more than paint.

The siding will be repaired as needed. The shed will be repaired, not torn down.

Right now we’re leaning towards BM Soot.

Thanks!
palimpsest
last year
If you are going white vinyl windows, I would have the white around the sash being the only white trim on those parts of the house.

Then the only other thing I would paint a different color than the body of the house would be the fascia, that's it. And I am not sure I would go as high contrast as white. I might go with the dark navy grey on that.
Zach
Original Author
last year
So this is what we’re now thinking…

- Exterior Body (Siding/Brick): Sherwin Williams 7069 Iron Ore (flat)

- Front Door: SW 6685 Trinket (Semi-Gloss)

- Porch/Walkway/Trim: SW 6258 Tricorn Black (Gloss)

- Ceiling of Walkway: SW 9166 Drift of Mist (Flat)

We will of course test first, but think this will look good.
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
last year
On my computer, Drift of Mist looks to have a lavender undertone, which would not play well with Trinket or maybe not Iron Ore

You are wise to get samples and test it out!

Please come back and show us your finished project, we always like to see the results! (and we learn from that, too.)
palimpsest
last year
I would consider not using a flat paint on the light ceiling of the walkway area, maybe matte, something that can be cleaned. It will not get cleaned by the weather like the siding will.
Zach
Original Author
last year
That’s good advice.

Our neighbors house is a light grey, hopefully this looks substantially darker than their house in daylight.
apple_pie_order
last year
Please post an update when you are ready.