Exterior paint feedback please - we went white and it isn't right!
We just had the body of our house painted in BM Dove Wing. The painter left this morning--it's an unfinished job in that he was unable to complete trim/accents--namely, the metal roof, because of the sudden cold snap. So we'll be finishing it in the spring.
We're unsure we want to keep the white, and would love feedback. The original plan was black trim (fascia, gutters, metal roof) in BM Wrought Iron, but we had the painter repaint the trim back to white immediately, as the black made it too top-heavy, plus was a close match to the shingles but not quite right. As for the white....we live in a sunny high-desert climate (Boise, Idaho) and the neighborhood is nestled at the base of some golden foothills. We don't completely mind Dove Wing for the body--in fact, it's a pleasant off-white. Our impression is just, "too much white"--or perhaps we're just not yet accustomed to it, yet. The front columns appeared particularly bright (surface is stucco) and so we toned them down with BM Wind's Breath so they wouldn't look so "Grecian." [the columns are not completely repainted yet] This is probably just a temporary fix while we determine the revised exterior scheme (to be redone in spring '23).
The color of the front door is a "honey" natural wood that we love, and that we want to keep. We thought that bringing in more of that natural wood (by means of patio furniture, or other accents on the house) might we wise. As mentioned above, we intended black BM Wrought Iron on the metal roofs above the front entry but in renderings it really stole away the attention of the front door. Now w'ere not sure what to do with the metal roofs, because we don't care for the plain galvanized but the dark shingle roofs on each side of the lower metal roof limit our options.
At the end of this post, I have attached two "before" pics of our house (a blaw mushroom - builder's choice in 2013). While we didn't like the color, it complemented the surroundings better. Right below this paragraph are the now or "after" pics of the white as just painted (total project is UNFINISHED). The fascia/corbels on the upper front peak have not been painted Dove Wing, yet. The other pics include the side-yard looking toward the view at the front of our house, which involves a small hill that we love to look at throughout the year. The white house now distracts from that view, so we dislike the white MOST from the back/side yard [the sunniest/warmest sides of the house]. We don't mind the white as much from the front curb. The back-yard pic also shows BM Wrought Iron still on the fascia on the upper rear trim [painter wasn't able to repaint before the rain and cold arrived].
We would hate to lose all our money by choosing a completely different color from the white BM Dove Wing - but we want to get it right. We will have a local paint consultant over for suggestions, but also posting here for ideas. We are now toying with either going two-tone (keeping some of the Dove Wing -- for example, we like it on the upper shingled siding on the front facades of the house) and adding a secondary body color - but we want it to conform with our surroundings and not look strange. There are many two-tone houses in our neighborhood. We would also consider repainting the whole body and giving up on the Dove Wing - perhaps going dark like BM Dragon's Breath or Silhouette.
Anyway, all ideas welcome. Thanks for looking!
Comments (44)
Marylee H
last yearlast modified: last yearWow!. Fancy someone actually daring to come here to ask for PAINT colour advice.
The nerve!
🙄
Have a look at these for the lower front facade.
They are from around the same Hue Family neighbourhood as Dove Wing. (which I think looks great by the way.)
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PROJAN MOYER
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Help! I'm stuck - and lurking just isn't working :)
Comments (42)One particular treatment that was done in the 18th and 19th c. when it came to paint, was to paint the entire room in the same color, trim and all. The modern interpretation of this would be to do a higher sheen level on the millwork. This could address the issue of the different sizes of doors and such and minimize the horizontal banding effect of a wainscot. * * * * Mount Pleasant, a Georgian house that has slowly been taken back from colonial revival notions of what it looked like to what it Really looked like --based upon physical analysis-- had very Interesting paint treatment: The entire room, including all the heavy Georgian detail, was painted in one color (a rather drab gold if I remember) The cupboards had a bright paint treatment on the interiors, and there was a brownish black band of paint that ran around the lower 6-9" of the perimeter, intersecting EVERYTHING: door jambs, doors, fireplace, etc...a cut line straight across. (Apparently to hide the splash marks from washing the floors and muddy clothing and such)...See MorePlease step into my new kitchen layout - feedback please!
Comments (25)Peace, I don't have much time this a.m. (Saturday is our busy day, and I don't have any rendering software at home--to keep the job and home a bit separate.) but I have to say, that's a much busier roofline than your line drawing would lead me to suspect! And, it's surprising that the gables run N-S rather than E-W. That's why advice from an experienced contractor on the scene is so much better than an anonymous internet person! But, having suggested that you think out of the box, my first suggestion to you would be to try to live within the current plan without any expansion. That's always the cheapest, and it's the best investment for resale since additions won't "pay you back" unless you plan on living there for 10 years or longer. The chimney and the stairs really eliminate much of the potential openness between the family room and the living room. But, if you eliminate that wall all the way to the chimney, and use the sunroom space, I can see turning your current kitchen into a very efficient galley style arrangement that will still be as open as possible to the living room. Keep the sink in the same location (always a LOT cheaper!) or scootch it down towards the family room a bit, and just run that run of cabinets all the way along that new wall between the patio and family room. THe range would go on that wall between the sink and a full sized glass door (single "french" door") between the kitchen and patio. Put a pantry where you show the fridge, and put the fridge on the new "mudroom" wall (and maybe laundry?). That is, make a wall extend east from the stairwell through the porch (right about where the post is in the rear shot, I'd imagine) to create the other wall of the "galley" where you create a "snack zone" with a microwave (and maybe a beverage sink?) for all of those snackers coming in from outside. The new small "mudroom" would give a place for coats and boots and flotsam to drop before it hit the kitchen. You wouldn't have to change any of your footprint, and you'd get a very efficient kitchen that would be as open to the living room as structurally possible, with minimal structural issues to be solved. No, it doesn't give you an island, or seating in a kitchen, but it will literally probably be a minimum of 50K less of a project, which if you plan on moving in less than 5 years, might make these changes be more in the realm of being able to be recouped. Like I said, Saturday is my busy day at the showroom, so I probably won't be able to check back in until Sunday to see your response to my radical rethinking. And, I'm probably making a few assumptions about you that may not be entirely correct, such as this being more of a first or second home for you (I noticed the young kids toys.) rather than a home for a mature family. If this is a home from which you will never move, then the dollar amount "invested" in remodeling is less of an issue, as you will get years of enjoyment out of creating a larger and more functional space to live in. You might post your current home's layout with a request for other input about creating the optimum kitchen from what exists and you'll get a LOT more input from some very talented forumistas with a more specific appeal to a layout challenge....See MoreWHY ISN'T MY HOUSE SELLING
Comments (33)I just went back and had a look at the garage door. I absolutely disagree that it looks faded and blotchy but then I am a person who loves subtlety and things that blend, especially when it comes to garage doors and garages. So from the photo, I like the way it is. In fact, often I find that a garage dominates a house and this is something that I particularly dislike. A house is for people not for cars and when I feel that a car is somehow more important and the people are living with one, including its fumes, I look the other way. I do not feel that this garage dominates. And my gosh, what a clever idea to have a room above it and that facade. Really lovely....See MoreThree kitchen plan ideas -need feedback, am I on the right track?
Comments (4)You would have to work the dimensions of this out to make sure it works, but what about something like this? If the island doesn't fit, you could do a peninsula instead.You could also flip the cooktop/sink walls and the island orientation - I went back and forth about that, but I thought that since you can see the back wall from the front door, the cooktop there probably looks nicer than the sink. But it could go either way. If you need more clearance for the walkway the hutch could also go where I show the green, or it could go on the wall between the bath and the...See More
PROSabrina Alfin Interiors
last yearI think it looks great. But you need some contrast. Have you thought of having your painter paint the window frames/mullions black? Then paint your front door a bright red and I think you're good to go.
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PRODebbi Washburn
last yearI like the white. I think it needs some contrast. I tried to do a mock up ( tried lol)
I would paint the moldings, corbels and the upper /lower part of the columns.
I actually like the 2 roof colors. the columns do seem a little out of place on this house, but not sure you want to go into changing them, so embrace them and try to make them interesting. You could also bring the wood element form the door and wrap those spots that are black on the columns and make the wood matching. Or even change the corbels to wood.
Good luck!
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PROFlo Mangan
last yearImagine a gray trim on this house. Black trim is kind of harsh. Add some warm elements. Stone, brick or wood.
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last yearbtydrvn
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Flo Mangan
last yearA light wood front door would pair beautifully with the white body and dark gray metal roof and trim.
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Debbi Washburn
last yearBringing the wood element out would be great! What about changing the corbels to wood stained ones and doing some sort of wood wrap on the columns ( I think someone else mentioned this too ) and archway? Then do a nice contrasting trim color ( doesn't need to be black ).
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Jilly
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JAN MOYER
last year Jilly
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decoenthusiaste
last yearJust reading your description of what you were planning made me think you wanted a modern farmhouse; white with black windows, etc. Upon seeing the pix, I got the impression you'd almost have that if those chunky, columns and those front overhanging roofs were gone. Just scaling down the bulk and simplifying the style of all that could help. Keep the paint color going, soften the trim color and save up for a demo of the blocky elements.
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Jilly