Exterior paint colors

11 months ago

last modified: 11 months ago

Hi, this is our little rental house, and it's time for it to be painted and other outside maintenance. It's in an eclectic neighborhood in Central Austin, so I want to have a little bit of fun with the colors but also have it look tidy. I've posted a couple of inspiration photos for colors. Could anyone give me a head start of BM colors to get samples of? The roof hasn't reached the end of its life yet so we need to work with it; it's a light gray color. I think we have a box of leftover shingles, so I can take one with me to the paint store.

Do you think the shutters are original to the 1950s house? I've been on here long enough to know that you'll tell me to remove them since they're too small to be functional.

We're also going to refresh the landscaping--remove the overgrown bushes and put in xeriscape options. There's no sprinkler system, and we have renters here, so things kind of need to survive on their own. I'm thinking about Mexican feather grass and similar, but if anyone has ideas, I'd love to hear them.

This is our house:

We like the colors of these houses. Does anyone have specific BM colors I should try to achieve these looks?

Featured Answer

stiley
Original Author

10 months ago

Yes, there are some really old shrubs that will come out. We have a good landscaper, but there is no sprinkler system, and our current tenants don't seem to care about "cute," so we'll have to be thoughtful about what we plant plus drive over there to water at first. But all this is overdue so I'm glad it's getting taken care of. Thanks for all the advice!

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Comments (15)

littlebug Zone 5 Missouri
11 months ago
last modified: 11 months ago
Removing the overgrown shrubs will help a lot. Don’t plant new ones that will grow equally large! It’s a small house - look for things with mature sizes no taller than the bottoms of the windows.
stiley thanked littlebug Zone 5 Missouri
cat_ky
11 months ago
It appears to be a cozy cottage. I would embrace that cottage feel. I do think you should keep the shutters. They add to the cozy cottage look
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HU-187528210
11 months ago
Such a cute house!!
I agree, I like the shutters a lot!
As well as the current paint…But if you want a change I’d probably paint the base of the house white, or blue and paint the shutters a couple shades darker. Our sage color house with green shutters. Pale yellow house with yellow shutters.

Something about the coordination and pastel type vibe is talking to me…☺️🤷‍♀️🤍
Connecticut Yankeeeee
11 months ago
Cute house! Yes, keep shutters but get some that fit. These appear a tad too tall. Sorry, I’m no good with color selection.
laceyvail 6A, WV
11 months ago
Remove the mulch volcanoes from the young trees. Mulch should NEVER be piled up against the trunk; it should stop a couple of inches from the base of the tree.
stiley
Original Author
11 months ago
@laceyvail 6A, WV that's not our house; I posted the pic because I like the house colors.
stiley
Original Author
11 months ago
@HU-187528210 now you've got me thinking tone-on-tone or pastels.
K Laurence
11 months ago
Some relandscaping & don’t even think about Mexican feather grass. Very invasive, I had mine taken out 2 years ago ( previous owner had it planted ), it speads eveywhere ( seeds ), I just pulled out dozens of new volunteers this afternoon, & it’s been 2 years .
stiley
Original Author
11 months ago
I’m at the paint store now getting samples. We’re thinking light body, dark shutters, color on door, white for porch—similar to the gray and yellow inspired pic. Or should we do window trim and porch the same color as the body?
stiley
Original Author
10 months ago
OK, here's what we went with for paint. I am going to get a new black mailbox and porch light. I think the light should be a bit larger? The green turned out to be more Apple Green, and I thought it would be more chartreuse/olive-y. What do y'all think? Overall I feel like it's a fun balance of neutral and pop-y.
tracefloyd
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
Very nice. Love the landscaping. I like the way some of the leaves bring out that bright yellow/green color. Add a couple more plants in that color to enhance that effect.

Look at Euphorbia (spurge) and yellow sweet potato vine for example:
stiley
Original Author
10 months ago
I like those plant suggestions!
barncatz
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
It's to die for cute!! You did a fabulous job. (Yes, a bigger light would be great. Maybe a bronze color would be pretty with your green.)
littlebug Zone 5 Missouri
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
What a cutie patootie! Very nice.

Just don’t get too carried away with the landscaping and hide the house. There are some shrubs that have reached the windowsills that should be trimmed down. A very large bright red pot filled with red geraniums would be a nice highlight.