Front and Center Color: When to Paint Your Door Deep Red
Rich reds draw the eye and send an inviting message. See if one of these palettes speaks to you for your own front door
While rich red hues, such as burgundy and oxblood, were all the rage on the fall 2012 fashion runways, they were already classic colors for exterior doors and trim. But once you've settled on a red hue for your front door, how do you select coordinating house and trim colors? Or how do you know if your existing house color would pair well with a new red hue on your front door? Fortunately, with thousands of photographs of home exteriors at your fingertips on Houzz, it's easy to find images to inspire and guide you.
Check out this selection of homes sporting a deep red front door, along with sample exterior palettes to help you make one work on your own home.
Check out this selection of homes sporting a deep red front door, along with sample exterior palettes to help you make one work on your own home.
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Pittsburgh Paint): Ruby Lips 434-7, Delicate White 518-1 and French Gray Linen 411-3.
2. Ruby Red Door With Cool Greens
I'm generally not a huge fan of red brick, but this home's entry has it, and it looks fantastic. With the deepest red hue pulled from the brick and painted on the front door, the eye looks into the porch and toward the door. The surrounding brick accents balance out and support the deep red color on the door and window trim. The soft muted green siding color and darker accent green complement the rich reds perfectly.
I'm generally not a huge fan of red brick, but this home's entry has it, and it looks fantastic. With the deepest red hue pulled from the brick and painted on the front door, the eye looks into the porch and toward the door. The surrounding brick accents balance out and support the deep red color on the door and window trim. The soft muted green siding color and darker accent green complement the rich reds perfectly.
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Benjamin Moore): Roseate 2078-10, Heather Gray 2139-40 and Gray Cashmere 2138-60.
3. Red Door With Black and White
Another simple color palette with a stunning effect. On their own, black and deep red are very elegant hues; combined on the exterior of a home they create pure drama. The soft off-white house color acts as a nice base for the more intense hues and keeps the palette on the cool side — another good option for a house in a hot climate.
Another simple color palette with a stunning effect. On their own, black and deep red are very elegant hues; combined on the exterior of a home they create pure drama. The soft off-white house color acts as a nice base for the more intense hues and keeps the palette on the cool side — another good option for a house in a hot climate.
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Glidden): Red Delicious GLR30, Onyx Black GLN62 and Marshmallow White GLC15.
4. Red Door With a Dramatic Black Exterior
Speaking of drama, this house, with its pure black siding color and splash of red on the front door, has it in spades. Yes, such a dark color is more likely to fade from exposure to the sun, and yes, this color will absorb a lot of heat, which will get transferred into the house. But if you live someplace with cool temperatures most of the year and don't mind having to repaint the exterior more often, this would be a striking exterior color palette option.
Speaking of drama, this house, with its pure black siding color and splash of red on the front door, has it in spades. Yes, such a dark color is more likely to fade from exposure to the sun, and yes, this color will absorb a lot of heat, which will get transferred into the house. But if you live someplace with cool temperatures most of the year and don't mind having to repaint the exterior more often, this would be a striking exterior color palette option.
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Kelly-Moore): Candy Cane AC221-R, Maddy's Mood KM3789-2 and Draconia AC255-5.
5. Red Door With a Warm, Neutral Exterior
Pull a color you like from any stone or brick cladding on the house or in the hardscaping to help choose an exterior palette. If you pick a neutral hue, such as this light tan color, you have many options for door and trim colors, like red and a rust or camel-orange hue. This is a warm, pleasing palette — perfect if you live in a cooler climate in which gray, overcast days outnumber the sunny ones.
Pull a color you like from any stone or brick cladding on the house or in the hardscaping to help choose an exterior palette. If you pick a neutral hue, such as this light tan color, you have many options for door and trim colors, like red and a rust or camel-orange hue. This is a warm, pleasing palette — perfect if you live in a cooler climate in which gray, overcast days outnumber the sunny ones.
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Martha Stewart Living): Maine Lobster MSL024, Roan MSL049 and Whetstone Gray MSL258.
6. Red Door With Painted Brick
I tend to waffle on the issue of whether or not to paint brick. When it's done well, as it is here, I fall on the pro side. If you opt to go for it, pick your colors carefully. You might be temped to stick with all neutrals so you don't call attention to the brick, but I think the strategy should be to pick eye-catching colors that work well with your hardscaping and landscaping. Pull a color out from either of them to paint the home's exterior, then choose a strong contrasting color for the front door, such as the deep, luscious red seen here. It will draw the eye right on in toward the entry.
What You Need to Know Before Painting Brick
I tend to waffle on the issue of whether or not to paint brick. When it's done well, as it is here, I fall on the pro side. If you opt to go for it, pick your colors carefully. You might be temped to stick with all neutrals so you don't call attention to the brick, but I think the strategy should be to pick eye-catching colors that work well with your hardscaping and landscaping. Pull a color out from either of them to paint the home's exterior, then choose a strong contrasting color for the front door, such as the deep, luscious red seen here. It will draw the eye right on in toward the entry.
What You Need to Know Before Painting Brick
Example palette: Clockwise from top left (all from Sherwin-Williams): Poinsettia SW6594, Extra White SW7006 and Bonsai Tint SW6436.
Tell us: What's your favorite shade of red for a front door?
More: When to Paint Your Door Bright Red
Tell us: What's your favorite shade of red for a front door?
More: When to Paint Your Door Bright Red
I love lots of bold color, but I can also appreciate showing restraint, especially when you have such nice clean lines to work with. If you keep the siding, trim and accent colors on your exterior light and neutral, you can put any color you desire on the front door. A deep saturated red works great here. This is a smart exterior color palette for a home in a hot climate, because light house colors don't absorb as much heat as darker colors do.