Exterior Colors As with interior painting, when exterior painting it is advisable to think in terms of sets of colors rather than single colors. However the activity is often more difficult because houses are often built of a variety of materials that all have different textures, such as real wood siding paired with a natural stone foundation or a brick building with real wood trim. If you wish to emphasize the difference in textures, paint each element an alternative color.
Understanding the Whole Picture When picking colors, note that two colors which may work well alongside one another as a siding and trim blend, may clash with the roof color or various other elements like the deck or landscaping design. So when picking colors, remember to factor in things you can't, or won't change, such as the roof material, the close by landscape and plantings, any masonry work, and the color of your neighborhood friends' houses.
Local Customs When deciding on a house color, consider the neighborhood customs in your town. It is significantly common for cities and neighborhoods to insist upon some control over house colors. For example, in the resort community of Hilton Head, South Carolina, residents must choose external surfaces colors from a restricted palette of muted shades and even the stop signs have color limitations, whereas in the town of Charleston, there's a well-known district of pastel-colored houses called "Rainbow Row" where bold colors are welcome. Some planned communities can even fine you or force you to repaint your home unless you use one of the accepted paint colors.
Testing Different Color Layouts As with the inside color selection process, you can start choosing color position without actually painting anything. Copy or sketch an outline drawing of your residence and then make several photocopies to try different plans. Start using a pencil or highlighter and shade your home’s features and experiment with several high-lighting options. Determine which features you want to emphasize and which ones you want to hide. The goal here is to make a well balanced whole where no aspect appears to dominate. By "pre-painting" this way you won't only avoid any disappointments you'll be encouraged to try some distinctive plans before you pick up the paintbrush.
Some paint stores have computers that will "paint" your house for you directly on the screen. The better systems are prepared to scan a high-quality picture of your house. Or you can offer a high image resolution digital image. Even if you are not able to get an exact reproduction of your house, these programs will give you a feeling of what sorts or combinations are pleasing and demonstrate some ideas of how you might paint.
Now that you have selected the colors for your home it is time to decide which colors should be assigned to specific architectural elements. Generally the siding is painted in a single color, but if there is attractive molding above the first floor, a second color siding can be quite interesting. Casings around doors and windows should all be the same color or the house will seem too busy. If there are ornamental highlights in your trim and molding, two or more colors are fine if the pattern repeats on the whole house. Some Victorian homes can look well balanced with six colors, so there is no firm rule.
One common fashion is to color the window sash and trim a color that is lighter than the body of the house. Shutters, if present, are usually coated darker than the house body. Needless to say, fashions change. For example, at the turn of the century, gloss black was typically the most popular choice for the windows sash. But you seldom see gloss dark-colored paint today except on shutters.
Highlight ornate trim work, below left, with eye catching colors.
Below are a Couple Techniques for other Architectural Highlights:
Entrance Create a striking effect by adding an highlight color to this important element of your home. For example, a white home with a door decorated a bright color, such as red or green, pulls attention to the door making the access seem more appealing.
Frieze A historically appropriate treatment for the frieze is by using both the trim and body colors. Let the trim color to be the prominent one to draw a clear differentiation from the top of the siding. Be careful not to introduce too many colors; you might end up with an impact that is way too busy.
Brackets Brackets have to be perceived as part of the overall composition and should be painted in order to never appear they are "floating free" of the framework. Use the basic trim color. Stay away from too much color. Some painters put in a leading color of scarlet to these features.
Sandwich Brackets Sandwich brackets are a little different. Because they contain more than one layer and are more complex than simple corner brackets, it is more satisfactory to make use of several colors. Paint the exterior parts to complement the trim and frieze, and the center another color to show off your scroll work.
Posts If you have simple rectangular wooden posts on the porch, you probably don't want to emphasize them with their own color. Paint them to match either the entire trim or body paint of your house. However, if your posts have special millwork, such as a chamfer on the square post or a ring on the turned post, it is quite acceptable to focus on these designs with a flourish.
Many people like to paint porch ceilings sky blue because they state the color mimics nature. White columns add a nice contrasting touch.
Railings The rails are essentially extensions of the posts. Therefore, they're usually decorated in the same color as the posts.
Balusters Try painting the balusters a lighter color than the rails. In case the posts and rails have been treated in the main body color, try to use the trim colors to make sure they stand out. Even if you have elaborately worked balusters, avoid way too many colors to show your handiwork. Aside from the amount of time that might be involved in highlighting each baluster, the effect will look busy.
Floor and Ceilings Porches are painted certain colors not only for decoration, but as matters of practicality. Light colored ceilings help maintain a feeling of airiness and brightness. Painting porch ceilings blue is a method that has been used for years and years to suggest the sky over head. It is rumored to keep nesting bugs, such as bees, from settling in. In case the undersides of your porch roof rafters are uncovered, you might paint them by utilizing a combination of the body and trim colors. A dark floor is even more functional since it shows dirt and grime and tracks less readily when compared to a floor colored in a lighter color.
Steps and Risers The risers of wooden steps are usually painted the trim color, as the treads carry a surface (porch or deck) to the ground and should be painted in the same color. The handrail and balusters on the steps should be decorated to match the porch rail and baluster color scheme.
Concrete Foundations Many houses have a ring of brick or concrete block below the siding. While it is fine to have this band the same color as the siding, a darker color makes the home seem solidly planted and will hide dirt and mud. Basement windows are usually decorated the same dark color to de-emphasize them.
A bright accent color, below left draws focus on this door.
Pro tips: There are many online paint planning programs. Leading paint manufacturers such as Benjamin Moore (www.benjaminmoore.com), Valspar (www.valsparatlowes.com), Glidden (www.glidden.com), and Sherwin Williams (www.sherwin-williams.com) feature paint color planners online. Simply search "virtual paint color planner" on the web for a list.
A great way to take a look at how colors work together is to see them in fabrics. Fabrics are often created by people who study color and have worked with it for a long time. The microcosm of any couch and pillow combination in a popular catalog may hold the color design that can make your home look spectacular
Pre-made Color Schemes Deciding on the specific colors in a multicolor plan is just a little tricky. It is the reason that almost all of the major paint companies have created "combo cards" to help you to pick body, trim, and highlight colors in a single step. These colors are also available in historic shades designed to match the most common color schemes of certain periods. One nice feature of these cards is that the trim and highlight color chips often overlap the body color, which helps demonstrate a far more realistic relationship.
Sound Quality Painting
824 90th Dr SE suite B
Lake Stevens WA 98258
(425) 512-7400
https://sites.google.com/1upserve.com/painter-lake-stevens
