Exterior Colors As with interior painting, when exterior painting it is best to think in terms of groups of colors rather than single colors. However the task is often more complicated because houses are often built of several materials that all have different textures, such as real wood siding paired with a rock foundation or a brick building with lumber trim. If you want to emphasize the difference in textures, paint each element a different color.
Seeing the Big Picture When picking colors, note that two colors that 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. So when picking colors, be sure you consider things you can't, or won't change, such as roofing material, the close by landscaping and plantings, any masonry work, and the color of your friends and neighbors' houses.
Local Real Estate Covenants When choosing a house color, consider the local customs in your town. It is progressively common for cities and communities to insist on some control over house colors. For instance, in the holiday resort community of Hilton Head, South Carolina, residents must choose external surfaces colors from a restricted palette of muted colors and even the stop signs have color limitations, whereas in metropolis of Charleston, there's a well-known district of pastel-colored houses called "Rainbow Row" where daring colors are welcome. Some designed communities can even fine you or force you to repaint your home if you don't use one of the accepted paint colors.
Trying Different Color Strategies As with the interior color selection process, you can begin choosing color placement without actually painting anything. Copy or sketch an outline drawing of your home and then make several photocopies to try different plans. Employ a pencil or highlighter and shade different features and test out several high-lighting possibilities. Decide which features you would like to emphasize and which ones you would like to hide. The goal here is to create a well balanced whole where no component seems to dominate. By "pre-painting" in this manner you will not only avoid any disappointments you will be motivated to try some distinctive schemes before you pick up the paintbrush.
Some paint stores have computers that will "paint" your home for you right on the computer screen. The better systems are equipped to scan a high-quality image of your home. Or you can offer a high image resolution digital image. Even if you cannot get a precise reproduction of your property, these programs will provide you with a feeling of what sorts or combinations are pleasing and demonstrate some ideas of how you may 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 done in a single color, but when there is ornamental molding above the first floor, a second color siding can be very interesting. Casings around doors and windows should all be the same color or the home will seem too over done. If there are decorative highlights in your trimming and molding, two or more colors are fine if the pattern repeats on the whole house. Some Victorian homes can look 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 painted darker than the house body. Needless to say, fashions change. For example, at the turn of the century, gloss black was the most popular choice for the window sash. But you rarely see gloss dark paint today except on shutters.
Highlight ornate trimming, below left, with eye catching colors.
Here are Some Tips for other Architectural Highlights:
Entranceway Create a dazzling effect with the addition of an accent color to this important element of your house. For instance, a white house with a door painted a bright color, such as red or green, draws attention to the door making the entry seem more inviting.
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 distinction from the top of the siding. Be careful not to introduce way too many colors; you could finish up with an effect that is way too busy.
Brackets (Corner) Brackets need to be perceived as a component of the overall framework and should be painted so as to never appear that they are "floating free" of the structure. Use the principle 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 consist of more than one layer and are more complex than simple corner brackets, it is more suitable to utilize several colors. Paint the exterior items to match the trim and frieze, and the center another color showing off your scroll work.
Verticle Beams/Posts If you have simple rectangular wooden posts on the porch, you almost certainly don't want to emphasize them with their own color. Paint them to match either the entire trim or body color of your house. However, if your posts have special millwork, such as a chamfer on a square post or a ring over a turned post, it is perfectly acceptable to point out these adornments with a flourish.
Many people prefer to paint porch ceilings sky blue because they state the color mimics nature. White columns put in a nice contrasting touch.
Rails The rails are essentially extensions of the posts. Therefore, they're usually decorated in the same color as the posts.
Verticle Railings Support Try painting the balusters a lighter color than the rails. In case the posts and rails have been colored in the primary body color, try using the trim colors to make them stand out. Even if you have elaborately worked balusters, avoid way too many colors to show your handiwork. Aside from the timeframe that might be involved in highlighting each baluster, the result will look too busy.
Ceiling and Floors Porches are painted certain colors not only for beautification, but as concerns of practicality. Light colored ceilings help maintain a sense of airiness and brightness. Painting porch ceilings blue is a technique that has been used for centuries to suggest the sky overhead. It is rumored to keep nesting bugs, such as wasps, from settling in. In case the undersides of your porch ceiling rafters are exposed, you might paint them by utilizing a combination of the body and trim colors. A dark floor is even more functional because it shows dirt and grime and tracks less readily when compared to a floor decorated in a lighter color.
Steps and Risers The risers of wooden steps are normally painted the trim color, as the treads carry a surface (porch or deck) to the bottom and really should be painted in the same color. The handrail and balusters on the steps should be decorated to complement the porch rail and baluster color design.
Cement Foundations Many homes have a ring of brick or concrete block below the siding. Although it is fine to have this band the same color as the siding, a darker color makes the house seem securely planted and can hide dirt. Basement windows are usually colored the same dark color to de-emphasize them.
A bright accent color, below left draws focus on this door.
Advanced Tips: There are several 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 terrific way to take a look at how colors work together is to see them in fabrics. Fabrics tend to be created by people who study color and have worked with it for a long period. The microcosm of any couch and pillow combination in a favorite catalog may contain the color scheme that will make your home look spectacular
Prefab Color Strategies Deciding on the specific colors in a multicolor design is 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 accent colors in one step. These colors are also available in historic shades designed to match the most widespread color schemes of certain periods. One nice feature of these cards is that the trim and accent 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
