Exterior Colors As with interior painting, when exterior painting it is advisable to think in terms of sets of colors rather than solitary colors. However the job is often more difficult because houses tend to be built of several materials that have different textures, such as solid wood siding matched with a natural stone foundation or a brick building with wood trim. If you want to emphasize the difference in textures, paint each element another color.
The Big Picture When picking colors, remember that two colors that may work well jointly as a siding and trim combination, may clash with the roof color or some other elements including the deck or landscaping. So when picking colors, remember to factor in things you can't, or won't change, such as the roof material, the nearby landscaping and plantings, any masonry work, and the color of your neighbors' houses.
Local Customs When deciding on a house color, consider the neighborhood customs in your town. It is progressively common for towns and communities to insist on some control over house colors. For example, in the vacation resort community of Hilton Head, South Carolina, residents must choose external colors from a restricted palette of muted colors and even the stop signs have color restrictions, whereas in the city of Charleston, there's a well-known region of pastel-colored houses called "Rainbow Row" where vivid 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 Plans As with the interior color selection process, you could start deciding on color position without actually painting anything. Copy or sketch a line drawing of your house and then make several photocopies to try different layouts. Work with a pencil or highlighter and color your home’s features and experiment with several high-lighting alternatives. Decide which features you would like to emphasize and which ones you would like to hide. The target 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 strategies 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 picture 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 kinds or combinations are pleasing and demonstrate ideas of how you might paint.
Now that you have selected the colors for your home it's time to decide which colors should be assigned to specific architectural elements. Usually the siding is done in one color, but when there is ornamental molding above the first floor, another color siding can be very interesting. Casings around doors and windows should all be the same color or the house will seem to be too over done. If there are attractive highlights in your trimming and molding, several 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 paint the window sash and trim a color that is lighter than the body of the structure. Shutters, if present, are usually decorated darker than the home body. Obviously, fashions change. For instance, at the turn of the century, gloss black was the most popular choice for the home window sash. But you hardly ever see gloss black paint today except on shutters.
Highlight ornate trim work, below left, with eye catching colors.
Here are a Couple Techniques for other Architectural Highlights:
Front Entry Create a dazzling effect by adding an highlight 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 difference from the top of the siding. Be careful not to introduce too many colors; you might wrap up with an effect that is too busy.
Brackets (Corner) Brackets need to be perceived as a component of the overall structure and really should be painted so as to not appear they are "floating free" of the structure. Use the basic trim color. Stay away from too much color. Some painters put in a leading color of scarlet to these features.
Brackets (Sandwich) Sandwich brackets are just a little different. Because they contain several layers and are more technical than simple corner brackets, it is more satisfactory to work with several colors. Paint the exterior parts to match the trim and frieze, and the center another color showing off your scroll work.
Posts If you have simple rectangular wooden posts on a porch, you probably don't want to emphasize them with their own color. Paint them to complement either the entire trim or body paint of your structure. However, if your posts have special millwork, such as a chamfer on a square post or a band on the turned post, it is perfectly acceptable to focus on these adornments with a flourish.
Many people like 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 are usually decorated in the same color as the posts.
Verticle Railing Supports Try painting the balusters a lighter color than the rails. If the posts and rails have been treated in the main body color, try using the trim colors to make sure they stand out. Even if you have elaborately worked balusters, avoid way too many colors to demonstrate your handiwork. Besides the amount of time that might be involved in highlighting each baluster, the result will look busy.
Floor and Ceilings Porches are painted certain colors not only for beautification, but as matters of practicality. Light colored ceilings help maintain a feeling of airiness and brightness. Painting porch ceilings blue is a technique that has been used for years and years to suggest the sky over head. It is rumored to keep nesting insects, such as hornets, from settling in. In case the undersides of your porch ceiling rafters are exposed, you might paint them by using a combination of the body and trim colors. A dark floor is even more functional since it shows mud and tracks less readily when compared to a floor decorated in a lighter color.
Step and Riser 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 painted to match the porch rail and baluster color plan.
Cement Foundations Many houses have a ring of brick or concrete block below the siding. Although it is fine to paint this band the same color as the siding, a darker color makes the house seem solidly planted and can hide dirt and grime. Basement windows are generally colored the same dark color to de-emphasize them.
A bright accent color, below left draws attention to this door.
Professional Tips: There are various 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 look at how colors work together is to see them in fabrics. Fabrics are often created by people who research color and also have worked with it for a long period. The microcosm of a couch and pillow combination in a favorite catalog may contain the color scheme that will make your home look spectacular
Prefab Color Schemes Deciding on the precise colors in a multicolor scheme is just a little tricky. It is the reason that the vast majority of the major paint companies have created "combo cards" to help you to pick body, trim, and accent colors in a single step. These colors are also available in historical shades made 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 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
