Exterior Color Advice

Posted on April 4, 2012

Color is as important to your home’s exterior as its interior. But exterior color is usually applied in the form of siding, trim, and roofing — a far more permanent investment than wallpaint or accessories. With a little color know-how, you can pick the perfect color scheme for your home’s exterior that reflects your tastes and your home’s architectural style.

Tour the Neighborhood
As you prepare to choose colors for an exterior, tour neighborhoods and note which colors catch your eye. Pay particular attention to homes that are similar in architectural style to your own.

Fitting In
Consider the context of your home and aim to blend in. If all the houses are white and you want a darker house, you’re better off with a midtone instead of a dark color. Use bolder strokes of color on smaller elements, like the front door or shutters. Harmony is more important where houses are close together. In neighborhoods with spacious lots or visual buffers of foliage, paint schemes can be more personalized.

Landscaping Cues
Take color cues from your landscaping. A house surrounded by woodlands may look out of place painted in pastels, but natural in earth tones. Sunbelt houses can wear bright colors; in a cold climate, bright shades can look cartoonish on a gray day.

Consider Climate
Take into consideration your climate and how the seasons play out in your region. Imagine your proposed exterior color in stark, snowy winter as well as in lush, leafy summer. Remember that colors intensify and look brighter in daylight on the outside of a house than they do on the small sample you’re likely to choose from.

Take it Outside
Look at your material samples outside in different lighting. You’ll want to get an idea of what the colors will look like in the shade, on bright, sunny days, and on overcast days, as well.

Consider Fixed Elements
Brick, slate, stone, and concrete are known as fixed, or given, elements because you cannot, or probably would not, change them. You could paint brick and vinyl siding, but doing so would only increase maintenance. In general, the foundation color should be the same or darker than the siding color.

Remember Roof Color
Unless you plan on replacing your roof, it should play a part in the color scheme. The size and impact of roofing can be as prominent as siding, so its color must relate harmoniously to the siding and trim colors to create a cohesive color scheme.

Pick the Right Roof Color
Pick a neutral, go-with-anythingroofing material.

Proportion
Factor in your home’s size. Depending on the proportions, you may want to emphasize or tone down certain features. Keep in mind that lighter colors tend to visually grow a home or feature, while darker colors shrink them. Bright colors call attention to features while neutrals let them fade into the background.