Exterior Color Tips
Selecting Exterior Paint Color with Dreams Painting
Choosing an exterior paint color is a decision that adds beauty and curb appeal to your home. It’s also one you’ll live with for 7 to 10 years, so you’ll want to make sure you are comfortable with your pick before and after the paint dries!
What You Can Expect from Us?
We are prepared to help you select your exterior paint color or solid stain. At your request, we will provide you with popular and architectural-based color palette materials from top paint manufacturers such as Sherwin Williams®, Benjamin Moore®, and BEHR®.
We can also accompany you to your local hardware or paint store to help select samples and test them. Since paint chips are manufactured with ink, not paint, the true color may look significantly different on large outdoor surfaces. We recommend painting a test spot of at least one square foot on the exterior of your home for an accurate analysis.
Consider the Light
The appearance of a color’s hue or vibrancy may alter at higher and lower light levels. Be sure to view your test spot both day and night, and in different types of daylight—sunny, cloudy, and so on. To help you narrow your selection at the paint store, consider the direction your house faces. If your house faces north, the color will look cooler, while a southern exposure warms the color because of the higher amount of UV light.
Sunlight Exposure
Another consideration is how quickly the paint may fade due to your home’s sun exposure. While our painting techniques are designed to give you the longest-lasting color possible, some colors simply fade more quickly than others. To lessen the effects of fading too quickly, choose earth-tone colors such as browns or tans.
Initial Steps to Exterior Paint Selection
It’s important to first evaluate the things you can’t change, so you can pick a paint color that works harmoniously with them.
Potential restrictions include:
Regulations of your Homeowner’s Association, such as a requirement for prior approval.
The unpainted material of your home’s exterior, such as brick and stone.
How your landscaping complements the exterior surfaces of your home.
Tried & True Advice on Exterior Painting
While our exterior painters won’t pick your colors for you, we will share some time-tested exterior paint principles to help with the decision-making process, such as:
Lighter colors make a home seem larger. Dark cherry reds and bright yellows tend to fade quickly. It is good practice to reserve these colors as an accent or interior paint.
The front door is the hood ornament of a house and deserves special consideration!
Pick a prominent accent color to highlight a unique and beautiful design element.
To hide an unsightly design element, pick a paint color that matches your siding.
Selling Your Home?
When it comes to selling your home, think about painting from the top down. One of the first items a potential home buyer will look at will be the roof. Make sure whichever color you choose coordinates with the roof. Solid first impressions can create an interested buyer.
Some popular exterior home colors include the following:
White: Makes your home look larger and has a clean, classic look.
Beige: Sound boring? Your trim color selection can make a beige house sing.
Blue: If you go too dark, it can scare buyers, while lighter shades appear sophisticated.