House Exterior Paint Color Schemes

House Exterior Paint Color Schemes – Exterior colors for your existing home or new construction can be the most difficult decision a homeowner can make. The choices of exterior paint color combinations are endless and overwhelming.

Homeowners with existing homes are limited by their hard surfaces (roofs, bricks and stone). The production builder will usually give you choices chosen so that they don’t conflict with each other, but there are still pitfalls.

House Exterior Paint Color Schemes

Exterior finishing is the first decision homeowners make after entering into a contract to build a new home and is usually required for planning permission. My family recently started a new build, so we walk through the process in this New Build blog series.

How To Choose Exterior Colour

We chose Richmond American (not a blog sponsor) as our builder because they have a great reputation in our area and their quality is amazing.

Before we share some of our favorite exterior color schemes, let’s make sure we’re all on the same page about the different parts of new construction exteriors and types of home exterior finishes.

The guidelines for new buildings are the same as for existing homes. The difference is that for new buildings you have to choose significant surface treatments such as roof and stone or brick. For existing houses, you are limited by the roof and the stone or brick already installed.

Exterior Paint Schemes For Foursquares

Start with a Pinterest search for exterior color palettes and look for homes in the neighborhood with color palettes you like. Keep it simple. With many elements, you can choose a combination that clashes. If you have samples, look at them together in natural daylight.

When choosing exterior colors, don’t forget the actual exterior of your home: the neighborhood, the land, and the light around it! Make sure your color choices are in harmony with your neighbors. Don’t repeat their colors and try to stick to the theme of the neighborhood.

It is important to remember that colors look four to five times brighter and more colorful on the outside than they do on the inside or on the side. One of the most common mistakes we see homeowners make is choosing a paint that is too light or too light when first applied outdoors.

Slate Blue Is The Top Exterior Paint Color Of 2023

How the color looks outside even depends on where you live. Densely wooded areas with lots of green trees, for example, will reflect a lot of green light into the home, highlighting any green undertones that were already present in the color.

The strength of the sun in your area will also have an effect. A homeowner living in Florida will experience much stronger sun than someone living in New York, which can make bright colors or whites look overwhelming. Higher altitude areas – like Colorado where The Color Concierge is located – can have the same problem.

Need specific recommendations for white exterior paint for your home? We have a whole section dedicated to it further down the page.

Top Picks For Best Colour Combination For House Exterior

Photo by M. Marceny; the white trim is Benjamin Moore Classic Grey, the stucco is BM Rockport Gray and the trim is BM Kendall Charcoal.

For new construction, first choose a roof and stone or brick. Limit your choices to a strenuous finish. For example, choose only one stone, even if two are included in the price. Choose stone or brick, but not both. Don’t think you need to choose stone or brick at all. Just because it’s included doesn’t mean you should use it. If your stone is busy, choose a solid color roof.

The key is to keep patterned surfaces, such as stone and brick, fairly simple. This will make it easier to choose a color combination of exterior brick and paint.

Exterior Color Schemes

One of the best ways to create cohesive exterior paint colors is to color match one of the colors of the stone you have chosen.

Since brick and stone are earthy colors, you should choose colors that are also earthy, such as warmer whites and beiges. A color like Benjamin Moore’s Manchester Tan, for example, is one of the exterior colors that go with red brick.

Another trick to creating exterior brick and color combinations is to match the color of the grout in the brick or stone to the color of the house.

Paint The Town Red Sherwin Williams Exterior Color Palette

For red brick, the plaster is usually gray with green tones. Finding a similar color to use on the hood creates a truly cohesive exterior paint color palette.

Colors such as Fawn Brindle from Sherwin-Williams or Rockport Gray from Benjamin Moore are good examples of gray with green undertones that are not too bright for outdoor use.

For more exterior colors for brick homes, see “The Best Exterior Colors for Brick Homes (and What Not to Do)”.

Home Exterior Paint Color Ideas

As we saw earlier in this post, there are several different parts of the home’s exterior that you need to paint whether you are choosing an exterior finish in a new build or working to update an existing home. Every part of the exterior should be considered when choosing colors.

Typically you will limit the paint colors to a trim, door color, primary body color and sometimes another body color. If you choose a secondary body color, use it to highlight architectural features like a gable or for another body material like shingles.

A large proportion of the homes have white vinyl windows. If this applies to your home, it is recommended that you paint the decorations around them white. With a light colour, the frames disappear in the decorations. Dark window coverings with a white vinyl window highlight the white vinyl and can look cheap.

Exterior Paint Color Schemes

But don’t try to match the white color of your windows. Remember – light colors tend to look much brighter outside, so you can choose a slightly darker white to create a smooth transition between the window and brick, stone or cladding.

I prefer darker and warmer whites like Sherwin-Williams Oyster White and Zurich White for exterior white trim. In Benjamin Moore’s exterior colors, Classic Gray or Edgecomb Gray will work well as trim colors. If your siding is very light, choose Sherwin-Williams Greek Villa or Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee.

Many bloggers recommend Benjamin Moore White Dove or Alabaster as white trim colors. This is not usually our preference as white dove can be too bright outside and alabaster can distort the yellow. This is another reason to test the colors carefully.

Blue Exterior House Colors We Love

If you have black windows, be careful when choosing the color of the window frames. Painting your upholstery black may seem too heavy. Instead, consider white or use the exterior body color as a window covering. Another possibility is to paint the lining in the color of the body.

The mask should usually (but not always) be the same color as the trim or window. Use a black roofline for a modern farmhouse, especially white. A dark brown roofline can also be beautiful with darker earth tones and rustic color palettes.

The green color of the facade of this historic house matches the green roof and is muted enough to blend in with the beautiful brickwork.

The Top 2023 Exterior Paint Color Trends To Try On Your Home

We absolutely love white rooflines, especially since many homes have white vinyl siding. Make sure you choose a white color that is warmer than you think. If you paint a white color that is too strong, it will look blinding. Basically, if you have white in your home, it will look too bright outside.

If possible, paint the porch’s plinth and ceiling the same color as the facade for a unique look. The white floor and the colors of the veranda help brighten the interior by reflecting light from within. Colors painted near windows can actually reflect that color inside and affect the appearance of interior colors.

If you have a black hood, carefully consider whether you want to paint the base black or body color. I really like the combo black underpants/fascia, but if the bottoms are very wide it can look heavy.

Cottage Color Schemes You’ll Love

Color Concierge client image; Fascia, plinth and window moldings are SW Egret White. The side is Intellectual Gray with a black tricorn front door.

We at The Color Concierge are big fans of choosing a fun color for your front door! There are so many opportunities for creativity here. A bright, contrasting color is often a fun choice for exterior door paint. But a deep, rich shade – like Farrow & Ball’s Hague Blue – can also look beautiful.

Do you need inspiration for your front door? Check out some of my favorite front door colors that I spotted while traveling in Paris.

Exterior House Paint Colors

Now that we’ve established how to choose exterior paint color combinations for your home, let’s take a look at some of our favorite exterior paint color palettes to inspire your new construction finish.

This is the Sherwin Williams exterior paint combination we chose for our home. It’s neutral and beautiful!

Dark blue is beautiful with a red brick home. Instead of white, use Benjamin Moore Classic Gray as a border. It’s more muted than white or cream, in a good way.

Exterior House Painting Color Ideas

Think of the dark dramatic colors – this was our last home. The accent color is more than

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