They say that style will eventually go full circle, and that is definitely the case when it comes to exterior design and home colors. In the last few years we have seen a strong resurgence of the vivid colors that were so popular in 1920′s era. With today’s super sidings like James Hardie fiber cement siding it has become much easier to be adventurous when choosing colors for your home.
Then there are contemporary and modern designs that often look best in monochromatic-single color finish with bronze and deep grays’ being the most popular. Even on monochromatic exteriors we are seeing that fiber cement siding to be the best as it is stable enough to handle the dark colors.
A good rule of thumb when choosing colors for your home is to go just a little outside of your comfort zone. Choosing the right colors for your home can be a little distressing and overwhelming sometimes. The right choice will be a combination of your own style, the neighborhood you live in and the architecture of your home.
On the average home there are three main color components.
Body color– This would generally be the siding color.
Trim color– Generally your eaves, window trim, corner trim and band trim
Accent color– Shutters, flower boxes, doors, shakes, and gable vents
Here are some tips that we give our clients during the color selection phase.
1. Work with larger samples outside.
In order to have the most fun with this you will need to get larger color samples and take them outside under the natural light. As you narrow it down we can bring out whole pieces of siding to help you be confident of your choice.
2. Color to go.
One trick we often utilize is the Sherwin Williams “Color to go” quart samples. For $6 they will mix up sample quarts of paint for you. Then you can paint the colors you are thinking next to the brick, trim or in view of the roofing color.
3. Complimenting brick and stone
Too often you see body colors that too closely match the stone color when this happens the stone and siding blur together or “wash out”. You want your stone and siding to “pop” or be striking in contrast to each other.
4. Take pictures of the homes that you like.
This can be very helpful for you and your contractor, the more the better. It provides us with valuable insight into your taste and style so we can best recommend design ideas for your home.
5. Consider adding more detail for accent colors
It is all in the details…This is really one of the fun parts of exterior design. Some ideas our clients often consider are crown molding trim, shutters, flower boxes, custom decorative louvers, heavy posts and stained cedar. These are all possible ideas we can help you contemplate.
6. Design software
As a professional remodeler we utilize the best exterior designer software available, Renoworks. We will take a digital photo of your home and put the colors you are considering on your house.
