The number of things you need to consider when it comes to choosing exterior paint colors for your house may surprise you.
You expect a paint job that’s durable and worth the investment you’re making—so it’s natural that you have many considerations when wondering how to choose exterior paint colors for your house.
While it may seem simple, choosing your exterior paint color goes beyond considering just the aesthetic appeal of your home. Instead, you have to balance several different factors that collectively contribute to your home’s final look and quality.
1. Think of your home’s architectural style
You may not have to follow the same color schemes dictated by the architectural style of your home, but choosing complementary paint schemes will enhance the existing style.
A great paintjob can transform your home, but it does this by bringing out the best parts of it, which is why playing to the architectural value of your home makes the most sense.
Start by doing some research into the best color scheme for your home’s architectural style to see how you can balance this design with a matching color scheme, and your personal style.
2. Consider the neighborhood
Another factor you should take into account is all of the neighboring properties and their color schemes. While you may be tempted to go with a color scheme of your heart’s desire, it may not necessarily fit your neighborhood.
If the color you choose clashes with the rest of your neighborhood buildings, it could take away from the effect you expected and may even make for some annoyed neighbors.
Even as you try to complement your surrounding buildings, make an effort to differentiate your home’s color scheme from your neighbors to avoid monotony.
3. Plan according to your fixed elements
When thinking about how to choose exterior paint colors for your house, you need to think beyond just your exterior walls.
We’re talking about the color of your roof, the stone or brickwork, pathways, and driveways around your home. These elements often remain unchanged for longer, so it’s important to ensure that you choose your exterior paint color with these elements in mind.
You can look for undertones between them to determine whether the majority of these features are warm, neutral, or cool colors, and then come up with paint colors that will fit best with these types of colors.
A big mistake most homeowners make is simply painting their sample colors in the middle of their walls without considering how the color will look right next to their fixed natural elements.
But it’s important to see how the colors you choose interact with these elements. If you don’t want to paint right next to it, you can paint a sample color onto some poster board and hold it next to any of these defining elements.
4. Pick your color scheme
An exterior color scheme has three main parts: the field color, which is the main color that will go around your house; the accent color which enhances smaller exterior features like the shutters or doors; and the trim color, which is applied on areas like window and door casings, roof edging, and railings.
So how do you choose exterior paint colors for the little details of your home? You must choose a color palette that will properly highlight the fixed features of your home and make these fittings stand out.
For a modern look, some designers are using monochromatic color schemes with only one or two colors. But it can be challenging to make these look good unless you have professional painters.
5. Test out the colors until you are confident
One of the most common mistakes people make when choosing colors is picking a shade that is much too light.
Exterior colors are fully exposed to sunlight, making them appear a lot brighter than they seem, which means light shades aren’t always the best choice.
To avoid being stuck with the wrong color, get your sample colors and paint them in an area where you can see what it would look like in sunlight and shade.
Being happy with the end result is the best part of painting your home so really take your time to test out different colors and shades.
How to choose exterior paint colors for your house—put in the groundwork
There are a lot of things to consider when choosing exterior paint colors for your home and doing things right will take some research and testing.
Consulting professional exterior wall painters can help speed up the process and ensure that you are left with perfect exteriors and a long-lasting paint job.
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