Home Exterior Painting Tips and Design Ideas
By: Cassie McDowell
Exterior painting can transform the look of your home and have a significant impact on its curb appeal. A fresh coat of paint can take your façade from dull and dated to eye-catching and contemporary. It can also have financial implications: According to real estate technology company Home Light, painting the exterior of your home can provide a 152 percent return on your investment.
Given how important it is, it’s understandable if the process of exterior painting seems overwhelming. But, to make things easier for you, we’re sharing our top exterior painting tips and design examples. Keep reading to learn more.
Exterior painting is just one way to upgrade your home. Other updates like new siding or a porch addition can significantly boost your curb appeal too. Our team of expert designers can help you visualize all these changes and more. Learn more about our virtual exterior design services.
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How important is exterior paint?
We touched on this above, but we think it’s worth mentioning again: Exterior paint is incredibly important. In addition to improving the aesthetics of your home, exterior paint can also protect it from elements like sunlight and rain. Protecting your siding from the elements with paint can, in turn, extend its life, which will save you money in the long run.
The transformation of the home above is tremendous — and it’s all because of the exterior paint! This client selected our Paint Visualizer package to get some paint color recommendations that would make their home look more modern. We suggested painting the brick with Benjamin Moore’s Gray Mist, a soft off-white. To create contrast, we went with Benjamin Moore’s Wrought Iron on the siding and Sherwin Williams’ Iron Ore on the accents.
Consider your home’s architectural style
Homes come in all shapes, sizes, and styles, and when determining which color palette is right for your property, taking the latter into account can be especially helpful. For example, coastal homes often feature a color palette that’s reminiscent of the beach — think soft blues and greens, off-white tones, and washed-out wood stains. Farmhouses, on the other hand, are often associated with monochromatic and neutral color palettes. Earth tone colors work particularly well on Craftsman style homes, while Victorian properties often feature vibrant pops of color.
All that said, if you own a Craftsman home but hate earth tones, don’t feel like you have to stick within that color family. Use this information as a guide, but feel free to incorporate your own color preferences and personality too. You can also use our Paint Visualizer to see different colors on your home exterior before you commit.
Check out the neighbors
Unless you live in a super remote location with no other homes around, it’s important to check out the color schemes of your neighbors’ properties before deciding on your own. If most of the homes on your block are white and you want to stand out, consider embracing a dark exterior palette. If the goal is to blend in, choose colors that are similar to or complement those used by your neighbors.
The owner of the home above lives in a California beach town where most of the homes have a classic coastal color palette. They wanted their home to stand out and enlisted our help to explore a darker color scheme. We suggested Benjamin Moore’s Hale Navy, a deep, cool-toned blue, on the stucco. We complemented Hale Navy with Sherwin Williams’ Eider White on the trim and fascia. (To see how this homeowner brought their brick&batten design to life, check out their Client Story feature here.)
Examine the landscape
The landscape that surrounds your home is also crucial to consider when picking paint colors for your exterior. If you live in a wooded area with lots of trees and plants and want to connect your home to its surroundings, consider a green exterior paint color. If you have a waterfront property, something blue might better suit you.
The waterfront property above is located in the woods right next to a pond. When selecting new paint colors for the exterior, we kept the home’s gorgeous natural surroundings in mind. We recommended Sherwin Williams’ Urbane Bronze, a warm greige with green undertones, for the siding and Anonymous, an earthy neutral, for the eaves. We chose a tranquil, saturated blue for the front door and another earthy hue for the door trim. Wood accents and a stone walkway round out this nature-inspired exterior design.
Work with your fixed elements
Don’t forget about your home’s fixed elements (parts of your home that you can’t or don’t want to change) when embarking on your exterior painting project. If you know you aren’t going to replace your roof anytime soon, make sure it’ll match with whatever colors you choose for your siding. The same goes for any stone or brick accents or garage doors.
The owner of the home above wanted to keep their existing gray roof, so we made sure our new color recommendations would complement it. We suggested Benjamin Moore’s Bracken Slate, a graphite-green, for the siding and Manchester Tan, a beautiful beige, for the trim. We also chose a light gray stone that works well with the roof and new paint colors.
Don’t forget about accent colors
Some homes look perfectly fine with a monochromatic color palette. But oftentimes, an accent or secondary color is needed. Accent colors can help highlight a specific part of your home. They can also break up a large façade and add some visual interest. You can incorporate an accent color on your home’s trim, fascia, front door, or even a small section of siding.
Test, test, test!
If you’ve read any of our paint color reviews or roundups, you’ve probably noticed that we always recommend homeowners test potential paint colors before committing.
Factors like the amount of natural light your home gets and paint color undertones can have a significant impact on how a hue will appear on your exterior. So even after our experts suggest paint colors we feel will best suit your home, it’s still important to test them out before painting your entire exterior.
Fortunately, testing exterior paint colors has never been easier thanks to Samplize’s peel-and-stick paint samples. Check out our comprehensive guide to using these samples here.
Put in the prep work
While many homeowners hire professional painters to paint their exteriors, some choose to do it themselves. If you’re planning to go the DIY route, it’s important to do some prep work beforehand. This can include pressure washing your siding, caulking small holes, and covering your windows and doors with drop clothes.
P.S. To see how the home above turned out, check out the owner’s Client Story feature here.
Let the exterior painting begin
Exterior house painting doesn’t have to be stressful. If you follow the tips shared in this post, you’ll have no trouble selecting the right shades and applying them on your home. Or, to make things even easier, partner with the pros (that’s us!) and let them put together the ideal color palette for you.
From exterior painting to patio extensions to landscaping, we’re here to help you with all aspects of your home renovation project. Tell us what your design goals are, and we’ll create a customized rendering of your home with all your desired updates. You’ll even get a resource list with links to shop all the products included in our design. Begin your exterior design project today.
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