Saturday, January 30, 2021

Antique Paint Colors for Historic Houses

While Repose Gray technically has a green/taupe undertone, I’ve found it to be barely visible. At full strength, you may see the green pull out of the shadows a bit, but nothing concerning at all. While the former is the easier route to go, the latter will still give you that same sense of flow but will add more contrast as you walk room to room.

best paint colors for older homes

I know this is a very old post, Kristie, but in the hopes that you’ll still respond …. My husband, and I live in a charming brick home with great bones. While I was away visiting family, my husband arranged a huge surprise for me. He replaced our kitchen sink, and faucet, and his choices for those are absolutely perfect. Unfortunately, he also had very dark granite countertops installed, and the granite extends up the walls . I know it was very expensive, and he thought I’d be thrilled with his gift, but I hate it.

Ranch Style House Exterior Paint Ideas

A neutral color scheme, painted brick, and various undertones can all help your house stand out as unique in your area. Sometimes all you need is a palette of warm earth tones that work well together, especially when there are so many wood trims, brick accents, and lovely landscaping. If your grandparents desire a classic house design, but you want one that fits the contemporary age, you may find the best of both worlds in achromatic mushroom bisque colors. The greatest option for a ranch-style house design is to choose the lightest shade of that color palette if all of the fixed features in your home are achromatic.

best paint colors for older homes

Research has always been considered a reliable tool for choosing paint colors that reflect the original appearance of an older home. In recent decades, however, advances in technology have ramped up the accuracy that is possible in reviving an old home with its original color palette. Of course, you have the freedom to choose colors that suit your taste. If choosing historically accurate colors for your historic home is a priority, the following can help.

Painting Historic Homes: Best Paint Colors for Older, Historic Homes

Mint looks great against both painted and stained trim and is the perfect backdrop for metallic accents. So what paint colors are best for the interior and exterior of a historic home? If you are painting a room with low ceilings and dark trim, paint the walls and trim the same dark color to give the appearance of a higher ceiling.

best paint colors for older homes

“Most people don’t want their house super, super-bright on the day-to-day, but when you go to sell, it’s really wise to get much brighter bulbs if you feel that your house is a bit dark. Those small things can make a really big impact,” Knapp shares. Neutral colors jumpstart the imagination and inspiration of your potential buyer, which allows them to imagine your home with their furniture and style. In HomeLight’s Top Agent Insights Report for Q1 2020, 98% of top agents surveyed agreed that neutral color schemes are the most popular with buyers. Pale beige-pink paint softens the exterior of this home, while teal blue trim and russet red doors add definition to the facade. This brick house from A Beautiful Mess has a painted satin white exterior and a blushing pink door, with cacti lining the entry steps that adds some greenery and visual interest to the facade.

Neutral Paint Colors for Historic Homes? No Way!

Call us biased, but we think old homes deserve a little respect when it comes to choosing paint colors for both the interiors and exterior. This is not to say that you must stick with that avocado green in your vintage bathroom. But we do think that older homes retain more of their character and charm when colors in keeping with the home’s era are used. So Maycock dug up other resources, showing the couple paint-company brochures from the 1880s and 1890s with color illustrations of period houses. "The colors that were popular then were deep and rich—lots of golds, russets, and olives," says Maycock.

Older homes sported lots of stained wood trim, as well, and grays and beiges simply DIE next to lots of wood tones. Neutral paint colors for historic homes results in a lackluster effect, at best. This home from Crisp Architects demonstrates why an elegant white house with black shutters is a timeless choice that looks good day or night and in any season or weather. With a blanket of snow on the ground and golden light emanating from every window, it's a textbook definition of a warm and welcoming home.

Victorian homes are reflected most accurately with colors inspired by nature. Whether three shades in the green family or a palette using shades of tan and taupe, historical accuracy in painting the exterior of Victorian homes accentuates the ornate woodwork, patterns, and glasswork. Magnolia's Weathered Windmill is a medium gray with soft green undertones and creates a warm inviting space when paired with natural wood trim.

best paint colors for older homes

A neutral green is a lovely choice for a home with wood trim because it feels earthy and woodsy, and plays up the look of organic wood. The Spruce Best Home's Quiet Green (SPR-09) is a muted, soft green that works best with lighter or medium natural wood trim. Use this darker green for an accent wall when your room has dark trim. If windows abound in your living room, choose shades of green that coordinate with the exterior plantings. Sage green, with its gray overtones, works as wall color and can be coordinated with cream, pale terra cotta and deep persimmon.

A room containing wainscot provides a good opportunity for a contrast between light and dark. A dark wainscot below a bright wall will draw attention to the upper walls, while a bright white wainscot next to a colored wall will focus the eye on the wainscot. Today, however, finishes are also being used to create visual effects on the entire wall. Paint one wall in a flat or satin finish and the adjacent wall in a semi-gloss, both in the same color, and “when the light hits the walls, it creates a corduroy or velvet effect,” says Doty Horn. Similarly, you can paint the walls flat and the ceiling semi-gloss to achieve a matte and sheen contrast.

Every time I see a historic home done over in white, beige, and plain gray, I cringe internally. That and getting rid of all of the architectural elements that make these homes unique and charming. For the life of me I will never understand why someone would buy a historic home and then eliminate the very things about it that make it special. "It seems like many houses from this period have every part of the facade painted a different color," she says. "Our house is pretty simple, and its details are straightforward—and we want to keep it that way."

Victorian Palette Tried Another Way

Lighter neutrals and earthy tones will make a smaller house appear larger. Consider off-white, light yellow, light gray, or other pale hues to reflect higher amounts of light than darker hues, creating an optical illusion or tricking the eye. This Coral Gables, FL home by Maite Granda is painted in a soft shade of white, with gunmetal gray paint on the door frame, handrails, and trim that adds definition. Colonial Revival (1885–1915) homes are marked by lighter colors, so the use of ocher, yellow, tan, gray, blue, and green with an off-white trim is ideal.

best paint colors for older homes

Don’t get me wrong – some of my favorite paint colors of all time have a strong blue undertone. They just aren’t colors I would rely on to work as a whole house color. A top agent can guide you with colors and other preparations to get the most return out of your investment. Use HomeLight’s Top Agent Match Tool to connect you with a local agent who can provide you expert advice on all the best paint colors for selling a house in your market. You can add floor lamps and brighter bulbs to brighten darker rooms.

Let the rug be the focal point and the walls a lighter color,” says Sherwin-Williams’s Sheri Thompson. Keeping trim color consistent in adjoining rooms that have open entryways generally offers a sense of cohesiveness, providing an unbroken line that is pleasing to the eye. In an open plan, consider painting all the trim white, even where wall colors vary. Many people will advise you on choosing beige because it looks natural.

best paint colors for older homes

A moody navy can look starkly modern or perfectly old world, depending on how you stage it. Paired with a mix of antiques (with just the right amount of tarnish!), a splash of navy adds instant drama to any room. Use paint in the following four methods to modernize the curb appeal of your ranch. These complementing colors will make your home appear sophisticated and dramatic if it is a one-story property with lots of windows and little rooms in the attic. BM Simply White is also another popular choice, though it has a sneaky yellow undertone so I would only use it in a semi-gloss finish to offset that.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Texas Mortgage Calculator: Estimate Your Monthly Payment

Table Of Content Mortgage options and terminology Remember to budget for home repairs What are the average annual property taxes in Texas? H...