Exterior Makeover Part 2
When we first looked at photos of our new house online before viewing it in person, we both just kept saying, it’s cute, but needs paint. I shared earlier that every single room in the new house was painted the same weird shade of yellow. We thought from the photos that maybe the exterior brick was a pretty cream, but when we got to see it in person we both realized it was a dirty-looking, off white with yellow undertones. Although we had a lot of work to do in the interior, we were both pretty set on giving the exterior a new look stat with some painted brick. So we did. 🙂
I shared yesterday about how we chopped down a bunch of overgrown, dated trees and bushes so you could actually see the house. That, in itself was good overall, except for now you could really see that dirty brick color. It was time to move forward with part two and give our home a new coat of exterior paint!
Picking a color wasn’t too hard. I was sold on a dark gray color and we put several swatches on our brick to see which we liked best.
We were both drawn to the darker colors (BEHR Wet Cement and Pier). Honestly, they were both so similar that we had a hard time telling them apart, but ended up going with the cooler tone of the two, which was Pier (the one on the right).
Then it was the fun part (for us!). We decided to hire this job out as well and I am really, really glad we did! The prep work alone took our crew a half day—every surface that wasn’t going to be painted was taped off and protected.
Then the color! As you can see, the photo below is at the halfway mark. Already loving the gray way more! We decided to keep the wood-panneled portions white to add some contrast.
It took a full day but every brick got a coat of nice, new gray paint!
Lastly, we painted the shutters black to give the home a bit more of a classic vibe. The muted teal wasn’t working anymore. 😛
So there’s our first big makeover at the new house! We feel so much more proud when people walk by our house now and have gotten a ton of compliments from our neighbors. Next I need to paint the front door—it’s still that muted teal but I’d love to add something that pops! What do you guys think? Red? Mint? Wood? Help! 🙂
Tania Griffis is an accomplished writer, blogger, and interior designer with a Journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma. She started her popular blog, Run to Radiance, in 2011, demonstrating her design expertise through the personal remodeling of six houses to millions of readers across the globe.
Tania also owns The Creative Wheelhouse, a respected ghostwriting agency for bloggers, further showcasing her talent for creating engaging and informative content.
Looks great! I’d suggest a deep red for the door, maybe a kind of burgundy?
Thanks Alison! Great suggestion, i’ll add it to my idea list! 🙂
I like that mint you used at your last house
I do too! Mint is so versatile, it looks great with every single color I think. 🙂
Yays! another post! This looks awesome! 🙂 I really like the gray color on the exterior!
I think a mint green door would look good with this scheme, but I am sure that whichever color you pick it’s gonna look amazingggg 😉
Thanks Volta! I am digging the gray as well, so much better. Stay tuned to see what we pick….whenever I can make a decision. 🙂
Just like that! You truly are amazing! I can’t even decide on a paint color, let alone actually paint 🙂 I love the color you chose – looks great!
You are so kind Caroline! I definitely pick the wrong paint colors sometimes, so i was glad to get this one right on the first try! 😀
Looks fantastic!! I can’t decide if I like the idea of mint or red better for the front door…. Either would look great.
I think those are the two I’m leaning towards as well…eek!
you’ve got yourself some curb appeal. it’s gorgeous!
Thanks so much! 🙂
Good choice of color, made a huge difference. For front door color, how about Antique White , Teal Blue or Indian Red color?
Great picks! Teal would be pretty!
The grey is gorgeous. Well done!
For your door, I love the look of bright citrusy colors with grey. I once saw an acid green door on a grey house and it was scrumptious.
I know whatever you choose will be lovely!
Wow Robyne, I bet that was amazing! I’m trying to picture how that’d look now…hmmm!
I vote red! But maybe that’s because we have a red door and I love it. White house, black shutters, and a red door. It’s my fav! Though I love this grey you picked as well! Looks great!
Thanks Rach! My very first house had a red door, it was so sweet! Brings back good memories.
How fun to do this!! It makes it more your own, and it looks great!
Thank you Brittany! It definitely is fun to put our stamp on it! 🙂
Great improvement! How did the painters paint behind the bushes?
Thank you Jill! There’s actually a bit of a gap back there between the house and bushes on one side so it wasn’t too difficult. 🙂
Wow, you are B R A V E! I don’t think I’d have the nerve to paint the brick, but my goodness, what an improvement it makes. This house just became 40 years younger with that awesome new gray exterior. Bravo! Thanks for sharing on Project Inspire(d)!
LOVE the transformation Tanya! Great job on your brick painting! Good paint color choice on the shutters. I’m leaning towards a deep red or deep teal for the front door!
Love the end result! Even though I’m a sucker for painted brick anyway, you color selection looks really fabulous! 🙂
Do RED for the door…you won’t be sorry.