I knew navy was going to be a hot colour in 2013. It was popping up in show homes we were painting. That is always an early indicator of where colour trends are heading. But exterior house colours don’t trend like interior colours do. For good reason, people move more conservatively when choosing colours for their homes.
Even so, the greys and blues definitely have a place in this list.
Take Note of Blue Note
One of the best transformations we undertook this year was converting an Eastside Vancouver bungalow from a nondescript light grey to a beautiful shade of navy. The colour we chose was Benjamin Moore Blue Note (2129-30). We paired it with a rich creamy trim similar to Benjamin Moore Natural Cream (OC-14).
This house also underwent a facelift with the removal of the awnings and the addition of soffits and eves. Our carpentry team did a great job to extend the eves of this house and give the house some depth. It made a big difference on the curb appeal of this house along with increasing its value. It proves the point that painting your home can do more than just maintain it and make it look good – it can make its value go up.
End result? An amazing before and after and a very happy homeowner.
Navy and Gray
This house was another big transformation. The home’s new owners wanted a lighter coastal look to match their personal style and the fact that the house was located a block away from the beach. The original house was a mix of navy and natural wood which was very heavy on this cottage style home.
Benjamin Moore’s Stonington Gray (HC-170) gave the right amount of lightness without being too dull of a grey. We use Stonington Gray in interiors all the time. I love the colour so getting to see it on an exterior was a big treat. I couldn’t be happier with the way it came out.
It has a subtle blue undertone we emphasized with the great front deck colour..
Once again we used Blue Note (2129-30). I love this combination and the idea of putting the colour in a more unexpected place such as the porch floor or ceiling. Painting out all of the trim in white helped brighten up the porch and deck areas and played up the coastal charm of the house.
It’s No Mystery Why this House is so Pretty
When the homeowners of this west side Vancouver heritage home told me they wanted to change the colour of their all white home, I was excited at the chance to play up the pretty in this lovely home. By using a soft grey blue with the hint of purple and matching it with a soft white trim we maximized the beauty of this house and in particular the barrel entrance.
What I love the very most about this house is actually the trim colour – Benjamin Moore Gardenia (AF-10). It’s a soft pinky white and is even more lovely in person. A stark white would have never been as nice on this house.
The black trim along the roof line helped define the details but it was the perfect front door colour that brought all this together. We used Benjamin Moore Mysterious (AF-565) on the front door and as far as I am concerned, nothing could be prettier.
Mellow Yellow
Since my first yellow house many years ago, I have been pretty consistently speccing one yellow house a year. This year was no exception. It was part of a large new home build in South Surrey. The country style house was a perfect fit for matching with the Benjamin Moore historical colour, Hawthorne Yellow (HC-4).
We used Benjamin Moore’s exterior latex Aura paint in the low lustre finish, which is still one of the nicest finishes for getting that rich deep colour to really shine without being shiny. The white we used was Sherwin Williams Westhighland White (SW 7566) which is a great off white colour. I really like this white and will be using it more and more.
For the front door we went with Benjamin Moore Black Jack (2133-20), which was repeated on the interior cabinetry in the house. What a great way to tie in the exterior and interior.
Brown Isn’t Going Anywhere
Here in Vancouver, cedar shingles are a very popular siding material. The downside though is unless cedar shingles are properly stained and well maintained, they will never look as good as they were on day one. That was the case with this beautiful westside Vancouver home. The house was only three years old but they were only partially stained at installation. The homeowners needed a solution to protect the shingles but maintain the look of the house and keep it as close to the original shingle colour as they could.
Benjamin Moore Fairview Taupe (HC-85) was the solution. Paired with a super rich cream colour of Benjamin Moore Mascarpone (AF-20) this house is simply stunning. Once again, using Benjamin Moore Aura Exterior Low Lustre gave the shingles a beautiful rich finish and this house will be beautiful for years to come.
So there is my round up of my favourite exterior house colours for 2013. What do you think?
