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Be THAT house on the block. shower tile trim ideas
Nothing can transform a space quite like a fresh coat of paint. And while you may have gone ham on the walls of your domicile, you’re ready to think outside the box (er, home) with an updated exterior makeover. Choosing the right modern paint color for your home’s exterior can not only have a major effect on the vibe of your house, but also showcase the geographical region or time period in which your home was built. And let’s be honest, first impressions matter: A freshly painted house can be the street statement piece spotted by passerby, fellow neighbors, and any friend lucky enough to visit.
Of course, painting the outside of your home can be costly and cumbersome, so do your research and choose your colors wisely. In this feat, the devil can be in the details. There are three components to a tastefully painted house: main, accent, and trim. While most homes tend to have a neutral main color, playing with color can be done in a subtle way using accent colors. “Color outside can be tricky because you are often competing with nature,” says ELLE DECOR A-List designer Miles Redd from Redd Kaihoi. “Curiously because of that, color often works in city landscapes.”
Redd says he’s a fan of colorful front doors (he has a pale blue door, himself), which can add a spot of color without the risk of a house-wide color wash gone wrong. “I also recently saw a house with red mullions that was quite smart, but one must be strategic and deliberate and not overdo it,” he adds. Painting your front door in a bold color can be the best way to add color and uniqueness to your home.
Still not convinced the juice is worth the squeeze? As it turns out, giving your house a color refresh can do more than impress your neighbors. A 2023 report from the real estate website Zillow found that rooms painted dark gray or charcoal can help sell your home for as much as $2,512 more. It’s possible that an exterior in full color garb can have an even higher impact on real estate value.
Whether you’re highlighting your home’s architectural details or bringing some vibrance to your neighborhood, adding color to a lackluster front facade or aiming to transform your drab backyard into a Beverly Hills–worthy oasis—we’ve got just the inspiration you need for your next home renovation project. From woodsy neutrals to vibrantly painted stucco, your before-and-after is bound to leave a lasting impression on you and your neighbors. Be that house on the block.
This 123-year-old Victorian in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights neighborhood didn’t necessarily need a color wash to make a statement. The homeowners gave it a fresh coat of Benjamin Moore’s Cloud White, which happily contrasts with the front door’s sultry pop of green (Benjamin Moore’s Rainforest Foliage). Gold accents and eccentric decor items (like the vizsla sculpture that designer Eva Bradley found several years ago that resembles their beloved pooch, Cashu) are the cherry on top of an exterior brimming with personality.
Lean in hard to the Barbiecore trend by opting for a bubblegum-pink house that refuses to go unnoticed. This all-pink house in France’s famed Grasse region is a masterclass in color commitment. “The idea was to create a monochrome monolith in line with coatings found on the walls of houses in Grasse,” says architect Lucie Niney, who designed the project alongside Thibault Marca, her partner at the firm NeM Architects. “It took us time—many color charts tested in full sun or in pouring rain—to find the right pink, one that stood out but that didn’t create a UFO in the landscape.” While this was a custom color, Backdrop's Barbie Dreamhouse is pretty an almost perfect match. We’re tickled pink by this vibrant dwelling.
For this charming fishing shack-turned-cottage that was the former studio of the late painter William Maynard, less is more. After giving the house a new concrete foundation, the homeowners chose to retain the natural, original color of the cedar shingles, giving it a pop of deep red (like Backdrop’s Self-Portrait) on the door and along the borders. The result is something even a color-aware artist could appreciate.
While dark green is a traditional color for architectural details, throw out the color playbook and opt for something more loud and proud. A stone’s throw from the dwelling Monet inhabited in Giverny, France, you will find such a tenement. Billowing lush vines border the vibrant green window shutters (in a cheery Backdrop Troop Beverly Hills–style hue) and staircase for added charm. It’s a green daydream!
If there’s any group of people who could teach us a thing or two about color-happy houses, it’s the Greeks. This pink house with bright blue accents is just a standard house scheme on the dreamy island of Cephalonia, Greece. Pro tip: Complementary colors used together make for an extra dramatic color pop. Similar paint colors are Farrow & Ball’s Middleton Pink and Backdrop’s Blue Is the Coolest Color.
Blues got you down? White columns and powder-blue siding go together like peanut butter and jelly. And it’s just as joy-inducing. The exterior of this Craftsman-style home, awash in something that resembles Farrow & Ball’s Lulworth Blue, will make any house the It house on the block, creating blue-sky energy no matter what season it is.
Nothing says coastal Europe like a brightly colored home with window shutters to contrast. In Burano Island, near Venice, the homes are known for being cheerful and colorful, and this one is no exception. This complex is painted in a color similar to Copenhagen Roof by Farrow & Ball, with shutters painted in an Irish Green tone much like Rust-Oleum’s Satin Vermont Green hue.
Pretty in pink stands true for this Victorian House in Eureka, California. After receiving the name “Pink Lady,” this home, built in 1889, combines tones of blush pink (like Backdrop’s barely there Modern Love), white, and gray, making it incredibly feminine and remarkable to look at.
A waterfront building is a statement in and of itself: Douse it in color and you’ve got something of fabled allure. This seaside house in the small Norwegian fishing village of Moskenesøya, standing among the majestic fjords, is proof that a splash of red paint (much like Behr’s Morocco Red) is a standout no matter how imposing your backdrop is.
It’s classic for a reason: The clapboard house, with its thatched roof and wrap-around porch, is storybook architecture at its finest. Give it a douse of yellow (like Farrow & Ball’s Daytime Yellow) and a crisp white trim, and it is straight out of a fairy tale. All that is missing on this house, once owned by Doris Dar, is a white picket fence!
Bold colors can add a contemporary vibe to historic homes in a fun way. Take, for example, the ultramarine blue trim (like Glidden Premium’s Brilliant Blue) on this shingled Nantucket house, which gives it an edgy vibe without departing too heavily from the spirit of the house.
This stunning Carmel Valley, California, home features its own oak trees, gardens, and views of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Previously owned by Doris Day, the exterior of this 8.62 acre property has a red-colored gatehouse—with bright white detailing—that is the very definition of charming. We’re loving Backdrop’s Bada Bing! hue, which has an impressive likeness.
You had us at palm tree–lined property. This electrifyingly colorful facade, surrounded by lush tropical vegetation, is a livable painting. A tasteful coalescence of mustard yellow and a perky vermillion on this plaster facade, this equatorial retreat is giving us all the summer blues. Try Glidden Premium’s Down to Earth and Backdrop’s Negroni for a similar look.
This Craftsman-style house is monochromatic magic. With olive-green clapboard (much like Olive by Farrow & Ball), a deeper sage green (similar to Vert de Terre by Farrow & Ball) shingles, and a light green (try Green Ground by Farrow & Ball) trim—it’s proof that there is more than one way to employ this verdant color.
You might be surprised to learn that this purple-happy townhome is one of many San Francisco houses doused in varying renditions of this electrically violaceous hue. Something about that California sunshine drives people to joyful repose that is thus demonstrated in an unforgettable streetside display. Take a note from the pages of this brazen homeowner and incorporate high-contrast hues of pastel and neon. If you’re looking for neon and bold, try Barbie Dreamhouse Purple and Porsche Ruby Star by Backdrop Home for similar tones.
Haven’t you heard? Orange is the new black—and not only in the world of bingeable comedy-dramas. In the French Quarter of New Orleans, this vibrant Creole cottage is rocking a daring mix of a lesser-used color. Lookalike tones include Dutch Orange and Charlotte’s Locks by Farrow & Ball. Talk about embracing a zest for life.
This Spanish Mediterranean-style house—that sits on a ruggedly picturesque hilltop abutting the Los Padres National Forest in Montecito, California—stands as a monument to self-sufficiency. The devastating Thomas Fire of 2017 that tore through the property forced a new beginning with hyperfunctional architecture. What does that mean for the exterior? With the help of architecture firm Shubin Donaldson, it was constructed from hard-wearing materials, most notably fire-resistant standing seam metal cladding in a gentle gray tone, much like Dimpse by Farrow & Ball.
For the renovation of this San Antonio house, architect Vicki Yuan says the most dramatic changes resulted from simply ditching the home’s austere white paint job. “I’m an architect who is stereotypically nervous about color,” Yuan qualifies, but she embraced what she calls “makeup tones”—beiges, peaches, and buffs—to give the house a warm, feminine energy. Here in the spa-worthy courtyard, the thick, caliche stone walls are given a dose of what looks very much like Pantone’s 2024 Color of the Year, Peach Fuzz.
This late-19th-century cottage, renovated by designer Ken Fulk (@kenfulk), is a proper tribute to its historical backstory—with a modern twist. Each guest is welcomed at the front door by colorful shutters, painted in Benjamin Moore’s Chrome Green. Who needs a welcome mat when your exterior looks this good? (Of course, he has that too).
The color of this James Turrell–inspired domicile is the last thing you notice. The five-part series of buildings are tied together by 5,000-square-foot sunshade, made of panels of an off-the-shelf aluminum foam product originally developed as an acoustic material. But the power of these sand-colored walls (try Hay by Farrow & Ball) and poured concrete floors lies in their ability to allow the architecture to focus and filter the light emanating from above.
Sofia Quintero is the Editorial Assistant for ELLE DECOR. She helps out with all aspects of print production and is a frequent contributor to elledecor.com. She graduated from university in Paris, and is originally from Costa Rica.
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