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5 tips for choosing a whole house paint palette

5 tips for choosing a whole house paint palette

There are many houses with great curb appeal not only because of size, design, and features but also because of the elegant color combination used to paint the exterior. To achieve a decent and polished look, choosing the right color palette for the whole house is essential. 

Given this, one could only imagine how overwhelming it must have been for the owners to pick different colors and shades to create a unified look for the whole area. If you’re the owner of a newly-built, well-designed property, having the perfect color combination to further enhance the aesthetic value of your investment may be one of your top priorities for your home.  

Many homeowners prefer to make their own choices with regards to the color scheme and exterior paints that will be used in their house. Though some consult with professional interior designers, many people feel more content with the design of their home if they can see their personal touch added to it. Others also correlate feelings of comfort to certain colors and shades which is why they would want to see them in particular areas of the house.  

However, the multitude of color options can both be advantageous and detrimental to the homeowner. For instance, it may be easy for anyone to name their favorite colors but it can be hard to tell whether they would look good on the walls or the roof of a house. As such, you can consider the following tips if you’d like to find out how to choose the best color palette for your home.   

1. Consider the mood and atmosphere 

Before getting started, it may be helpful to identify the kind of mood and atmosphere you want for your home. To achieve these atmospheres, the color temperatures should be considered in creating the palette.  

Here are the three different color temperatures and some examples of each: 

  • Warm: Red, orange, yellow, brown 
  • Cool: Blue, green, purple 
  • Neutral: White, gray, beige, black

For instance, some find it ideal to have a calm and relaxing ambiance and choose cool colors. On the other hand, some prefer the overall feel to be vibrant and welcoming because of the warm colors.

2. Choose a color scheme 

You have several options when it comes to choosing a color scheme. You can choose one of the color schemes while considering the mood and atmosphere that you prefer and select the colors for the palette accordingly.   

Here are some of the color schemes that you can consider for your whole house paint palette: 

  • Monochromatic: This option is ideal for those who prefer a more muted look for their home as only one color will be used in different shades and tints. This is also a great choice for homeowners who have a favorite color in mind that they’d like to use as the main color for the whole house. 
  • Complementary: For this color scheme, you’ll use colors that are opposite to one another on the color wheel. Experts advise allowing one of the two complementary colors to be more dominant than the other. When using neutrals, you can use the undertones of the color to create balance and stability in the contrasting colors. For example, gray paint may have blue undertones. In this case, you can use either of the two as the dominant color in the palette.  
  • Analogous: In an analogous color scheme, you can use up to three colors beside one another on the color wheel such as blue, green, and blue-green. If you’re going to use neutrals, on the other hand, the end product will look similar to a monochromatic color scheme.

Given these options, it may be worth noting that whole house paint palettes commonly include only two to three colors to achieve a cohesive and harmonious color combination that won’t look too heavy or busy.  

3. Identify undertones on key features 

There are some key features in a house that you would want to consider as you create the paint palette. Some examples of these features are tiles, doors, windows, wood floors, etc. You can list down the undertones of each feature and identify if they’re dominantly warm, cool, or neutral. Once you’ve identified the dominant undertone, you can either choose colors that would match or contrast it. For instance, if you have warm undertones, you can select a color scheme with cool colors that would create contrast against it such as green or purple.  

Commonly, roofs are painted using only one color which makes it easy to plan a color scheme that would go with it. However, it may still be worth taking note of the color palette you have in mind that could clash with the color of the roof particularly if the shingles have brown, green, blue, or red undertones. In this case, you can follow the same color selection process used in matching the undertones of key features in the house.  

4. Pick color for trims and accents 

The trim colors and additional details to accent the design of the house may be seen as minor details but can still have a huge effect on the overall look of the home. As such, it’s important to be careful of the colors used for these accents. For instance, many designers prefer to use only one color for all the trimmings to prevent clashing against the color of the body of the house. This way, the colors will look harmonious and the exterior will not look too busy. 

5. Check the effects of lighting 

Apart from selecting paint colors, you’ll also need to take the impact of natural light. Sunlight can turn any exterior color into a cooler hue because of the abundance of light. To counter this effect, experts advise adjusting the warmth of the paint color for the exterior up to three times the original level.  

Conclusion 

Having a whole house color palette will allow you to create cohesion in every room inside your home. It will set the tone for the whole house which you can use as a basis when designing each room. Once you’ve decided on a color scheme, it would narrow down your color options. Thus, you can easily identify which ones will go well with the scheme and which ones would clash.  

Every home can benefit from a whole house color scheme. As a homeowner, you can take advantage of the opportunity to add your unique flair in designing your house by selecting one that you find comfortable and appealing at the same time. Though you may not be able to use all your favorite colors together when painting your home, you can select a color palette that would allow you to use your preferred colors in embellishments and other decorative elements that you can add to the design later on.  

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