Here it is!
From drab, faded and chipped “sticky note” yellow to fab, vibrant and crisp Tavern Taupe.
How about those shutters! Remember how out of scale the original ones were? These larger wooden shutters painted glossy black add so much to the front view.
I can’t even get over the windows. We took off the old aluminum storm windows and that alone opened up the exterior. Not to mention cleaning up all the rotting wood and painting the window frames glossy white.
The yellow door is debatable, and I accept that. I love it and others seem to like it, too, but it is really bright. And it goes beautifully with my Black-Eyed Susans that my mom planted five years ago. Unfortunately the heat has already taken a toll on them this year, but they’ll come back.
Here are some shots of the sides and back of the house:
And some details of the front entrance and the sun porch, including my “haint” blue porch ceiling. I actually painted that myself last summer.
All in all, I’m thrilled with the results. I’m still toying with painting some of the brick above the two front windows like I mentioned here. I also have some new plants and containers for the deck to draw the bright yellow to the back of the house.
If you’re just joining me on this house painting adventure, you might be interested in some neighborhood inspiration, my recycled shutters, and a few thoughts on painted details.
Thanks for all of your enthusiasm along the way! If you’re interested, the colors we selected are all Sherwin Williams: Tavern Taupe, Brittlebrush (yellow) and Extra White.
Tags: before and after, blue porch ceiling, exterior, house paint, yellow door
Juliet – your house turned out SO great!! I think the yellow is fantastic and everything pops so much. I might need to take a second look at my house now…:)
Thanks Stephanie! I’ve got a good painter, if you decide to take the plunge. Although you already have the fabulous yellow door!
Wow! That is one mustard yellow door.
I do love how much character the color change has added. Looks warm with a little bit of qwerkiness added..I do like it lots.
Thanks Irene! I was definitely going for a little quirkiness! Maybe that’s why Katie likes it so much!
Assuming you installed your new “actual wood” shutters on functioning brackets, you installed them backwards. They should function at shedding water when closed over your windows, which would mean that they would seem to be backwards when open. Common mistake and looks weird when done right, but I thought someone who’s picky enough to swap out a shutter thats 2″ short would want to know. If they’re purely decorative and don’t function at all, then you’re fine.
Not a big fan of the front door color. Rest looks great.
Hi ****, thanks for the info about hanging shutters! Obviously, it’s easy for me to get caught up in the look of things and lose sight of the function! We never intended for the shutters to actually open and close, so I really didn’t consider what that might look like from an installation standpoint. However, you raise a very good point in good design, that even if I didn’t intend for them to function, there is value in at least acknowledging the authenticity (or lack of!) in what I’m doing. Thanks for the reminder. That said, I’m glad I abandoned the “shutter dogs” (curved wrought iron hardware to keep the shutters — assuming they were properly installed! — from flapping in the wind)! I really liked the way they looked, but we couldn’t get the brick to hold the lag nuts.
My husband agrees with you about the door!
LOVE the yellow door! Your house looks wonderful…
I love the yellow door! I’m really into maize-y yellows right now so I approve! Also, please tell me more about the hanging lantern on the porch! We did you find those and did you wire, etc.? We want to do that too!
Hey Emily! So glad you like the door. The lanterns on the porch are oil lanterns. I’m pretty sure I found them at Kmart a couple years ago when I used to check in on the Martha Stewart inventory, though these are not Martha Stewart. We actually have three of them hanging from hooks on the porch. I think I have some good shots of all three lighted at night that I’ll be happy to share with you. They give off great light — probably not enough to read by, but definitely enough to be in the space with other people comfortably — and I think the flames look really charming from the street. If you’re set on hard-wiring one or more, I can help you find some. I know I’ve seen similar styles recently.
The new colors look great and I also like your yellow door. Do you by chance remember what blue paint you used back when you painted your porch ceiling (I’m thinking of doing the same)?
KKM — the blue ceiling that I painted last year was an old Martha Stewart color called Bluepoint. At the time, she had a blue called Porch Ceiling Blue that I decided was too dark. I happen to have the old (Kmart) color card and her new one from Home Depot. Obviously the branded names are different, but the current color (an exact match when I hold it to my ceiling in daylight) is called Heavenly Blue. It’s exactly the effect you get sitting on the porch, that there is a crisp, heavenly sky above you.
I can also tell you that as I was painting it I kept thinking, “I haint so sure about this…” but in the end I truly love it!
Good luck!
Thanks for all the great pics of the house! What fun! I love the house color and the shutters, too. Did you consider painting the storm door white? Look at the photo of the door out to the screened porch. I love the larger portion of white between the yellow and the taupe…just a thought
I love it! Amazing what a difference paint can make! Love the new shutters, and the yellow door! It’s so different, you see a lot of black, red or green doors, but yellow is so sunny and cheerful! I think painting the brick above the windows would look great, too!
I love your yellow door, too. Our door is painted Ben Moore “yellow raincoat”…and it just makes me smile. I am sure that yours must illicit the same reaction. Happy, happy!
The change is astounding. Take more photos for us when the leaves turn color in a few months, after the trees are bare in winter, and when the black-eyed Susans bloom again.
I’ve been thinking about your yellow door(s) and maybe Susan is on to something with her comment about the white frame around the yellow door on the sunporch. It looks just perfect. Or what about adding just a little more black to the front porch in the form of a larger black rubber mat or an outdoor rug? Maybe black rubber mats on the steps?
Nancy and Susan — I think you’re onto something. I wasn’t sure, initially, but I’ve been scouting front doors again in the neighborhood and I see now exactly what you’re suggesting. And to be honest, I like the look of the yellow on the porch door better than the front door, too, but I haven’t been able to figure out why. I think you’ve nailed it. Back soon with an edited front door! Thanks everyone!
[...] included some photos of the oil lanterns we have hanging on our sun porch last week and thought I’d follow up with some night shots. They make that space so cozy — [...]
[...] I need are some bright yellow throw pillows for the deck furniture and we’ll have rounded out this new color scheme quite [...]
Thanks for the info…this blog has never let me down..and by the way, i love your theme. Catch your next post..Bye.
hi! what a fun blog! we’re live here in richmond too and i was wondering who did your painting? we are looking into painting our house and yours looks great so i thought i’d ask. thanks!
Thanks Susan! We used Lane Brothers. I just sent you an e-mail with our contact’s phone number. They did a terrific job and were so great to have around the house!
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I love the color of your house…we are looking at painting our home very soon and I am looking for the same type of body color…not too gold? Would you mind sharing what the brand and color is?
Found the color…just had to read a bit further…I got lost in the visual splendor!
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What type of paint was used to coat the brick? I watched an episode where the paint was sprayed onto the front of the brick house right over the windows but the paint peeled off the windows! Would the paint be durable enough to adhere firmly to the brick through weathering – I am really interested to know what type of pant was used? Thanks!
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